The Best Travel Credit Cards & Why You Need One ASAP
If you love traveling, then the first thing you need to to is get a travel credit card. Having a travel-specific credit card is a game changer & without it, you are losing out on some serious money. Instead of paying for your everyday necessities, you can earn big on excursions & flights to some of your favorite destinations. There are tons of options on the market and I’m going to go over the best travel credit cards. With the use of both my Capital One Venture Card & my American Express Delta Gold Card, I have the luxury of exclusive perks & amazing sign-on bonuses that are equivalent to free flights.
Right before embarking on my abroad adventures to Spain in 2020, I purchased the Capital One Venture Card and got my hands on the Delta AMEX Gold Card in 2022. Since getting my travel credit card, I have not had to pay for many flights since 2019. There is no catch. All you have to do is use your card for expenses that you already have to pay for. The hack is as long as you use your card for your daily expenses. You’re already paying for groceries, transportation, and eating out. Why not take advantage and turn those expenses into flights?
If you’re someone who wants to make travel a priority in your life, then the first step is to invest in one of these cards. The questions prevail, do I really need a travel credit card? If so which card(s) do I get & what perks do they have. That is why I am here to break down the best travel credit cards. I mean these are the best travel credit cards for a reason, right?
Don’t Have A Credit Card? Why That’s The Biggest Mistake You Can Make
If you’re someone who doesn’t have a credit card yet, then I would highly recommend getting one soon. Why? Because down the road when you want to apply for an apartment and even a loan, your credit score is going to be required and if you don’t have a credit card, well, you can’t get a score. It’s a part of adulting that I think everyone needs to learn sooner rather than later. I had my first credit card when I was eighteen and it teaches discipline in the idea of paying bills on time and learning how to manage your expenses.
Secondly, relying on your debit card is probably the worst thing that you can do. Why? If you are constantly swiping your debit card at sketchy ATMs that might have been messed with or at gas stations, etc, people can steal your card information and wipe your account clean. Since it goes directly to your bank account, there is virtually no way of retrieving that money. I’ll give you an example. Someone tried to spend $3,400 of basketball tickets on my credit card. After filing a fraud complaint with Capital One, they were able to credit it back to me and I didn’t lose a single dime. When you use your credit card, you’re putting your purchases on the credit card account and not directly from your bank account.
Lastly, think about all of the benefits you could be getting with your credit card purchases. Your purchasing power is truly elevated once you use cards like these. Here’s a quick summary which I will go into more depth in a bit!
Overview Of The Best Travel Credit Cards
- With the Capital One Venture Card, you get unlimited 2 miles per dollar on every purchase. In addition, you get 5 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One travel. Within the first three months of getting the card, I spent $3000 which allowed me to get 60,000 bonus miles. (That is equivalent to $600 and bought myself a free flight to Spain for an annual fee of $95.)
- With the Delta AMEX Card, you get 2x miles on Delta purchases, 2x on restaurants, takeout & supermarkets & 1x for every other purchase along with a 70,000k sign-on bonus (which again is equivalent to a flight for an annual fee of $99.
The Best Travel Credit Cards: Looking for a New Credit Card?
So there is no set number of credit cards you should/shouldn’t have. I have two and I do this just in case I lose one, I always have a backup. I prefer using my Capital One Venture Card & AMEX Gold Card with Delta for the travel miles I have been boasting about. Given that the average American has about 3-4 credit cards, there is nothing wrong with having a few credit cards.
My recommendation would be to spread them out so that you don’t have a ton of new cards to pay off at once! Lots of credit cards give amazing incentives to join such as the bonus 75k & 70k miles in the first year and additional miles earned etc. I would recommend getting another card because it can increase your credit score when you balance the expenses from the multiple credit cards you have. If you are looking for a new credit card, this one is for sure the one for you, and if I have not convinced you enough, here are the benefits of the Capital One Venture Card & Delta AMEX Gold Travel Credit Card.
6 Benefits of the Capital One Venture Travel Credit Card
- Receive a sign-on bonus of 75k miles when you spend 4k in the first three months.
- Even if you aren’t looking to necessarily use your miles for all things travel, you can even put your purchases toward Amazon and other retailers as well.
- You get cashback from retailers you already shop at! Here are a few examples: 8% at CVS, 3% at Walgreens, 4% H&M, 3% Apple, 10% Groupon, 6% Ulta, and more!! I mean there are hundreds of retailers, it would be impossible to list them all without boring you to death!
- There are no foreign transaction fees. This is so big as with other credit cards, they either aren’t accepted in other nations or the fees are so high that it makes a huge dent in the bank account.
- Extended warranty protection with no extra charges from purchases spent with the venture card!
- Capital One is constantly increasing my credit card limit which is super convenient for expensive trips and even holiday shopping!
- TRAVEL MILES from just making everyday purchases and the ability to visit your favorite destinations for FREE!
8 Benefits of the Delta AMEX Gold Travel Credit Card
- If you’re planning on being loyal to one airline, I’d highly recommend either Detla or United. They always have the best flights & the best customer service. Being loyal to one airline has so many more perks and the card is your gateway to unlocking upgrades, free flights & discounts that you will have for a lifetime!
- Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding is a plus for flights. I have unfortunately had to check a carry-on since there wasn’t a lot of room on the overhead cabins on the plane since I waited last in line so being first ensures you can get situated first and that your carry-on stays with you.
- Receive a 20% discount on in-flight purchases.
- Receive 15% discounts on Delta purchases made on the Delta app.
- The first checked bag is free on Delta
- No foreign transaction fees
- Car rental loss & insurance is covered when you purchase with this card
- Access to a global assist hotline for any vacation troubles
So how did I get these flights for free? Let’s get into the steps….
- Apply to the Capital One Venture Card & Amex cards via link
- Wait for the approval via email (takes about 1-3 days)
- Get started making those big purchases!
So There You Have It
The application process is actually pretty simple and they do not take long to get back to you so you can start racking up those travel miles. I think the process was 1-3 days to be exact which is just enough time in my opinion! Overall, I am so grateful to have gotten this card in that it really changed the travel game. I don’t have to worry about my credit card not getting accepted abroad and can go about my daily life without worrying about transaction fees or my card getting declined for “suspicious activity” in England when I’m just on vacation! Once you get a card like this, it will change your perspective on your spending habits and will reinforce that some big purchases aren’t too bad since you get awesome rewards!
Check It out here and get yours today!
what do you think?