WHERE DID ALL THE AWARD SEATS GO?

Booking seats with points is easy - when you know how to find them

- GILBERT OTT

FIVE YEARS AGO, saying "I can never find flights with points” was absolutely fair. Today, that's no longer the case, but millions of seats go unredeemed every year because points collectors are missing key strategies to unlock more value from the world’s second largest currency. Whether a passive or active collector, if you're on the hunt for great point redemptions, here's what you need to know.

Searching once is your first mistake To win at points, we must forget many of the things we've been conditioned to think in travel. There is no perfect time to book with points, other than figuring out exactly when flights are loaded into the system. Some airlines (BA, Qatar Airways) guarantee a certain number of seats with points in every cabin. When a flight gets loaded for sale, points seats immediately become available for redemption (typically two or four business class, four or more in economy). People who know their travel plans a year in advance, and monitor the right platforms, can pick these off as they come onto the system. Airlines almost always add more seats during the year of selling, but these initial seats are gems for some folk.