So if you don't fly south very often, you won't get as much value out of this card as you might with
a more general travel card.
That is where
a more general travel card can be helpful.
That is where
a more general travel card can be helpful.
If you don't want to be tied to Delta and it's partners, or if you want to earn more points towards travel on things you buy every day, you'll want to consider
a more general travel card (ie, not one that's tied to a specific airline or hotel chain).
After analyzing over 40 different hotel rewards credit card offers (and even
more general travel cards), here is our list of the 10 best hotel credit cards.
More general travel cards can allow you to put miles into different plans or offset the costs of travel.
Discover it Miles, VentureOne Rewards and Barclaycard Arrival Plus are all
more general travel cards.
Not exact matches
The Bank of America
Travel Rewards credit
card, on the other hand, is the better
general spending
card, for those consumers with
more varied spending.
General - purpose
travel cards have
more flexibility.
If you're choosing between the
cards, the Arrival is probably a better bet as a
general spending
card if you have a broad array of expenses, while Sapphire Preferred is a
more rewarding
card for the
travel focused and will leverage Ultimate Rewards to its maximum.
These two
cards act as
general travel cards with rewards that have
more flexibility, so would it make sense to still choose the SPG American Express?
While co-branded airline credit
cards offer special benefits to frequent flyers of one specific airline,
general travel rewards
cards can offer
more flexibility in redeeming award flights and other
travel bookings.
If you're not a frequent
travel but like the idea of saving money on a future vacation, you may want to look at
more general rewards
card programs.
If you spend
more than that or put
more in
general on the
card, the value only continues going up (especially if you utilize the Chase
travel portal and transfer options).
However, if you are in the market for a
general travel card, then you should consider the Chase Sapphire Preferred ® Card, as it gives cardholders more rewards redemption options, especially for domestic air tra
card, then you should consider the Chase Sapphire Preferred ®
Card, as it gives cardholders more rewards redemption options, especially for domestic air tra
Card, as it gives cardholders
more rewards redemption options, especially for domestic air
travel.
The Bank of America
Travel Rewards credit
card, on the other hand, is the better
general spending
card, for those consumers with
more varied spending.
Read
more to see which
cards are our
general top picks for
travel abroad, who they're best suited for, and why.
If you want
more of a
general travel rewards card then check out The Best Travel Rewards Credit
travel rewards
card then check out The Best
Travel Rewards Credit
Travel Rewards Credit
Cards.
In fact, frequent travelers may carry an airline
card, a hotel
card and one or
more general travel rewards
cards, to realize the unique benefits offered by each.
A new type of
travel card is a
general travel rewards credit
card, which lets you earn and use your rewards
more freely.
If you're choosing between the
cards, the Arrival is probably a better bet as a
general spending
card if you have a broad array of expenses, while Sapphire Preferred is a
more rewarding
card for the
travel focused and will leverage Ultimate Rewards to its maximum.
However those who want to earn points that are good for
more than just hotel nights should consider a
general travel card with better point - transfer options like the Chase Sapphire Preferred ® Card or the Starwood Preferred Guest ® Credit Card from American Expr
card with better point - transfer options like the Chase Sapphire Preferred ®
Card or the Starwood Preferred Guest ® Credit Card from American Expr
Card or the Starwood Preferred Guest ® Credit
Card from American Expr
Card from American Express.
We researched
more than 40 co-branded hotel
cards and
more than 300
general travel rewards
cards, using a lot of the criteria outlined in this guide, to get down to our list of the best hotel
cards.
The Starwood Preferred Guest ® Credit
Card from American Express — one of our favorite hotel credit cards — offers a superior rewards rate and more flexible rewards, making it a better choice than the Marriott Rewards ® Premier Plus Credit Card for those looking for a general travel c
Card from American Express — one of our favorite hotel credit
cards — offers a superior rewards rate and
more flexible rewards, making it a better choice than the Marriott Rewards ® Premier Plus Credit
Card for those looking for a general travel c
Card for those looking for a
general travel cardcard.
«Unless you're a frequent international premium class flier,
general travel reward credit
cards tend to be
more lucrative — and easier to redeem,» says Charles Tran, the founder of credit
card comparison site CreditDonkey.com.
While the rewards on the Blue Delta SkyMiles
card are pretty valuable for a no - annual - fee
card, cardholders would likely get better use out of a
general travel rewards
card with
more flexible point options.
If you spend
more than this, however, a
general travel rewards credit
card, like the Barclays Arrival Plus ® World Elite Mastercard ®](#barclaycard - arrival - plus), may be better.
Alternatively, consumers who hold no particular loyalty to American Airlines can find the best savings on
more general travel rewards credit
cards, which we go over at the end of this article.
If you like Discover but prefer cash back: Discover it credit
card: The sister
card of the it Miles is the regular Discover it
card, which is
more of a
general purpose rewards
card as opposed to a
travel rewards
card.
