6 Best Award Travel Search Tools for Flights and Hotels

Booking flights and hotels with points and miles can be an incredible way to save money on travel, but finding award availability can often feel like searching for a needle in a haystack. Traditionally, you would search for your itinerary to find award prices at each airline or hotel site. But award travel search tools now simplify this process by aggregating availability across multiple loyalty programs, helping you search for award flights and rooms, optimize your points and miles, and quickly locate the best redemption options.

Whether you’re looking for first-class flights or a luxury stay, having the right search tool can make all the difference. We’ve rounded up some of the best award search tools available today, comparing their features, pricing models, and overall ease of use. This will give you a clear idea of which tools best suit your travel needs, and save you a ton of time in the future when searching for award redemption.

What is an Award Search Engine?

Award travel search tools are online platforms designed to help travelers find and book flights and stays using points and miles. Instead of manually searching airline and hotel websites, these tools streamline the process by pulling data from multiple loyalty programs to show award availability in one place.

Primary Functions of Award Travel Search Tool:

• Flight award search – Frequent flyer programs are scanned to display available flights bookable with points or miles, with filters to find what fits your needs.
• Hotel award search – Searches award stays at major hotel chains, showing which properties have availability for point-based bookings.
• Transferable point search – Syncs credit card point transfer options for selected travel partners, including transfer values and transfer bonus offers.

Some tools offer real-time availability, while others use historical data to predict when award seats or hotel nights will be available. Many also include features like email alerts, point transfer recommendations, and advanced filtering options to refine searches based on the class of service, destination, and preferred loyalty program.

How do I Accumulate Points and Miles?

Earning points and miles is easier than ever, thanks to various programs and partnerships that reward travelers. By combining multiple earning methods, you can rapidly accumulate points and miles, making it easier to book flights and stays for free or at a reduced out-of-pocket cost. 

Best Ways to Accumulate Travel Rewards:

• Credit card spending – Many travel credit cards offer large welcome bonuses when you meet a minimum spending requirement within the first few months. Whether it’s a transferable points card or a co-branded airline or hotel card, these bonuses can provide a significant boost to your available balance right away. Ongoing use of these rewards credit cards for daily purchases can help you earn points or miles on things like groceries, gas, dining, travel, or streaming, which help you accumulate rewards even faster.
• Loyalty programs – Joining frequent flyer and hotel loyalty programs allows you to earn miles or points every time you fly with an airline or stay within their network. Many programs also offer elite status, which comes with additional perks like bonus earnings and free upgrades.
• Shopping portals – Many loyalty programs have online shopping portals where you can earn extra points or miles by making purchases at partner retailers. Simply clicking through the portal before making a purchase can stack rewards on top of any credit card earnings. 
• Travel partnerships – Many airlines and hotels partner with rental car companies, ride-sharing services, and even cruise lines to allow you to earn rewards when purchasing services with the partner or through a portal. 
• Special promotions and offers – Airlines, hotels, and credit card issuers frequently run limited-time promotions where you can earn extra points or miles through special spending categories, referrals, or travel. 

What Should I Consider for an Award Search?

Finding the right award travel search tool requires understanding which features matter most for your needs so that the next time you’re booking a last-minute trip or planning a dream vacation months in advance you know where to find award options fast.

Finding Award Availability for Loyalty Programs:

• Loyalty program support – Make sure the tool aligns with the programs you use most – including airline miles, hotel points, and transferable credit card points. Also note that some platforms focus on domestic travel, while others cover international carriers and properties. 
• Evaluating features – Not all search tools offer the same capabilities. Some focus on flights, others on hotels, and some provide a mix of both. Consider features like real-time availability, advanced filters, route flexibility, and whether they display transfer partner recommendations.
• Free vs Paid versions – Many award search tools offer a freemium model, providing basic searches for free while locking premium features behind a subscription. If you frequently book travel, paying for a premium version could be worth it to unlock better search results, alerts, and faster availability updates.
• Search accuracy and data sources – Some tools pull real-time award availability, while others rely on cached data or predictive models. If you need the most up-to-date accuracy, opt for a tool that offers real-time results.
• Ease of use – The best tools simplify the award search process, offering easy navigation and clear results. Clunky interfaces or confusing results can make searching more difficult than it needs to be.

How Do I Book with Points or Miles?

Once you’ve found a flight or stay using an award search tool, the next step is to book directly with the airline or hotel loyalty program. Most award travel search tools do not process bookings themselves but instead link you to the program where you can redeem your points or miles.

Steps to Book Award Travel:

1. Find availability – Use an award search engine to locate flights or stays that can be booked with points or miles.
2. Verify on the airline/hotel website – Award availability can fluctuate, so confirm that the seat or room is still available by searching directly on the airline or hotel loyalty program’s website. This is a good time to review cancellation policies before you proceed.
3. Transfer points if needed – If you’re using a flexible rewards program like Chase Ultimate Rewards or Amex Membership Rewards, you can transfer the points needed to the loyalty program before booking. Transfers are usually instant but can take up to 48 hours in some cases. Once these points are transferred, they can’t come back.
4. Book the award ticket or stay – Once you have enough points or miles, proceed with the redemption on the airline or hotel website. Be aware of any taxes and fees that may apply, which will usually not be covered by the award redemption.

Best Practices for Booking with Points and Miles:

• Be flexible with dates – Award availability is often limited, so having flexible travel dates can increase your chances of finding a great redemption.
• Check partner airlines – Some airlines don’t display partner award availability online, so consider searching alliance partners (example: using Air Canada Aeroplan to book United flights).
• Consider positioning flights – If the best award flight departs from a different city, a cheap positioning flight paid with cash can sometimes be worth it for better redemption.
• Book early or last minute – Airlines typically release award seats far in advance, but last-minute availability can also open up closer to departure.

Best Award Travel Search Tools

Wrap-up: Maximizing Award Search

Finding the best award travel search tool depends on your needs. Whether you’re looking for last-minute flights, optimizing credit card transfers, or booking hotel stays with points, these tools can help uncover the best redemption options.

By leveraging the right platform, you can save time, maximize your rewards, and book the best travel experiences with points and miles. With so many options available, choosing the right tool ensures you get the most value from your loyalty programs.

Editor’s note: Opinions shared in this article are solely the author’s and do not represent the views of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other organization. The content has not been evaluated, approved, or endorsed by any of the mentioned entities. These are our recommendations but it isn’t financial advice. We may receive a commission if you click through any of the links in this article.

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