Want to fly for free? Well, this is your opportunity. Numerous airlines the world over offer frequent flyer programmes which offer free miles back to the traveller as a reward for flying with their airline. Many people fail to take advantage of these schemes, sometimes due to negligence and other times due to the complex nature of various programmes.

This article highlights the best way to go about enrolling into frequent flyer programmes and shows you the best way to accumulate the most miles and the most effective way to redeem them.

What does it entail?

If you fly frequently it can be beneficial to book with one particular airline and their partners so that you can accumulate as many frequent flyer miles as possible. It is simple and free to join many of these programs, simply go to the airline's website which you are interested in joining and go to their frequent flyer section. Simply enter your details and you will be issued your personal number. Thereafter, whenever you book a flight online or through an agent always mention your frequent flyer number so that the reward miles can be credited to your account.

Here we walk you through the process of joining an airlines frequent flyer programme and the best ways to accumulate and redeem your miles. For the sake of this demonstration, we will show you how to join the British Airways Executive Club.

1.) Visit BA.co.uk and select the executive club navigation tab. You are eligible to join the scheme on the condition that you have flown on British Airways within the last three months or be in the possession of a British Airways (American Express) credit card.

2.) Once you have been issued with an account you can start to accumulate air miles by spending in certain ways.

A List of Neglected Ways to Accumulate BA Air Miles (Points)

1.) Apply for a British Airways credit card and gain 1 BA air mile for every pound you spend.

You can apply for your card here

2.) Earn BA miles every time you stay at a partner hotel.

Earn 500 BA miles when you stay at a Hilton Family Hotel.

Earn 2 BA miles for every dollar spent at the Marriot Chain of Hotels.

Earn 500 BA miles for every stay at the Intercontinental group.

Earn 2 BA miles for every dollar spent at Starwood Hotels.

Earn 500 BA miles for every stay at the Radisson.

Earn 3 BA miles for every dollar spent at Jumeirah Hotels.

Earn 500 BA miles per stay at Hyatt hotels.

Earn 500 BA miles per stay at Shangri La Hotels

Earn 250 BA miles per night at the Mandarin Oriental Hotels.

Earn 500 BA miles per stay at Taj Hotels and Resorts.

3.) Earn BA miles every time you rent a car with a BA car hire partner

Earn a minimum of 500 BA miles for Hiring with Avis.

Earn a minimum of 500 BA miles for Hiring with Alamo Rent a car.

4.). Earn more BA miles every time you shop at the following places.

Travelex

Tesco (Clubcard)

BA Holidays

Holiday Extras

BCP Parking

Scottish and Southern Energy

Shell

BA express parking

Natwest

Business Traveller

Diners Club International

5). Earn BA miles when you fly with their one-world partner Airlines, including…

American Airlines

Cathay Pacific

Finnair

Iberia

Japan Airlines

LAN

Malev Hungarian Airlines

Qantas

Royal Jordanian

Redeeming your Air Miles

Once you have accumulated enough air miles you can exchange them in return for numerous products, including - shopping items, upgrades and free flights.

If you find that you do not have enough air miles to reach a particular destination you can pay for some extra miles on top to make up the difference. Nevertheless, you will still end up with a heavily discounted flight.

Here follows a breakdown of how many miles are needed to travel particular distances according to the British Airways Executive Club.

You need to make sure your account is active, for if it is dormant for a period of 36 months your accumulated miles will expire.

British Airways offers three levels of membership, Blue, Siler and Gold. You can move up levels by accumulating tier points that are awarded to you according to the type of flights you book. The higher the membership, the greater the benefits, including – Access to private lounges, private check-ins, Reservation assurance and access to exclusive Molton Brown Travel Spa's where available.

Conclusion

Joining a frequent flyer program is simple, free and easy. You have nothing to lose particularly if you are fond of using and sticking to a particular brand of Airline. We recommend enrolling on one at the next available opportunity. Be sure to keep up to date with special promotions and partnerships and to take full advantage of this form of acquiring potentially free flights.