There is no doubt that credit cards offering points and miles for daily spend are essential for maximizing savings in award travel. However, navigating the countless cards on the market to find the right one for you can be daunting. Luckily, these five tips can help you weed through the masses to find the perfect card that will get you to that vacation getaway in no time!
Shop for the Best Sign-up Bonuses
The fast-track to travel rewards is definitely through sign-up bonuses via credit cards. As incentives to apply, most travel rewards credit cards on the market offer substantial sign-up bonuses in the form points, miles, cash back, or other travel perks that oftentimes provide several hundred to several thousand dollars in value! These bonuses usually come with a minimum spend requirement in the first three to four months of card ownership. However, not all sign-up bonuses are created equal and many change throughout the year. As such, it is imperative that when choosing a credit card, you take the time to research the various cards for the best return and make sure you can meet the minimum spend requirement to obtain the bonus.
Pick a Card that Provides Points and Miles That Are Useful to You
Unfortunately, there is no perfect card that is ideal for every traveler. Variables such as where you live, where you want to travel, how often you travel, and loyalty to specific airlines and hotels all factor in to what points and miles you should collect and what card you should have in your wallet. For example, it makes no sense to apply for a Delta Airlines credit card if I rarely fly Delta or its SkyTeam partners from my local airport. However, if I live near a Delta hub and my business frequently uses Delta for flights, a Delta card may just be what the doctor ordered. In sum, be sure to assess your travel goals before clicking that application button.
Consider Bonus Spend Categories
The main goal of having a travel rewards credit card is to collect miles and points for every dollar you spend on the card. However, most cards offer bonus miles for spending in certain categories, such as dining, gas, travel, or entertainment. When applying for a card, consider how you spend your money on a daily basis and whether you can take advantage of the various bonus categories offered on the card to maximize your return.
Pick a Card That You Can Actually Use
While this sounds obvious, many cards that offer excellent rewards on the surface are actually difficult to use based on a variety of restrictions in the small print. For example, some cards will actually charge you extra in the form of foreign transaction fees or are often not accepted by various merchants due to high processing fees. Given these restrictions, these cards become essentially useless for some travelers as they offer little to no return. As such, always consider your personal travel goals and review the fine print before applying for any card.
Beware of the Annual Fee
While travel credit cards often offer amazing travel benefits ranging from airport lounge access to automatic hotel status to airline fee credits, many also come with pesky annual fees to offset some of the costs of these perks. Such fees can range from around $50 all the way up to over $500! Considering annual fees can add up quickly, take the time to do the math and make sure you are getting more value out of the card benefits than the annual fee. If you do not think you can effectively use all of the benefits offered on a given card, consider applying for a different card with a lower fee or a card that offers no annual fee for the first year.
Bottom Line
If you are serious about getting into the world of points and miles and achieving cheap travel, you are going to need a travel rewards credit card to make sure your daily spend is actually helping you achieve your goals. While the choices of credit cards may be overwhelming at first, using these five tips can help you focus your objectives so that the card you pull out of your wallet can eventually lead to a ticket to paradise.
If you want to learn more about what travel credit cards may be right for you, contact us today!