On the other hand, the Arrival MasterCard has an $ 89 annual fee, and earns less
value on the travel purchases themselves.
Not exact matches
You also get the same
value applied regardless of the type of merchant or transaction (with the Venture ® card, you get 2 % cash back
on travel statement credit redemptions, but only 1 % cash back
on other types of
purchases).
The PenFed Premium
Travel Rewards American Express card has additional
value for travelers, giving 5 rewards points
on every $ 1 spent
on airfare
purchases.
Often, while a
travel, airline, or hotel card may offer a discount
on a particular brand of products a consumer desires, using a cash back card for the
purchase may in fact produce a better net
value.
Offering 2x points
on travel and dining
purchases, no foreign transaction fees, and 25 % more in
value when rewards points are redeemed for
travel, the Chase Sapphire Preferred ® is a frequent traveler's dream card.
You also get the same
value applied regardless of the type of merchant or transaction (with the Venture ® card, you get 2 % cash back
on travel statement credit redemptions, but only 1 % cash back
on other types of
purchases).
Using Venture miles for regular cash back statement credits or
on non-
travel purchases gets you about half of the
value compared to
travel expenditures.
This card offers rewards
on your
purchases, which are tracked as points that you can redeem for instant savings at the Amazon.com checkout for eligible
purchases or for gift cards, cash back and
travel on Chase.com (redemption
value may vary based
on how you choose to redeem your points).
If you
value participation in these loyalty programs, but you prefer to earn points
on a more diversified list of
purchases, consider applying for one of Chase's
travel credit cards.
Bottom Line: As long as you don't mind all the hoops you have to jump through when it comes to rewards, the Sam's Club Mastercard provides excellent
value on gas,
travel, and dining
purchases.
While I
travel enough to have no difficulty finding
purchases to redeem my miles against, if you're an infrequent traveler or don't spend very much money
on your existing credit cards, you may find yourself struggling to redeem your miles at their full
value.
Not only do you get 2X points
on travel and dining at restaurants & 1 point per dollar spent
on all other
purchases worldwide with this card, but simply being a cardholder is enough to earn 25 % more
value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards website.
The
value of the Costco card extends beyond Costco
purchases, including a generous amount of cash back
on gas,
travel and restaurant
purchases and some great
purchase benefits, though you're limited to redeeming your cash back once a year.
However, cardholders recoup the most
value when they redeem their miles for statement credits
on travel purchases, at 1 cent per mile.
Outside of high rewards
on airline ticket
purchases, this card gives all users the opportunity to earn a
Travel Together Ticket, which is one of the most high -
valued credit card rewards available.
Outside of high rewards
on airline ticket
purchases, this card gives all users the opportunity to earn a
Travel Together Ticket, which is one of the most high -
valued credit card... Read More
For instance, the average
value of a mile spent
on air
travel is $ 0.21 cents whereas the
purchase of a common electronic item like a TV can yield a much lower
value of about $ 0.0655 per mile.
You'll realize the best
value for WorldPoints
on travel purchases and redemptions.
Why # 1: The Chase Sapphire Reserve is now my most used card in terms of dollar
value of
purchases, thanks to earning 3X
on all
travel and dining.
As is the case with most co-branded cruise line cards, a
travel credit card earning 2 percent
on all
purchases and offering decent cruise redemption
values could be a better choice.
The U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve card unfortunately falls short
on its airline lounge offering, but it does feature an extensive list of luxury benefits and an excellent rewards program that includes a generous
travel credit, a bonus
on travel purchases and a 50 percent boost in point
value for
travel redemptions.
The TD First Class
Travel Visa Infinite is a fixed
value return card and offers 1.2 % — 1.5 % return
on all
purchases and 3.6 % -4.5 % return
on purchases made through Expedia for TD.
Since I already have a US Bank FlexPerks
Travel Rewards Visa Signature that gives me up to 4 cents per dollar in
value on purchases at gas stations when I redeem my Flexpoints for paid airline tickets, I'm not too worried about paying for any upcoming flights.
Bottom Line: The «double dip» increases the
value of the miles earned
on the Discover it Miles Card slightly, since you can both pay for a
travel purchase with the card to earn miles and pay off the balance with those «miles» as cash - back.
It also limits the amount of
value you can get
on travel purchases by requiring you to book your reservations directly with a hotel, airline or car rental company in order to take advantage of the card's rewards bonus and
travel credit.
For just $ 75 a year, the Hyatt Credit Card from Chase offers an outstanding amount of
value for frequent travelers: New cardholders are awarded ample points
on a variety of
travel purchases, including airfare, car rentals and restaurant
purchases.
