If you love to travel like I do, one of the best things you can bring along on your adventures is a nice travel rewards credit card. It’s safer and often more convenient than carrying cash. Plus, you get the added benefit of earning airline miles or other rewards just for spending on everyday items.
Some of the best travel rewards credit cards offer more than one point per dollar spent, come with bonuses, and make redeeming your points easy. Most of the cards below would make an excellent choice because they don’t place restrictions on which airlines you can use.
PT’s Pick for the Best Travel Rewards Credit Card
Blue Sky from American Express® – The Blue Sky from American Express® card is a regular credit card. Not a charge card. It has an excellent travel rewards program. Both in how you earn the points and how they are redeemed. Let me explain. You earn 1 point per dollar spent on the Blue Sky from American Express®. However, 7,500 points can be redeemed for $100 in travel credit. Therefore, you really earn 1.33% rewards on your spending. In addition to this, when you book your travel, you don’t have to go through a travel agent. You can book the flight yourself through whatever means necessary. You just have to use the Blue Sky from American Express® to pay for the flight. When it hits your account, they will credit you the money for the flight based on the 7,500/$100 ratio.
The Blue Sky from American Express® has no annual fee, and comes with a nice promotional 0% interest rate on purchases for 6 months. Finally they have more travel perks to take advantage of: 20% off travel savings program, American Express traveler checks and their ticket savings center where you can get exclusive deals on shows and sporting events. I put this card in the number one spot because of the way the points are earned and the flexibility with which points are redeemed.
Chase Sapphire(SM) – Probably the coolest looking card of the bunch is the Chase Sapphire(SM). It offers the opportunity to earn 2 points per dollar spent through the Chase travel booking tool. Other spending earns 1 point. This card has no annual fee, which is nice. And it comes with an initial bonus of 10,000 points. Just use the card once. As you’ve seen in the commercials, with this card you get 24/7 dedicated service advisors to assist you in your travel needs. Points can be redeemed for more travel or other rewards. See my full Chase Sapphire(SM) review.
Citi® Gold/AAdvantage® World MasterCard® – If you fly exclusive to American Airlines, like me, then the Citi® Gold/AAdvantage® World MasterCard® will have an appeal. This card has one of the best bonuses around, 30,000 AAdtantage® bonus miles when you spend just $750 in the first 4 months. The card has an annual fee of only $50, and earns a standard 1 mile per dollar spent. Miles can be redeemed for flights on American Airlines, American Eagle and the AmericanConnection® without restriction.
Capital One® Venture(SM) Rewards Credit Card – Looking for a straight-forward, no-nonsense travel rewards card? This is it. You earn 2 points per dollar spent on anything, unlimited. Point then transfer over to rewards at a 1 to 1 ratio. The Capital One® Venture(SM) Rewards Credit Card has no annual fee for the first year. After that it’s $59. This is also one of the only cards that has no fees for foreign transactions. So when you are using it overseas there won’t be an extra fee for that, which as you know can range from 1% to 5% with other cards.
Chase Sapphire Preferred – With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you have the opportunity to earn more travel rewards. In addition to the rewards you earn above with the regular Chase Sapphire(SM), you get an annual 7% bonus on your reward points earned. Also, your points are worth 25% more when redeemed for travel. This card has no annual fee for the first year (after that it’s $85). The Chase Sapphire Preferred comes with an initial bonus of 25,000 points (worth $250 or a flight valued at $312.50) when you spend $3,000 in the first three months.
Miles by Discover® Card – Not to be left out of the travel rewards credit card game, Discover® has two cards to offer. With the first, Miles by Discover® Card, you can earn 2 points per dollar for the first $3,000 in travel and restaurant spending each year. The rest of your spending earns 1 point per dollar. It has no annual fee and it comes with an opportunity to earn 12,000 bonus points in the first year if you spend $1,000 each month. Points can be redeemed for airfare, hotels, gift cards, cash, and more. The Miles by Discover® Card also comes with a balance transfer and purchase promotion: 0% for 6 months.
Escape by Discover® Card – If you want the opportunity to earn more travel rewards and don’t mind an annual fee of of $60, then Escape by Discover® Card might be a better option for you. With this card you earn a flat 2 points for every dollar you spend. No categories or limits to worry about. If you’re a bigger spender, definitely go with this card over the other Discover travel rewards card. Points can be redeemed for airfare, hotels, gift cards, cash, and more. The Escape by Discover® Card also comes with a balance transfer and purchase promotion: 0% for 6 months.
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express – The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card, a true credit card, is considered a hotel card by some, but I think with the way the points transfer to the airline miles programs, it should be on par with the other travel rewards credit cards. With this card you earn 1 Starpoint with regular spending, and 2 Starpoints when you spend at the Starwood hotels and resorts. If you’re a Gold or Platinum level member with Starwood, then you can earn 5 Starpoints per dollar. Wow! Points are redeemed through the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, which has some nice point conversion rates for airfare. The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card has no annual fee the first year. After that it’s $45. Additionally, the card comes with an initial APR of 2.90% for the first 6 months. If you do a lot of spending at hotels, this is your card.
American Express® Premier Gold Card – The only true charge card in the bunch, I had to throw in the American Express® Premier Gold Card. Being a charge card, you don’t pay any interest because you pay it off each month. And you don’t have a pre-set spending limit to hold you back. It has some sweet travel rewards for the frequent flier. With the American Express® Premier Rewards card you earn 3 points per dollar spent on airfare, 2 points on gas and groceries, and 1 point on everything else. Redeeming the rewards is a bit tricky through the American Express Membership Rewards program. I suggest you visit the MR list of airlines to see how the points will convert. The annual fee is waived in the first year, and after that it’s $175. You have the opportunity to earn 15,000 bonus points each year when you spend $30,000 on the card.
PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express® Card – PenFed rolls out another excellent reward card here. If you are a member of the Pentagon Federal Credit Union (not that difficult to become a member) then you can take advantage of this card. You will earn 5 points for each dollar you spend on airfare. And through the end of 2010 you will earn 3 points on hotels and dining. You also get 24/7 concierge service and exclusive travel upgrades and offers. Redeem your points on any airline. No black-out dates or restrictions. Comes with an initial bonus of 20,000 points when you spend $650 in the first three months. The PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express® Card also has an annual fee of $50. Be sure you factor that in when decided whether to use this card.
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