or is that silly
Not at all.
In the U.S. you can use Dwolla USDs to buy American Airline prepaid gift cards or pay for a trip booked online with Jet Blue Vacations.
This is offered through Lyoness. So the process is to first get a Lyoness account created by an existing member:
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http://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=156968.0Then sell your coins at an exchange that uses Dwolla, (Camp BX, or Mt. Gox ... though Mt. Gox requires that you verify with them before you can withdraw Dwolla).
Withdraw the USDs to Dwolla. (e.g., to buy a $500 gift card, withdraw $500.25 so you can pay the Dwolla per-transaction fee).
Then transfer the USDs to your "purchase account" at Lyoness. The funds will be credited the next business at the latest (at least that has been my experience). Then order the gift card. It will be sent FedEx. There is a $5 fee per-order if the total order amount is under $300. Anything $300 or more is sent at no charge. (i.e., you send $500 Dwolla USD, you get a $500 American Airlines gift card.)
You can do this for gas (Chevron, Exxon, BP, etc), Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, and a dozen other national brands.
Lyoness is a merchant loyalty / cash back reward provider. You get 1% cash back (or 2% for some merchants even) on gift card purchases, so you'ld get $5 back on the $500 gift card purchase.
