Kate's on a Plane

I subscribe to a popular flight deal alert service. Services like Thrifty Traveler Premium and Straight to the Points Award Alert Service send out emails whenever there’s a fare sale, an award space drop, or another opportunity to get travel at a great value, whether it’s with cash or points. One recent email highlighted the opportunity to fly to Australia for as little as 34,000 Delta SkyMiles; another showcased a transfer bonus that made it possible to book Virgin Atlantic business class to Europe for as low as 21,000 points. What points and miles enthusiast wouldn’t want this in their inbox? 

My subscription for this service recently came up for renewal, and I realized: in the year I’ve paid for this service, I’ve never booked a single deal from these emails.

Does this mean I think these services are a waste of money? Not at all! I think I’m just not the right kind of traveler to benefit from them. If you’re thinking about taking advantage of a Black Friday promotion for one of these subscriptions, read on to see if it might be a fit for you.

An award flight deal alert service might be for you if:

• You’re sitting on a stockpile of points. Are you better at earning points than redeeming them? If you have a stash of transferable points or airline miles just waiting to be used, an award flight deal alert service can help you redeem them for good value.
• You plan travel 3-9 months out. The most predictable deals in award travel are the saver fares that come out at schedule open, and those last-minute deals for close-in travel. If you can’t swing either of those, an award alert service can help you find deals in the in-between time.
• You need destination inspiration. If you struggle with decision fatigue, or just want to chase the deal, a service like this can save you hours of research and agonizing. 
• You haven’t mastered award flight search tools. If you can’t quite wrap your head around Seats.aero, you could just sit back and wait for a good deal to show up in your inbox.

Conversely, an award flight deal alert service might not be for you if:

• You’re earning and burning. I’m usually earning points with a redemption in mind. And because I’m often booking for a family of four, I rarely accumulate large point balances. This means I’m rarely able to jump on a great redemption that I wasn’t planning for.
• You plan travel 12-18 months out. Did I mention I’m a planner? Booking for four and working around a traditional school calendar means that my best shot at making a trip happen is booking flights and hotels right when the schedule opens. So by the time that flight deal email lands in my inbox, our trip planning is done. Twice, I’ve actually received alerts about a great redemption…that I already had booked booked.
• You have limited flexibility. It’s really cool to see a bunch of cheap award space to Tokyo open up in early October…but that’s not a time when my family and I can travel. We just don’t have the flexibility in our schedule to take advantage of some of these deals–no matter how tempting they may be.

Do you subscribe to one of these services? What has your experience been like? Let me know in the comments!