Travel Credit Cards
A travel rewards credit card can be a great way to start saving for a vacation. The trick is to start using the card to make your everyday purchases even if you are just buying fast food. As you do this, the points will start to build on your travel credit card. Essentially it becomes a savings plan for vacations without actually having to save money. Not all travel credit cards are the same. We have researched the travel cards available online and put together the Top 5 in which we feel offers the best value to consumers. The reward points can be used for airline tickets, hotel stays, car rentals, and even cruises in some cases.
The credit card issuers that offer these travel reward cards are getting very competitive trying to gain new cardholders. That is great news for consumers because the travel rewards keep getting better and better. Please review our Top 5 Travel Credit Cards list and select the card that is right for you.
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Capital One® Venture(SM) Rewards Credit Card |
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- 2 miles per dollar on every purchase, every day
- As seen in Money® Magazine’s “Best” issue three years in a row. – Money® Magazine May 2010, 2011, 2012
- Earn 10,000 bonus miles when you spend $1,000 on purchases within the first 3 months, equal to $100 in travel
- Redeem your miles for any travel expense
- No limit on the miles you can earn and miles don’t expire
- Fly on any airline, any time with no blackout dates
- No foreign transaction fees
- $0 intro annual fee for the first year; $59 after that
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Intro Purchase APR
N/A* |
Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A* |
APR
13.9% – 20.9% (V)* |
Annual Fee
$0 intro for first year;
$59 after that |
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Capital One® VentureOne(SM) Rewards Credit Card
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- 1.25 miles per dollar on every purchase, every day and no annual fee
- One-time bonus of 10,000 miles once you spend $1,000 on purchases within the first 3 months, equal to $100 in travel
- Redeem miles for airline tickets, hotel rooms, car rentals and more
- No limit on the miles you can earn and miles don’t expire
- Fly on any airline, any time with no blackout dates
- 0% intro APR on purchases until May 2014
- No foreign transaction fees
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Intro Purchase APR
0% intro APR until May 2014* |
Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A* |
APR
11.99% – 19.99% (V)* |
Annual Fee
None* |
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Citi® Hilton HHonors™ Visa Signature® Card |
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- Earn 40,000 Hilton HHonors Bonus Points after spending $1,000 within 4 months of account opening*
- EEarn 6 HHonors Bonus Points for each $1 spent at a participating hotel within the Hilton HHonors portfolio.*
- Earn 3 Hilton HHonors Bonus Points for each $1 spent on purchases at supermarkets, drugstores and gas stations.*
- Earn 2 Hilton HHonors Bonus Points for each $1 spent on all other purchases.*
- No Annual Fee.*
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Intro Purchase APR
N/A* |
Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A* |
APR
14.24% or 16.24%* (Variable)* |
Annual Fee
$0* |
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Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express |
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- Bonus Miles: Earn 30,000 bonus miles toward Award Travel after you spend $500 on the Card within the first three months of Cardmembership.
- Earn As You Spend: Get 2X miles on Delta purchases and 1X miles for all other eligible dollars spent.
- Check your first bag free on every Delta flight – that’s a savings of up to $200 per round trip for a family of four.
- Premium Travel Perks: Settle in sooner with Priority Boarding, and enjoy the skies with 20% in-flight savings to use toward meals, beverages, and movies awarded as a statement credit.
- $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95.
- Terms and Restrictions Apply.
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Intro Purchase APR
N/A* |
Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A* |
APR
15.24% – 19.24% Variable* |
Annual Fee
$0 for the first year, then $95 |
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Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® Visa Signature® Card |
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- Earn 30,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after $1,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of cardmembership*
- Your first eligible checked bag is free*
- Priority Boarding* and 25% savings on eligible in-flight purchases*
- Earn a $100 American Airlines Flight Discount every cardmembership year with qualifying purchases and cardmembership renewal*
- Double AAdvantage® miles on eligible American Airlines purchases*
- Earn 10% of your redeemed AAdvantage® miles back – up to 10,000 AAdvantage® miles each calendar year*
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Intro Purchase APR
N/A* |
Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A* |
APR
15.24%* (Variable) |
Annual Fee
$95.00 ($0 for the first year)* |
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Blue Sky from American Express® |
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- Welcome Bonus: earn 7,500 points after you spend $1,000 within the first 3 months of Cardmembership – redeemable for a $100 statement credit.
- Flexible Ways to Earn: earn 1 point for virtually every dollar you spend on eligible purchases.
- Unlimited Travel Options: Travel with any airline, hotel, cruise, car rental and travel package – with no blackout dates.
- Flexible Bill Payments: pay your bill all at once or over time.
- No annual membership fee and 0% intro APR on purchases for the first 12 months, after that, your APR will be a variable rate, currently 17.24%- 22.24%.
- Terms and Restrictions Apply.
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Intro Purchase APR
0% for 12 months* |
Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A* |
APR
17.24%-22.24% Variable |
Annual Fee
$0* |
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Why are Travel Reward Cards Popular?
Travel rewards are one of the most popular rewards that consumers that like to earn when using their credit card. These cards can essentially act as a vacation savings account. With every purchase that you make you can earn points or miles that can be used towards the purchase of airline tickets, hotel rooms, car rentals, and more. It can be hard to save throughout the year to take the vacation that you want. Everyone loves to get away and trips can be expensive. Even if you haven’t earned enough to pay for your trip in full, the rewards can certainly help offset your costs a bit. The best part is that your everyday purchases help you get to your goal faster. Every lunch, every fill up at the gas station, they all contribute. The simplicity of earning rewards and consumers desire to take vacations make these cards very popular.
Selecting the Best Travel Credit Card
When deciding which is the best travel credit card offer for you, there are a few things you need to consider first. Are you looking to earn airline miles, hotel points, or miles and points that can be used for both? If you are loyal to a certain airline or hotel, a card that earns you rewards towards that specific company may be right for you. If you are looking to earn miles and points you want the flexibility of where you can use them, a general travel rewards card like the Capital One Venture Card or Chase Sapphire Card will be best for you. When we developed our rankings of the top travel credit cards, we took into card features such as annual fees, introductory APRs, on-going interest rates, earnings rates of the travel rewards, and bonus rewards. Based on that information we present the cards that we feel offer the best overall value to consumers.
Maximizing Your Travel Rewards
With a travel credit card you can earn points and miles without changing your normal purchasing habits. The only difference is that you should try to use the credit card to make all your purchases. In the instances where you would have used cash, save that cash to pay your bill when the statement comes in. When you think about it, buying lunch, gasoline, even paying for your car insurance with a credit card will build your rewards overtime. Each transaction adds up and can mean significant savings on your next vacation. To earn at the highest rate possible, choose your travel credit card wisely. The rate at which you earn rewards can differ from card to card. Most cards reward you with 1 point or mile for every dollar spent, but there are cards that will allow you to earn up to 2 points or miles for every dollar.
