If you’re like most people, traveling this holiday season is a must. While visiting relatives and friends is a high priority for many, you may be one of the lucky few that simply wants to get away from the routine of everyday life and create some precious memories before the year ends.
Before we dive into tools, tips and travel hacks, it’s important to enter into holiday travel with an understanding that it’s a chaotic time of year. Our suggestions are meant to soften any unexpected blows of long lines, delays, or dreaded weather cancellations. Of course if you plan ahead with enough detail you may just avoid the chaos of the crowds.
Before Your Trip, Stack Your Travel Rewards
When it comes to traveling during the holidays, it’s safe to say, the more cost effective the better. If you know you’re going to travel this year, the best thing you can do in the upcoming weeks may be to use or open a travels rewards card if you don’t already have one. Spending is inevitable during the season due to gifts, groceries, and decorations. So why not make the most of your spending.
Best Travel Credit Cards
If you are a responsible credit card user, a credit card with travel rewards can save you a ton of money. Of course the right travel credit card for you depends on your lifestyle and preferences. There are three main types of travel credit cards, for some it may make sense to open more than one to maximize the rewards value if you travel often.
Airline credit cards
Airline credit cards provide perks like priority boarding, free checked bags, free WiFi, access to airport lounges (perfect for unexpected delays), and complimentary companion tickets. If an airline card is right for you it will fit seamlessly into your current and projected spending habits. The more you travel, the more value will come from the credit card, as long as you use it responsibly. These cards are for people who have a favorite airline they typically use, and know that they will be able redeem the rewards easily through their chosen airline.
Hotel credit cards
Hotel credit cards are for people who stay in hotels at least 4-5 times a year, have a preferred hotel chain, know how to take advantage of extra benefits, and will use them enough to make annual fees worthwhile. Some perks that come with using a hotel credit card include room upgrades, complimentary WiFi, and priority check-in. The right hotel card for you should be with your most visited or favorite hotel brand.
General travel credit cards
General travel credit cards are the best option for people who travel often but aren’t particular on the hotel chain, or airline they use for their trips. Those who travel often can easily make the most of the cards value in benefits and rewards. See the next section on choosing a travel credit card.
Choosing a Travel Credit Card
Despite credit card use being so prevalent in American society, there are plenty of people who are unaware of the added perks that come with travel credit cards. In an effort to acquire customers, certain credit companies offer bonuses that can be redeemed for airfare, hotels or even spending money!
There are many cards to choose from, each with their own set of pros and cons, so there’s really no perfect travel reward card for everyone. Most have annual fees, and others have restrictions for redeeming travel points. Some cards have very high interest rates to deflect the cost of the points they offer and other cards offer sign-on bonuses only when you qualify by spending a certain amount of money in a set time frame.
Definitely do your due diligence and read all of the fine print before signing up for a deal. But, if you love to travel and you’re in the market for a new credit card, travel rewards cards can’t be beat!
If it’s still all a bit confusing for you, this breakdown of various travel credit cards is sure to make your day.
Travel Cards that offer “points”
Credit cards that offer point rewards are the most popular of the rewards cards, and for good reason. Most offer anywhere from 1-5 points for every dollar spent. You’ll want to try and find a card that offers at least 2 points per dollar on every purchase (and not just on travel or dining.) The Capital One Venture card is probably the best on the market right now as far as points are concerned. It boasts 2 points for every dollar spent, which can then be redeemed as a statement credit so there are no restrictions on your travel arrangements.
It also doesn’t have an annual fee for the first year (it’s $59 afterwards.) The Venture card even offers a 40,000 points bonus (equivalent to a $400 statement credit) if you spend $3,000 within the first 3 months! Another contender for the best points card right now is the Chase Sapphire card which earns 2 points for every dollar spent on travel or dining and 1 point for all other spending.
Cash-back offers
Cash back offers are great because there’s no hassle when it comes time to book your trip. You can just use whatever money you’ve earned as a statement credit towards your travel with zero restrictions. One of the best cash back cards out there right now is the new Citi Double Cash Card offers which offers up to 2% cash back: 1% on all purchases, with an additional 1% earned for every purchase when you pay your bill on time.
Travel Cards that provide travel miles
These cards can be a good bet for those that are brand-loyal, but they can also be quite convoluted. Beware of black-out dates and restrictions that may come into play when you’re trying to redeem your earned miles. If you fly Delta often, a fairly straight forward card is American Express’s Gold Delta Sky Miles. It offers 1 mile for every dollar spent, and an additional mile per dollar spent with Delta travel. It also offers a variety of benefits like priority boarding and 1 free checked bag per flight.
Travel Credit cards with sign-up bonuses
Many cards offer large bonus promotions when you sign up that can translate to hundreds of dollars of statement credits or even free flights. The Barclay Arrivals Plus card currently offers the best bonus of 50,000 points if you spend $3,000 within the first three months. The Chase Sapphire card also offers 50,000 free points, but you need to spend $4000 in three months and the annual fee is a bit heftier at $95 opposed to Barclay’s $85 annual charge. These bonuses can be a great way to jump start your vacation; just be prudent and read the fine print.
Brand-loyal cards
These cards tend to be more strict than the other rewards cards, and often provide less of a return. But, they could be a good choice if you fly a few times a year with a specific brand or sail on the same cruise line often. Some good choices depending on your brand are: Gold Delta SkyMiles, Southwest Rapid Rewards, The JetBlue Card, British Airways Visa Signature Card and the United MileagePlus® Explorer Card.
For frequent cruisers, these are the best options: Royal Caribbean Visa Card, Carnival Cruise MasterCard, Princess Cruises Rewards Visa & Norwegian Cruise Line Visa.
Pre Book Airport Parking
Many times airport parking is a vital (yet overlooked) detail that people save for the last minute. Planning for this ahead of time can be the difference between easy sailing and encountering the turbulent winds of airport chaos. Sites like Airport Parking Reservations and Park Sleep Fly provide:
- Airport Parking Reservations gives you the ability to compare the best rates, information and reviews of all the most popular off-airport parking lots at every major US & Canadian airport.
- The convenience of being able to park and sleep close to the airport for early flights when you use Park Sleep Fly.
- Savings with the benefit of paying one bundled price on parking and your hotel stay while traveling. Park Sleep Fly compares dozens of prices of hotel rooms within close proximity of the airport, with also the convenience of booking hotel room only with a discounted price.
- Simplicity by securing parking in advance, you are able to know your vehicle will be safe while you go about your travels, and it eliminates the need to find car services or a friend to pick you up when you get back from your trip.
Travel With Confidence
This holiday season take advantage of the available tools and resources that are right at your fingertips. Make the most out of the holiday spirit and close out the end of the year saving money, avoiding stress, and bringing ease into your life.
For more tips on saving during travel, read our guide on travel hacks.
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