If you travel, credit cards can help you book and pay for your trip. The rewards they offer can cover a significant part of your costs, and the top cards can save you money and prevent headaches.
If you’re new to travel credit cards and want a good starting point, consider the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It has a reasonable annual fee and includes all the essential features. With this card, you can earn valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards® points, which you can use for travel or easily redeem in the Chase travel portal. Plus, there’s no fee for transactions in foreign countries, and the card offers various travel insurance options.
Best Premium Travel Rewards Card: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is one of the best cards available. You can easily earn points and use them for various benefits, especially travel. The card offers 2 miles per dollar on most purchases, 5 miles per dollar on flights booked through Capital One Travel, and 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars through Capital One Travel. There’s also a welcome offer of 75,000 bonus miles if you spend $4,000 within the first three months. However, keep in mind that there’s an annual fee of $395.
Pros and cons: While the yearly fee might make you think twice, the card offers a $300 annual credit for bookings through the Capital One Portal and a 10,000 point bonus each year, which is equivalent to $100 in travel. Additionally, you get a Priority Pass membership that gives you access to over 1,400 lounges worldwide.
Redeeming Capital One miles is straightforward; you can use them for travel purchases or transfer them to travel partners. However, a drawback is that the Venture X card lacks domestic airline transfer partners, making it a bit more challenging to redeem points compared to American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards®.
Best International Travel Credit Card: Chase Sapphire Reserve®
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is one of the best travel rewards cards for several reasons. Although it has a high yearly fee, it gives you valuable rewards at a good rate. You can use these rewards with various partners worldwide. The card also offers excellent travel insurance and doesn’t charge fees for foreign transactions. Since it’s a Visa card, you can use it widely across the globe. If you travel a few times a year, you should seriously think about getting this card.
You can get rewards with this card when you spend money on travel. You’ll earn 5 points for every dollar spent on flights and 10 points for every dollar spent on hotels and car rentals when you use Chase Ultimate Rewards®. This is after you’ve spent $300 on travel purchases in a year. For other travel and dining, you get 3 points per dollar, and for all other purchases, you get 1 point per dollar.
As a welcome offer, you can earn 60,000 bonus points if you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after opening the account.
There is an annual fee of $550.
Best Travel Credit Card for Lounge Access: The Platinum Card® from American Express
If you want a big welcome bonus to kick things off, you might like the Platinum Card® from American Express (terms apply; see rates and fees). Once you spend a certain amount initially, you’ll earn points that you can use for travel and more. The drawback is that it has the highest annual fee among the options we’ve listed.
Get 5 Membership Rewards Points for every dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel, up to $500,000 per year. Also, earn 5 points per dollar on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel and 1 point per dollar on other eligible purchases.
As a welcome offer, earn 80,000 Membership Rewards Points by spending $8,000 on purchases within the first 6 months of having the card.
The annual fee for the card is $695.
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Best Travel Rewards Earnings for Foodies: American Express® Gold Card
The American Express® Gold Card lets you earn extra points on whatever you eat, not just specific categories like dining or groceries. It’s a good choice if you want travel rewards but don’t spend a lot on flights or hotels to benefit from specialized travel rewards.
Get 4 Membership Rewards® points for every dollar you spend at restaurants, including takeout and delivery in the U.S. Also, get 4 Membership Rewards® points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar). For flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express travel, you’ll earn 3 Membership Rewards® points per dollar and 1 point per dollar on other eligible purchases.
As a welcome offer, earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points by spending $6,000 on purchases during the first 6 months of having the card.
The annual fee for the card is $250.
Best Citi Travel Card: Citi Premier® Card
The Citi Premier® Card gives good rewards for its yearly fee, but it might not offer as many extra perks as some other top travel cards listed here. If you’re looking for Thank You Points through the welcome bonus and regular rewards, this card could still be a good choice.
Get 3 Thank You points for every dollar you spend at restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, air travel, and hotels. You’ll earn 1 point per dollar on other eligible purchases. If you book hotels, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) through the Citi Travel℠ portal before June 30, 2024, you’ll get a total of 10 points per dollar.
As a welcome offer, you can earn 60,000 points by spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after opening your account.
There is an annual fee of $95.
What is a travel credit card?
A travel credit card is a special card that gives you rewards for traveling. These rewards can be in different forms, like airline miles, hotel points, or flexible points that you can use for travel. Some cards also give extra perks like free checked bags, priority boarding, access to airport lounges, and discounts on hotels or rental cars. When you get the card, you might also get a bonus, which is like a special reward to help you start using the points or miles for cool stuff.
Travel credit cards are good for people who travel a lot and want to earn rewards easily. You can use these cards in any country that accepts major cards like Visa or Mastercard. They usually don’t charge extra fees for buying things in a different country. With a travel credit card, you can collect points and use them for things like flights or hotel stays.
How do travel credit cards work?
A travel rewards credit card gives you miles or points for every purchase you make with it. Once you have enough miles or points, you can use them to get airline tickets, gift cards, or reduce your credit card statement. Generally, using your miles and points for travel gives you the best value.
How do credit card points work?
Credit card points, like Chase Ultimate Rewards or American Express Membership Rewards, are earned for each purchase made with the card. Every card has a different earning structure, so one card may earn high rewards on travel and dining purchases while another may earn more points on groceries and gas spending. Often, credit card points will have multiple redemption options, like cash, travel, or gift cards, vs. a co-branded card, which tends to earn rewards that can only be redeemed for one thing, like travel with a specific airline, hotel, or merchandise.
Travel Credit Card Benefits
Travel credit cards provide different advantages, depending on the specific card. These benefits may include:
- Upgrades to elite status
- Travel insurance for things like delayed trips, lost baggage, or rental car incidents
- Credits for secure traveler programs such as TSA PreCheck, Global Entry, or CLEAR® Plus
- Statement credits for travel expenses
- Discounts when redeeming travel rewards
- In-flight perks like free checked bags or priority boarding
- Free hotel nights through award programs
- Access to airport lounges
What You Get With General Travel Credit Cards
Travel credit cards often provide benefits based on the annual fee you pay. A high-end card could include perks like access to airport lounges, travel protections such as insurance for trip cancellations and delays, and special privileges at luxury hotels. A mid-tier card might offer benefits like auto rental insurance and access to Global Entry or TSA Pre Check. Even a card with no annual fee could have some basic benefits, depending on the specific card.
What You Get With Co-branded Travel Credit Cards
A travel card that teams up with a specific brand gives you special perks. If it’s for airlines, you could get benefits like a free checked bag or money back on things you buy during the flight. If it’s for hotels, you might get a special status, a free night every year, or extra points on your card anniversary. Both types of cards might also let you spend to reach higher status levels.
When Should You Use a Travel Credit Card?
- Business travel: If you must travel for work, keeping your business and personal costs apart can be simple with a specialized travel card.
- International travel can offer benefits like free international transaction costs, access to airport lounges, and application fee reimbursements for TSA Pre-Check or Global Entry, which can make your trip more comfortable if you’re going overseas.
- Luxury travel: A travel credit card with these advantages can provide you access to luxury experiences like property credits, automatic hotel room upgrades, and access to exclusive airport lounges.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does a credit card qualify as travel?
It’s important to keep in mind that merchants are normally in charge of categorizing items, so even if your purchase normally falls into one of the categories, your transaction probably won’t get incentives if the merchant you buy from isn’t accurately classified.