Racking up miles on plastic

Air miles are a big part of credit card incentive schemes. People get points for spending, and if they manage their spending and pay their credit card bills each month, they can score a free trip to Thailand.

But credit card plans are complicated - one might think deliberately so, as it prevents comparison with other plans. To shed a little light on this opaque matter, we will break down the local credit card promotion plans on the specific reward scheme of Asia Miles, the frequent flyer programme used by Cathay Pacific, Dragonair, Air China and others.

Many cards will grant Asia Miles as an incentive to use their credit cards. You can redeem the points for flights or to pay for hotels or meals at restaurants.

To give an idea of the attractiveness of the plan, a return flight from Hong Kong to Bangkok costs 20,000 Asia Miles. Credit card firms will grant one air mile for every HK$5 spent on the card at the low end, or HK$16.50 at the high end (see table).