Here's exactly how my hobby of online shopping is getting me closer to my dream New Zealand road trip.

What's on the top of your I-MUST-travel-here-next list? Heck, we'd all have one in this climate.  

For me, one of my ultimate travel goals is to go on a road trip around New Zealand’s North and South Islands. Jaw-droppingly beautiful, adventure packed, only a 3 hour flight from Sydney and home to the best Sauvignon Blanc (in my humble opinion). 

This destination has been on my radar for years. 

I MEAN LOOK AT IT. This is Queenstown at dusk with Lake Wakatipu and The Remarkables mountain range. Image: Supplied. 

The pandemic has certainly forced us travel addicts to look a little closer to home, with more far-reaching destinations being out of the equation (for now). 

Not sure what you're thinking dear reader, but there is so much of Australia and New Zealand I still need to see. And there's really no better time to do it than now to support our local tourism and businesses on our doorstep. 

If, like me, you've been drawing up your ultimate itineraries for a local getaway (and figuring out how the ol' bank account is going to get you there), you’ll be pretty pleased to hear what I'm going to say next. 

There's actually something you’re probably already doing everyday that you could be capitalising.

It's... online shopping. But hear me out.

We all need to put extra reinforcements in place to help reach our travel budget goals, am I right or am I right?

By shopping your favourite brands online as we're all already doing, but ordering them via Qantas Shopping, you can be building up your Qantas Points, and THIS my friends, is what will help you fast-track your next getaway.

Consider this ultimate hack a gift of wisdom from me to you.

(Is now a good time to admit that Qantas Shopping is basically the only thing you'll ever find in my Recently Visited browser history? I'm so proud of this hack, I'm telling everybody).

Making this pretty tiny change to the way I'm doing my online shopping is literally the hack that's going to earn me enough Qantas Points to use on my NZ flights, and book in my dream holiday sooner. 

Still with me? Here's how it all works.

First you’ll need to make a Qantas Frequent Flyer account. This process is super easy: you basically just sign up, and okay the terms and conditions.

Once you’ve set up your Frequent Flyer account (or if you’re already ahead of the pack and have one, love that for you), make sure when you're doing your shopping online you start at Qantas Shopping. You just log in with your Frequent Flyer details.

Once you're logged in, you can do your online shopping as normal. Search for your favourite brands (or find them in the A-Z list) and simply click on their site to shop as normal. There's over 360 brands on there. I repeat: 360 brands! You can literally find anything and everything you need. 

eBay, Adore Beauty, THE ICONIC, Dyson, BWS, Bonds... I could keep going. (Here's the A-Z list if you want to peruse). 

When you find the retailer you’re looking for, you click through to their page, and you’ll be able to see how many Qantas Points you will receive (gloriously, it's up to 13 Qantas Points on every $1 spent. So good), then click out to their website and shop as normal. 

The awesome thing I've found using it is that if you need to buy anything for your upcoming trip (like me, as I've been in the market for some Kathmandu thermals and a puffer because NZ is breeeeezy), you can kill two birds with one stone (figuratively only) through this program. 

A win-win if I've ever seen one.  

Once you make any of your purchases, Qantas Points will be credited to your Frequent Flyer account on eligible orders. You can monitor the progress of the arrivals as you normally would via the Shopping History page, and watch your Points basically level up with each of your purchases (as long as you don't return it!). 

(Oh, and always remember to make sure your cookies are enabled so your online purchases can be tracked properly). 

Surely I'm not the only one here with the memory of a goldfish either: if you install the Qantas Shopping Points-Prompter to your desktop browser, this handy tool notifies you of points-earning opportunities if you're browsing an eligible brand and have forgotten to shop them through Qantas Shopping (this feature is the bees knees). 

Nobody wants to ever complete a purchase online and realise you could have earned Qantas Points. THE REGRET.

If you're putting your Out Of Office email on soon (my favourite type of email) for your next wine trip in the Barossa Valley, hike around Uluru, or unwind on Hamilton Island, here's my life of shopping inspiration if you needed it! 

No better time to build up your Qantas Points than the present, I always say. Here's my favourite brands for:

• Fashion: THE ICONIC, Myer, Country Road, Cotton On, David Jones, Coach, Sunglass Hut, Nine West, NET-A-PORTER, Bonds
• Tech: Apple, The Good Guys, Microsoft, Bing Lee, Dyson, Dell, Appliances Online
• Beauty: Adore Beauty, Endota Spa, Clinique, Aveda, Shaver Shop, Nourished Life, Pharmacy Online
• Entertainment, Food & Lifestyle: Rebel, T2 Tea, Lululemon, Booktopia, BWS, My Muscle Chef, Pet Circle, RedBalloon
• Homewares: Freedom, Sheridan, Temple & Webster, Glasshouse Fragrances, Hardtofind, VistaPrint, eBay, Bed Threads

I’m all for a hack to help me save money or serve me in the future, and I might be speaking for all of us when I say I’m really kicking myself I didn’t get onto this program years earlier.

If you’re itching to travel again (aren't we all), the Qantas Frequent Flyer program is such a stellar way to make sure your online shopping is rewarding you (and Future You – very important!). 

Go on, open a new tab and start shopping.

Visit qantas.com/shopping to discover the many ways you can earn Qantas Points on all your online shopping now.