Otherwise,
more general travel rewards credit
cards, such as the Starwood Preferred Guest ® Credit
Card from American Express or the Citi ThankYou ® Premier
Card provide better value.
For those who
travel infrequently, or like to have flexibility in which airline they fly, the
more general travel rewards
cards will work better.
Finally, these
general travel reward
cards are
more likely to offer bonus points or miles for non-
travel categories, so infrequent travelers can still rack up points for everyday purchases.
If you're a casual Frontier flyer, or a Base EarlyReturns member, than our opinion is that other
general purpose
travel credit
cards like the Barclays Arrival ™ World MasterCard ® (fee version / no fee version)- one of our best
travel credit
cards - make
more sense for you.
While this is pretty average for an airline
card, many
general travel rewards
cards offer higher overall rewards rates, as well as greater opportunities for earning extra points by providing
more comprehensive bonus categories, such as double points on entertainment, dining and gas purchases.
To earn
more general travel rewards, an American Express
card that earns Membership Rewards and includes the ability to transfer points to any of the 20 loyalty partners may be
more your speed.
Hot Tip: Some cruise lines offer their own credit
cards with cruise rewards, but a
more general travel rewards
card like The Platinum Card ® from American Express almost always offers a better va
card like The Platinum
Card ® from American Express almost always offers a better va
Card ® from American Express almost always offers a better value.
You might also consider
more general travel rewards
cards such as the Capital One Venture Rewards
card (free the first year, then $ 59 a year) or the Barclaycard Arrival
card ($ 89 annual fee, waived the first year), where the rewards are pegged to the cost of the hotel room and can also be redeemed for plane tickets, rental cars and other
travel expenses.
We researched
more than 40 co-branded hotel
cards and
more than 50
more general travel rewards
cards, using a lot of the criteria outlined in this guide, to get down to our list of the best hotel
cards.
While the rewards on the Blue Delta SkyMiles
card are pretty valuable for a no - annual - fee
card, cardholders would likely get better use out of a
general travel rewards
card with
more flexible point options.
If you like Discover but prefer cash back: Discover it credit
card: The sister
card of the it Miles is the regular Discover it
card, which is
more of a
general purpose rewards
card as opposed to a
travel rewards
card.
On the other hand,
general travel rewards
cards, such as the American Express Gold or Platinum, Chase Sapphire Preferred, and Citi ThankYou Premier, offer far
more flexibility.
Though the United TravelBank
card offers a good rewards rate for an airline
card with no annual fee, cardholders may be better off searching for a
general travel card with
more flexibility.
If you want
more flexibility in what hotels you stay in, consider a
general travel rewards
card such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
-- Best Airline in Asia / Pacific: Singapore Airlines — Best Airline in Europe / Middle East / Africa: Transaero Airlines — Best Airline in the Americas: American Airlines — Best First Class Lounges: Lufthansa — Best Business Class Lounges: Swiss International Air Lines — Best Airport in Asia / Pacific: Singapore Changi Airport — Best Airport in Europe / Middle East / Africa: Dubai International Airport — Best Airport in the Americas: John F. Kennedy International Airport — Best Airline Alliance: Star Alliance — Best Frequent Flyer Program: Lufthansa Miles &
More — Best Airline Food and Wine: Emirates Airline — Best Hotel Chain in Asia / Pacific: Hilton Hotels & Resorts — Best Hotel Chain in Europe / Middle East / Africa: Hilton Hotels & Resorts — Best Hotel Chain in The Americas: Hilton Hotels & Resorts — Best Hotel Chain / Group Loyalty Program: Hilton HHonors — Best Hotel Chain Dining / Restaurant: Hilton Hotels & Resorts — Best Credit / Charge
Card Points Program: American Express Membership Rewards — Best Mobile Phone Coverage in North America: AT&T — Best Web Site for Booking
Travel: Expedia — Best
General Travel Site: FlyerTalk — Best Car Rental Chain in the World: Hertz — Best Car Manufacturer in the World: BMW — Best Luggage Maker: Samsonite
If you fly less frequently, a
general travel rewards
card may make
more sense since you can use it with any airline.
All of these
general cards have
more travel redemption options, including, but not limited to, train
travel.
Membership Rewards is a good
general rewards program that allows you to redeem points for gift
cards, Amazon shopping and
more, but it also has excellent
travel benefits, including the ability to transfer points to some of the best airline loyalty programs in the world.
For even
more flexibility, use
general travel cards In addition to co-branded credit
cards, many savvy travelers swear by another shovel to dig for
travel treasure:
general travel credit
cards such as Citi Prestige and Chase Sapphire Preferred.
Other types of
cards, such as
general travel reward
cards or cash - back
cards, generally have
more straightforward ways to earn and redeem reward points.
General travel cards with flat - rate rewards, such as the Capital One ® Venture ® Rewards Credit
Card, can help you to go on vacation every once in a while without making it
more difficult to earn rewards.