How often do you travel? Whether it’s a lot or a little, these cards can save you a tremendous amount of money. Remember when traveling was cheap and airport security was a breeze? Oh those were the days... Now we’re faced with outrageous prices for everything from plane tickets to hotel rooms… and don’t even get me started on all those new fees and surcharges! These changes are here to stay, but if you have the right card, at least you can lessen the blow.
- Higher Rewards: Why settle for 1% cash back? With the right travel credit card you will be earning miles that will give a lot more bang for your buck. Not to mention, they may save you money on luggage fees, too.
- Bigger Signup Bonuses: To sweeten the pot, it’s always nice to get a bonus. The best cards in this category will usually throw in free miles or points, but the most lucrative promotions aren’t always publicly available. Fortunately, CreditCardForum has leveraged its popularity to snag some excellent bonuses for you!
- Better Customer Service: When it comes time to redeem your travel rewards, do you want to deal with some Indian CSR that barely speaks English? Of course you don’t! The credit cards below are known for their top notch customer service.
- Extra Travel Benefits: Additional insurance coverage for travel accidents, lost luggage, & car rentals are all nice perks to have.
Best Value - Airline Card: Chase United MileagePlus Explorer
Just launched this past summer, this is the brand new card for the recently merged United & Continental. Together they're the world's largest carrier, so this is definitely the airline card you want to have! It's loaded with benefits including car rental collision damage waiver (primary coverage, not secondary like most travel cards), trip cancellation and delay coverage, lost luggage reimbursement, price protection, and more.- Best signup offer: Get up to 40,000 bonus miles plus no annual fee for your first year, a $95 value
- 2 miles per dollar on airfare from United/Continental, plus 1 mile per dollar on all other spending. Rewards don't expire.
- 2 free United Club day passes every year (that's up to a $100 value)
- First checked bag is free – for yourself and your travel companion! That's a roundtrip savings of $50 per person!
- Priority boarding privileges - as a cardmember you can board before general boarding does!
Best Value - Travel Card: Chase Sapphire Preferred
This is the cream of the crop travel credit card from Chase. Don’t be surprised if you get “oohs” and “ahhs” when you hand it to a cashier or waiter, because it's actually made out of metal and leaves quite the impression. Spend points on almost anything, from travel to cash back. Your rewards never expire & have no caps or blackout dates. Comes with a personal concierge to handle travel & entertainment planning, restaurant reservations, gift giving, etc.- Special limited-time promo: 50,000 bonus points = $625.00 in free airfare/hotel or $500.00 cash rebate!
- Earn 2x on travel, 2x on dining (including fast food), up to 10 points per dollar through the exclusive Chase online shopping portal, and 1 point per dollar on everything else. Airfare/hotel booked through Ultimate Rewards will earn you even more.
- Your points are worth 25% more when you spend them on plane tickets or hotel through Ultimate Rewards program.
- No foreign transaction fee
- Annual fee waived for first year - a $95 value
Capital One Venture Rewards
You’ve seen the commercials and yes, this card is worth the hype. In a nutshell, it can earn you an unlimited 2% rebate on all your spending. How? Because you get 2 miles per dollar spent and each mile is worth a full $0.01 towards travel. Spending these miles is so easy – charge ANY travel purchase to your card and then redeem your miles for a statement credit to offset that purchase (i.e. use 24,000 miles for a $240 flight).- Unlimited 2 miles per dollars earned on all purchases.
- You can use your miles to pay for virtually any travel purchase – airfare, hotels, cruises, car rentals, and more. Best of all, you can buy the reward travel on your own, through the provider of your choice.
- As a Visa Signature card, it comes with complimentary benefits including an extended warranty program, auto rental insurance, concierge service, and more.
- You won’t pay any foreign transaction fees
- Low annual fee of only $59
Citi ThankYou Premier
You don't hear about this travel card much which is a pity, because for the right person who regularly uses the benefits, it's definitely worth the $125 price tag. Its most noteworthy benefit is the points you earn on flights. However there is a bit of a catch – the number earned can't exceed the number earned from other purchases (but when that happens don't worry- your flight points will be saved and credited to your account after you earn enough points from other spending).- 1 ThankYou Point per mile flown simply for paying for airline tickets using your card (think about it, if your roundtrip flight from NY to LA was 4,800 miles, you would get 4,800 points on that one flight alone!)
- 33% boost in point value when redeemed for airfare
- 20% more points earned at grocery stores, gas stations, and drugstores
- 15% discount on all air travel. Simply book using Citi's Spirit Incentives partnership.
