Yes, it IS still possible to travel using frequent flyer miles. Here’s my advice to help you get the most for your miles when you are ready to cash them in:

-Check Award Availability Early and Often- Start searching for award tickets the minute you know when you’d like to use your miles. Most airlines allow reservations up to one year in advance and for peak travel times this may be necessary. If award tickets aren’t available for the dates you want check back often as new dates and times are always being added.

-Book on Partner Airlines- In my experience, you are more likely to get direct flights, on the best dates, for the least amount of miles if you book award travel on an airline partnered with the airline you’ve collected miles on. For example, I used Northwest miles to book a flight to Amsterdam on Continental and USAirways miles to book a flight to Los Angeles on United. Both times I got direct flights for the lowest amount of mileage possible. When I used Northwest miles on Northwest I had to choose less desirable flight times and use a greater number of miles. To use miles on a partner airline you will have to call the airline you’ve collected miles on, tell them you want to check partner flights, and make the reservation by phone. You will pay a fee for the phone service (usually $15-$30 per person) but, more often than not, you’ll get a better deal. Check out my airline alliance chart here to figure out who your preferred airline is partnered with.

-Hold It- If you find an award ticket you think is acceptable but not ideal, most airlines will let you put it on hold for up to three days free of charge. This will give you some extra time to think about if you want to take the flight without losing it. You can also call every day during the hold period and check if better flights are made available.