2 days ago
How to fly for free: Aussie traveller spills her secret for earning thousands of points without a credit card
Travel doesn't come cheap - but a savvy mum has spilled the secrets to flying multiple times a year without spending a cent on flights.
Sarah Fenner, from NSW, has been strategically collecting Qantas and Velocity points for years, earning them on almost everything she spends money on - from weekly groceries to electricity bills and fuel - and she doesn't use a credit card.
'I take a decent amount of flights, like a couple of flights a year, and I never pay for any of them,' the 30-year-old said in a video.
'I collect points, Qantas and Velocity points, so that I can fly for free. No gatekeeping here, I am going to tell you all of the ways that I earn points.'
The mum-of-two explained how she's saved thousands on flights by using points to fly interstate or overseas - whether it's for a solo trip or a family holiday.
'I have taken so many flights on points. Our last family trip to Bali, we flew on points. For my family, we value being able to holiday at least once a year, and collecting points helps up to do that,' Sarah said.
'When I flew to Malaysia, I flew on points. Just this week, I flew my husband's best friend down to visit us on points... I'm flying to Queensland next month on points.
'I literally have not paid for a flight in years since I started doing this.'
The content creator said the number one method she's using to earn the most points is through her grocery shop at Coles and Woolworths.
'I collect Qantas points at Woolworths through Everyday Rewards, and I collect Velocity points through Flybuys at Coles,' she explained.
For additional perks, including double points and 10 per cent off groceries, she pays memberships for both Woolworths and Coles.
Sarah spends $7 a month on Everyday Extra at Woolworths and $19 every four weeks for Coles Plus.
'I do my shops fortnightly, so I alternate between Coles and Woolworths to get that 10 per cent off, and that 10 per cent discount actually pays for the membership itself,' she said.
'So if I spend $300 on groceries a fortnight at Woolworths, I automatically save $30 on that, plus I'm getting double points.
'You also get points boosters when you're a member of Coles and Woolworths. If I'm buying a certain item, I'd get 200 extra points for it. Usually they tailor this based on what you would normally buy, so that's a really handy way to get some extra points.'
The mum said she earns between 2,000 and 3,000 points for every grocery shop because she normally buys items that would allow her to pocket even more points.
The mum said she earns between 2,000 and 3,000 points for every grocery shop because she normally buys items that would allow her to pocket even more points
'I shop based on the boosters - so (choosing) things that would get me extra points... and I'm not spending any extra money by doing this,' she said.
'I just make my shop around that rather than around specials because in the long run, I would rather have these points so that we don't have to pay for flights than save like 50 cents on my flour.'
The second way she earns points is by linking subscriptions and bills to her points.
'For bills in general, my electricity and my gas are through Red Energy, which earns me Qantas points. My insurance is through Qantas insurance, which earns me Qantas points again,' she said.
'I have business things as well, subscriptions that are through Velocity-linked things.'
Sarah said she always looks at everything when she signs up to any new accounts to 'find a way to make it give back to me in points'.
'It's just about being really savvy and doing your research before you buy things and before you sign up to things,' she explained.
'I'm constantly going back and checking and seeing if there's better deals that I can get between Velocity and Qantas.
'If switching my electricity provider to one linked with Velocity means I can earn points for a while, I will do that. Then I will usually go back to the Qantas one, get Qantas points, it's a whole thing.'
She also earns points through buying petrol for her car.
'So 7-Eleven, you can earn Velocity points. Shell, you earn Flybuys points, which then goes to Velocity points. At BP, you can earn Qantas points,' she explained.
The best ways to earn points
1. Weekly shop at Coles (Flybuys) and Woolworths (Everyday Rewards)
2. Buy fuel:
7-Eleven - Velocity points
Shell - Flybuys points (converts to Velocity points)
BP - Qantas points
3. Pay energy bills through Qantas or Velocity
4. Book hotels through Qantas or Velocity
5. Catch a ride to and from airport via Uber (Qantas) or DiDi (Velocity)
6. Buy gift cards with 20 times bonus points
If she's buying a big-ticket item such as a dryer, she will look at how she can earn points by using gift cards.
'So I needed a new dryer the other week. Instead of just going out and buying a new dryer, I did some research. I checked the catalogues for Woolies and Coles to see if there was any bonus points on gift cards for the store I was buying my dryer from.
'There was a gift card for The Good Guys offering 20 times bonus points. Instead of just spending $500 on a dryer, I went to Woolworths, bought $500 worth of gift cards, and then used them at The Good Guys.
'I bought my dryer with those gift cards, and that earned me 10,000 Everyday Rewards points or 5,000 Qantas points.
'So it's just doing the little things before you purchase something to think... how can I maximise this to get points back?'
She said the quickest and easiest way to earn points is through credit card sign ups.
Sarah earned 80,000 points when she first signed up for a credit card - but she hardly ever uses it now, having discovered a simpler way to earn points without it.
Sarah said there are so many ways to get 'more bang for your buck' so you can fly without having to fork out hundreds or thousands on flights
'I only keep my credit card because it gets me free lounge passes once a year, and I do occasionally use it for like big purchases because I do earn 1 Qantas point per dollar that I spend on there,' she said.
'The main reason I got that credit card was for the sign-up bonus, so I got 80,000 points, which is a common way for people to earn a bulk amount of points.
'There are people out there who will get a new credit card every six months for the bonus points. I personally don't do that just because I don't really like having a credit card if I'm being honest.'
If she already has a decent amount of points stacked up, Sarah said she would find a way to get money back on her purchases by using popular apps such as ShopBack or Cashrewards.
'Sometimes, I will value my money over points,' she said.
'In some cases, I would rather get the money, I'll use things like ShopBack or Cashrewards to buy gift cards and get cash back rather than points.
'But I will never make a purchase without finding a way for it to give back to me in some way, whether that be through cashback or through points.'
Sarah said there are so many ways to get 'more bang for your buck' so you can fly without having to fork out hundreds or thousands on flights.
'So this is how I fly without having to actually pay for my flights,' she said.
'There is so much to this, and it's honestly taken me a couple of years to get my head around it and to find the best way to maximise my points and savings.'
