Up in the Air's Ryan Bingham lives by what he calls his "total mileage system." In other words, he won't do anything unless it earns him miles. We asked FlyerTalk's president, Gary Leff, to offer his constituents' best tips for aspiring mileage-hoarders.

1 Shop at e-tailers that go the extra mile(s). Evreward.com offers lists of loyalty programs and deals affiliated with major sites.

2 Use branded credit cards. By FlyerTalk consensus, the best all-purpose card is the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express, which earns points that can be applied across dozens of airlines.

3 Earn miles to burn them. "Miles will never be worth more tomorrow than they are today," Leff says. Don't hoard and don't waste them on domestic coach flights. Your goal: international business or first class.

4 Think alliances, not airlines. Most major carriers allow passengers to book reward tickets on any alliance member. Consider where you want to fly and on which airline when choosing your domestic carrier.

5 Be strategic with miles. "Start with one account and concentrate on miles there until you can redeem the reward you want," says Leff. Then sign on with a different alliance for greater coverage.

6 The best program in North America is Aeroplan. Air Canada, which participates, has the lowest threshold for elite status, accepts American Express points for reward tickets, and allows for multiple stopovers on a single ticket—you can fly around the world on your way to Hong Kong.

7 The best U.S. program is Continental OnePass. Leff gives it high marks for reward tickets, the ease of booking them, and membership in the largest airline alliance.

8 Toughest program: Delta offers very few premium seats at sky-high prices. Next comes United, which tries to block passengers from booking seats on partner airlines in favor of its own.

9 Your carrier is not your miles bank. You're not stuck earning miles on whomever you happen to be flying; funnel those miles to your preferred account within the same alliance. Don't scatter your miles.

10 Once you're addicted to miles, start planning a "mileage run." Mileage runs are multi-layover trips to nowhere, specifically designed to rack up miles. Visit FlyerTalk's forums to learn how to plan your own.