I like to think of myself as a pro traveler. I started traveling to Europe (alone!) when I was 18. Studied abroad in London for a semester when I was 20 and was introduced to the world of European budget airlines and train travel. Lived and worked as a traveling consultant in the U.S. for three years before quitting to move to Spain for two years. And traveled to another country every month while I was there! So… would it surprise you if I said that I never used travel credit cards? 😬
Credit cards can be a tricky subject. I feel like people in my generation have been extensively warned against them, and with good reason… for the most part. Misuse of credit cards can definitely put you in a horrible financial position. (In my day job, I’m a financial writer and editor, so I totally get it.) But when you use them responsibly — ideally paying them off in full each month — they can be a great tool.
Now, at age 29, I’ve finally entered the world of travel credit cards. And I’m having a great time with them! Though I wish I’d started earlier. Anyway, here are some thoughts on travel credit cards… and how they saved us a ton of money on our recent trip to Scotland, Ireland, and England.
A Few Little Personal Stories About Travel Credit Cards
August 2015
I’m 22 years old, just got my first corporate job, and I’m applying for my first credit card of my very own. All of my work friends are getting the Southwest Rapid Rewards credit card, since we fly Southwest for work all the time. Plus, Southwest points are so easy to actually redeem for free flights! (After all these years, I have yet to find another airline where your points go so far.) Anyway, I decide to go for the Southwest credit card, too. I submit my application.
I get rejected.
Something about “not having long enough credit history.” Which, I understand now, but it sucked at the time. So instead, I get the CapitalOne Quicksilver credit card, which gives me a certain percentage of cash back with each purchase. I can then redeem it each month for money off my statement. Four or five years pass. I’ve paid off my credit card in full every single month, so I know I have good credit habits.
November 2019
I’m in Spain, and I’ve just set up an LLC because now I’m also a freelance writer. I find out that it’s good practice to have a separate credit card for business expenses — and now I know that, thanks to my strong credit history, I can have my pick of almost any credit card. Now, a lot of my friends have the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, which is supposed to be good for travel. So I apply, and I’m approved.
And here’s where I make a big mistake: I totally ignore the bonus offer that comes along with opening this particular card.
With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you get 60,000 bonus points if you simply spend $4,000 in the first three months of having your card. 60,000 bonus points is worth the equivalent of a free $750!!
(2022 me looks at this wasted opportunity and feels like crying. Because I can easily spend almost $2,000 on random stuff every month, and I don’t even know where it all goes. Would have been nice to at least get $750 back.)
Although truthfully, this wouldn’t have been the right point in my life to capitalize on that bonus. Living in Spain, I used cash or direct money transfers from my Spanish bank account for most purchases — it’s not quite the same type of cashless society that the U.S. is.
But anyway. I hold onto this credit card for years, as it collects dust, because guess what? When you’re a writer, if you already have a laptop, you don’t have too many business expenses.
March 2022
We’re in Quito at the beginning of this year. Matt, who’s held the Southwest Rapid Rewards credit card for several years, decides he wants to switch to something else. We’re planning to move back to Europe when we can, and Southwest points aren’t quite as useful over there. He already has a ton of points, anyway.
I have a brilliant idea to refer him to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Because then, not only does he get 60,000 bonus points if he hits the spending amount, but I’ll also get 15,000. Which is worth like $200ish. Oh yes, I like this plan. Also, I read more about the benefits of the Chase Sapphire Preferred, and I decide to make it my primary credit card moving forward.
Note: Yes, I’m trying to refer you throughout this post. Not if it’s going to put you in a financial hole or anything. Please be responsible. (I know you will.) But I’m really happy with how these cards have worked for me, and I want to pass that along to others who want to save money on travel! Only if you’re in the market for a new credit card and want travel points, of course.
June 2022
After all these years, I still never got the Southwest credit card. That’s been fine… until I realized I’m almost out of Southwest points. You might know that, living in Kansas City, we actually use Southwest points to get us to a major city like Chicago or New York before we fly direct on a different airline to our international destination. This saves us a few hundred dollars on each trip.
But I’m almost out of points, like under 10,000 left. It’s gonna put a kink in our travel routine if I run out. And then, one day in June, I get an email from Southwest saying I can get 75,000 bonus Southwest points if I open a credit card with them and spend $5,000 in the first 3 months.
Knowing their bonus is usually a maximum of like 50,000 points… knowing my good credit card habits… and knowing how useful points can be… I know I have to take the opportunity.
I use Matt’s referral code so he gets a little something-something too, and I sign up. While I still want to primarily use my Chase Sapphire card, I decide to switch over to my Southwest card for a few months.
Our house need a new dishwasher? We put it on my Southwest card, and then the home warranty company reimburses me. Matt is booking a weekend in Denver with his college friends? They put the hotel on my credit card and the guys pay me back. I’m hitting the bonus, no problem.
How We Saved Money in Europe
Okay, the part you’ve all been waiting for. Sorry for burying the lede.
When it was time for us to book our trip to Scotland, Ireland, and England, I was looking at Airbnbs like I usually do. But the prices I was seeing for places were making me want to cry. I kind of forgot how expensive it is there compared to the other places we’ve traveled this year — Ecuador, Colombia, Spain, and Mexico. So I decided to check out how the whole travel credit card points thing worked.
The cool thing about the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is that it has its very own travel booking interface right in the Chase web portal. Which is where you can redeem your points on travel. You can use them on flights, hotels, rental cars, “activities,” and cruises.
You can search for whatever you want to book — like a hotel, for example — and it will show you the cost, as well as the cost in points. Using combinations of points + cash, we were able to book pretty much all of our lodging on our trip at a price we were much more comfortable with.
Where we stayed in London, the London Bridge Hotel, would normally have been out of our budget. However, using some of our Chase points, we were able to cut the price in half, and pay the other half in points. When we split that remaining cost between three nights, and by two people, it was much more reasonable.
Here’s an example of what it looks like when you search:
Of course, you can sort by rating, distance, price, and more.
And here’s another really cool thing. Let’s say we went with that Rubens At The Palace place, meaning we’d be responsible for an additional $501. When you make any booking through the Chase tool, you’ll get 3x points on what you spend! So even if you had zero Chase points, it would be beneficial to book a flight or hotel (one that you were already planning to book regardless) through their interface.
We ended up spending all of our Chase points on our trip to Ireland and the UK, and I feel like we would have probably been spending outside our means if we hadn’t used those points. Also, we got to stay in some really cool local hotels that we wouldn’t have otherwise stayed at — it’s been so long since we stayed at hotels instead of Airbnbs.
Final Thoughts on Travel Credit Cards
Now that I’ve seen what they can do, I understand why some people are huge travel credit card evangelists. But I can also see how they can be easy to get “addicted” to… always chasing the next bonus and getting something for free.
Like anything, I think it’s about balance. You don’t want to have a ton of credit cards you’re only taking out for the bonuses and then never using. Also, a lot of them have fairly high annual fees, which can really add up. I think I’m good with my Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95 annual fee) and my Southwest Rapid Rewards ($69 annual fee) card for now. Just fitting in one last shameless plug for each.
But we’ll see what the next few years bring!
Have you ever used travel credit cards? If so, which are your favorites? Let me know in the comments.
(Also, if you happen to sign up for one of the cards with my referral, I’ll love you forever. Even more than I already do. 😘)
-Cathy
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Originally Published on September 29, 2022.
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