The
value of the Costco card extends beyond Costco
purchases, including a generous amount of cash back
on gas,
travel and restaurant
purchases and some great
purchase benefits, though you're limited to redeeming your cash back once a year.
Membership Rewards can also be used for statement credits against
travel purchases at a rate of 1 cent = 1 Membership Rewards, so there is a floor
on the
value.
You'll realize the best
value for WorldPoints
on travel purchases and redemptions.
In addition to terrific vacation
values, Executive Members earn an annual 2 % Reward
on Costco
Travel purchases.
The primary cardmember and one companion
traveling on the same reservation will each receive their first standard checked bag free — calculated as a $ 25
value for the first checked bag, each way, per person —
on United - operated flights when
purchasing tickets with their United MileagePlus Explorer Card.
Our take: The U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve card unfortunately falls short
on its airline lounge offering, but it does feature an extensive list of luxury benefits and an excellent rewards program that includes a generous
travel credit, a bonus
on travel purchases and a 50 percent boost in point
value for
travel redemptions.
You earn two miles
on every single
purchase, miles have a redemption
value of 1 - cent, and you get a 5 % redemption bonus for
travel purchases.
You earn 2x points
on every
travel and dining
purchase (1 point for everything else) and your points can be redeemed for award
travel on the Chase
travel portal for 1.25 cents each (10,000 points = $ 125) where most other credit cards only
value a point at one cent or less (10,000 poins = $ 100).
You earn points
on all
purchases, and you get great
value with 2x the points
on travel and dining
purchases.
• 3X points
on dining out and entertainment • 2X points
on airfare, hotels and
travel agencies • 1X points on other purchases • 25 % more value when you redeem your points for flights through the ThankYou Travel Center as compared to gift
travel agencies • 1X points
on other
purchases • 25 % more
value when you redeem your points for flights through the ThankYou
Travel Center as compared to gift
Travel Center as compared to gift cards
The primary cardmember and one companion
traveling on the same reservation will each receive their first standard checked bag free ($ 25
value for the first checked bag, each way, per person)
on United - operated flights when the primary cardmember includes their MileagePlus number in their reservation and
purchases their tickets from United with their Card.
The Reserve's 3x points
on a wide variety of
travel - related
purchases and valuable 50,000 - point bonus offer great
value for the frequent, mid-range traveler looking to occasionally splurge
on a big trip, as well as the luxury traveler looking to save money
on their vacations.
I
value Hyatt Gold Passport points at around 1.5 cents each (based
on my own
travel needs and patterns) so, at 1.85 cents I'm not that interested in
purchasing any points.
The 2.2 % cash back for
travel purchases (it's 2 % plus a 10 % rebate
on travel, so effectively 2.2 %) is still good
value for manufacturing spend.
A great
value for large families who frequently
travel to Central or South America, this inexpensive
travel card offers a number of unique perks, including bonus points
on gas and grocery
purchases, a $ 99 companion certificate every year and a free fourth ticket when you buy three tickets
on the same flight.
If you will be making several
purchases with your credit card
on travel purchases then you will get more
value with the Citi Thank You Premier card.
I always recommend that people start applying for
travel rewards cards by focusing
on those with good long - term
value — the ones that are actually worth paying the annual fee and using for daily
purchases.
One of the most popular
travel rewards credit cards out there, the Chase Sapphire Preferred ® offers 2X points
on travel and dining
purchases, 25 % more in
value when rewards points are redeemed for
travel, and no foreign transaction fees.
With
travel as a 3x category, that means you're effectively getting almost 5 % in guaranteed
value on every single
travel purchase with a ThankYou card.
So, for one quarter of the year, the Chase Freedom card is the better option for gas
purchases — not only do you earn a higher rewards rate, but you can transfer your rewards to other Chase Ultimate Rewards cards to get an even better
value on travel redemptions.
The
value can range from 1 % cash back
on everyday
purchases, to 2 % rewards rate when redeemed
on travel, or 5 %
on special categories of merchants.
That 2 - 3 % often wipes out much of the
value of any points you'd earn
on such
purchases, making these cards a break - even
value proposition when
traveling.
That's actually why I suggest the Barclaycard Arrival as one of the top
travel credit cards out there, because you earn 2X miles per $ 1
on all
purchases and you can redeem them for
travel — pretty much any
travel that you can't normally redeem airline miles or hotel points for, such as rail tickets, car rentals, even the fees and taxes
on award tickets — at a fixed rate of 1 cent per mile plus a 5 % mileage refund, and know you're getting a very decent fixed
value or 2.2 % back
on your spending.
While you will have access to the broader redemption platform for that provider's network of credit cards, you'll still receive the best
value by redeeming for
travel through the platform or using the platform to receive statement credits for
travel purchases made
on the card.