- Free companion ticket once per year
- No foreign transaction fee on international purchases
Starwood American Express
The funny thing about this card is that even though it is branded for Starwood hotels, it's probably most famous for its airline rewards program. Why? Because you can convert points to partner airlines through the Star Alliance (which is the world's largest airline alliance). No other credit card can do this.- Earn 4 to 5 points per dollar spent at Starwood hotels and 1 point per dollar elsewhere
- Points can be used at over 940 properties in 95 countries, including the Sheraton, the W, Westin, and others
- Points can be converted to airline miles, almost always on a 1 for 1 basis with over 30 major airlines, making it one of the most versatile credit cards for travel rewards.
- Low $65 annual fee that is waived for the first year
- Special bonus – get up to 25,000 Starpoints (note: this offer ends soon)
Discover Escape Card
This is another hidden gem that is rarely advertised which is unfortunate, because not only does it offer rewards of a full 2% on your spending, but also a number of travel protection benefits which are rarely seen on other credit cards. If you’ve ignored Discover in the past because you thought acceptance was limited, you may be surprised to learn that today over 90% of U.S. merchants who accept Visa/MasterCard also take Discover!- You get 2 miles for every dollar spent on the card – this earns you miles twice as fast (like earning 2% back on all your spending!)
- Rewards can be used for any flight, any airline, anytime
- Free benefits include travel delay insurance, trip cancellation insurance, lost luggage insurance, and primary car rental insurance
- Low $60 annual fee
- Bonus of up to 25,000 miles
American Express Blue Sky
If you are only an occasional travel and don’t need benefits for a specific airline or hotel chain, then this may be the best choice for you. In a nutshell, you end up earning at least a 1.33% rebate on all your spending – for no annual fee, you will be hard-pressed get that anywhere else. Last but certainly not least, you can’t beat the American Express shopping benefits for eligible purchases such as a free extended warranty and protection for lost/damaged/stolen items.- Rewards that are 33% higher than most credit cards – you get a $100 travel credit for every $7,500 spent
- Rewards can be used to pay for airfare, hotels, cruises, car rentals, and more
- Free travel benefits include discounts and hotel perks, travel accident insurance for common carrier, and more
- No annual fee
American Express Gold Delta SkyMiles
This continues to be one of the most popular travel rewards credit cards and for good reason – it packs a boatload of benefits! Not only is it a must-have for frequent flyers of Delta, but even those who might just fly this airline once or twice a year can really come out ahead thanks to the free checked bags and the $99 annual companion ticket.- Earn 2x SkyMiles on Delta and 1x on everything else you buy.
- First bag free on Delta flights for up to 9 people in your reservation - that's a round trip savings of $50 per person!
- $99 companion ticket with no blackout dates, awarded on your card's renewal date every year
- Zone 2 Priority boarding on every Delta flight
- Annual fee waived for the first year - a $95 savings
- New, better bonus of 30,000 miles - just spend $500 in the first 3 months to get it
American Express Premier Rewards Gold Card
There are two version of the Gold Card from American Express. The Premier Rewards Gold is a tad bit more than the standard version, but it’s worth every penny thanks to the categories for bonus points. You can convert your Membership Rewards Points to over 15 airline frequent flyer programs – this can give you much more value per point, since true frequent flyer miles are typically worth far more than 1 cent each.- Generous 3-2-1 rewards program: 3x points on airfare, 2x points on gas and groceries, 1x point on everything else
- Multiple travel options: Use "Pay With Points" and fly any airline, anywhere, any time with no blackout dates or restrictions. Or convert points directly to airline F.F. programs.
- Enjoy free extended warranty, purchase protection, and return protection on eligible purchases
- Annual fee waived for the first year - a $175 savings
- Best bonus currently available: 15,000 Membership Rewards bonus points for spending $1k during first 3 months
Discover Miles Card
Admittedly, this credit card isn’t as exciting as the others but if you want a no-nonsense, no annual fee option you may want to try the Discover Miles. You always will be earning rewards worth at least 1% and thanks to the bonus categories, you will be getting 2% on some of your spending. If you’re a light spender and just want something simple, this card makes a lot of sense.- 1 mile per dollar on regular spending and 2 miles per dollar for the first $3,000 spent annually on travel and restaurants (and 1 mile per dollar after that)
- Unrestricted booking allows you to book your own ticket on any flight, any airline, with no blackout dates
- Travel benefits include up to $500,000 in free flight accident insurance, $2,500 for lost or damaged luggage, up to $150 per day for trip delays, and more
- No annual fee - If you want extra benefits but don't want to pay, this is the best travel rewards credit card you will find.
- Get up to 12,000 free bonus miles (1,000 free miles every month you use the card for the first year)
