Best travel credit card

We use a British Airways card from Chase, because we often fly on BA . It appears that Delta has three cards, all with American Express https://creditcard.delta.com/m/delta/?utm_mcid=&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=%2Bdelta%20%2Bcard&utm_cmpid=20815464911&utm_adgid=156907338195&utm_tgtid=kwd-1211485137571&utm_mt=p&utm_adid=667797712799&utm_dvc=m&utm_ntwk=g&utm_plcmnt=&utm_locphysid=9028819&utm_locintid=&utm_feeditemid=&utm_devicemdl=&utm_plcmnttgt=&utm_ltpcid=EAIaIQobChMI8dyYuoGAhAMVqDutBh1edAb4EAAYASAAEgLZBPD_BwE&utm_programname=ccdc

If you’re based in Ireland, it might make some difference. The Chase BA card is for us U.S. residents. There’s a separate BA card issued in Britain by another bank, and we can’t apply for it (I’ve tried).

Delta has an exclusive (and lucrative) relationship with American Express.

There are lots of blogs that give more updated and detailed information on these choices than you could possibly get here. One Mile at a Time is my go-to source.

One note- your profile here says you’re in Ireland. Options for cardholders there will be significantly different than those for the US markets. (And cards in the EU are generally not nearly as generous.)

Thanks! I don't usually fly delta i should have said. So was wondering if using another card would be better. But would like to use the points we earn to help pay for the trip, so not sure. Maybe i am not totally understanding the strategy of points though! Thanks will check out the other sites too.

I have a Delta Amex card so there definitely is one.

There are two schools of thought on point/mile earning cards. You can get those direcly associated with an airline or a hotel. Every time you use the card, you earn points. Not just for travel. It's a regular credit card.

The other is to get a generic all around travel card via either companies like Chase or Amex. These cards gain points that can be used in most hotels or airlines indirectly. You have to book your travel through the card companies travel sites and not directly with the provider.

When getting a card, one of the most important things is the sign up bonus. It's usually some deal that you will get a large amount of points if you spend a certain amount on the card over a certain time period.

If you get one of these cards, start using it for everything. And I mean everything. Forget your other cards, forget paying cash, use the card. Again, every dollar spent on the card earns you points. Not just travel related items. Any bill you pay by check, see it they take a card. Any bill you pay by automatic deduction from your bank account, see if they will take a card.

I should also mention that if you don't pay off your credit card bill and have credit card debt, forget these cards. The interest rates on them are very high.

Also be wary of some of the websites that discuss cards and promote some. Usually, the commission they get for promoting the cards is highest on the ones they push.

I think what you’re looking for probably is a more general card like a visa or MasterCard that’s not an affiliated with one provider. I have a Capital One card that I’m pretty happy with, you earn points on all your spending and then you can use those points to pay for travel. It has a Portal where you can buy trips which I’ve never found that a good deal but you can just apply the points to travel related charges you make to your credit card.

Now unlike an earlier poster I do not put on my charges on there. I also have a Marriott credit card that I used to accumulate Marriott points and until recently I used my Delta card to accumulate points. So I kind of rotated between the three. I quit using Delta simply because their new reward system doesn’t reward me enough to use it. Marriott I still use because the free hotel stays are worth it to me. So you have to make some decisions

Here’s a good source for credit cards to read up on them but I will tell you to keep in mind they do get affiliation fees when you click through so it’s not totally unbiased imho

https://thepointsguy.com/credit-cards/travel/

Using points is a different strategy. I look for hotels that can earn me points. Yes, I give up the "Rick Steves charm" hotels. But I know, that night is going to earn me a free night down the road. (In fairness, I don't always stay in hotels that earn points but I do look to see what's available.)

As an example, next month I'll be in NYC for four nights. NYC hotel rates are high. My hotel wants around $400/night. It's costing me nothing as I am using a combination of points and free night certificate that comes with my hotel branded credit card as well as status with the hotel chain.

By the way, the hotel branded cards usually include a free night. The value of the free night is more than the annual fee for the card.

There are a lot of cards out there. There is no one best credit card for use for points and international travel. What's best is the one or ones that work for you.

By the way, the hotel branded cards usually include a free night. The value of the free night is more than the annual fee for the card.

I agree. I have the Marriott Bonvoy Chase card, which has an annual fee of $95. However, every year I get a certificate for a free stay, which would cost more than the $95 I pay. This year, I'm using my certificate for a night at a Marriott in Oxford, England, which averages around $250-300 a night.

American Airlines Aviator card…a bag of m&m’s and the $99 fee equals 60000 points and a free rt to Europe.

I’ve taken 19 trips to Europe since 2001 and have used miles and points for fully paid airfares, only paying for taxes and fees. In that time, I purchased 1 round trip ticket for a spontaneous Christmas trip to Paris. I earned all those miles on American Express cards and Capital One Venture cards.

Amex - when I had my business, anything I could pay using Amex was when this card was used. I have had various iterations of Amex cards - gold, business, regular and now a no fee version. What I like best about Amex is that you can transfer miles to various airlines and that some of those transfers come with bonus miles. I’ve flown Air France and Iberia round trip using as few as 43,000 miles because they offered (periodically) 20% bonus miles. At one time I also had an Amex Delta card that initially was great but then became worthless to me as Delta tightened up their policies. Delta raised the required miles to destinations that added 50% or more to the other airlines’ redemption amounts. You can always transfer miles from Amex to Delta if you need to.

Capital One - anytime Amex was not accepted, I used a Cap One card that gave me 1.5% cash back. I would not redeem that until I used the accumulated funds to pay for travel expenses charged on those cards. You can use the credits any time for any purpose not only for travel expenses.

The best travel credit card for you may not be the best travel card as for someone else. No credit card is a good choice if you don’t pay the balance off each month.

Capital One Venture X and Chase Sapphire Reserve both provide lots of perks such as lounge access and generous transfer to partners. They both have hefty annual fees, but provide travel credits as well.

One thing to consider is that the best card for accumulating points and perks for airline travel, and the best card for use abroad, may not be the same card. Also, as your life changes, the best card may change.

For points and perks, the Delta cards have worked well. I actually pay a hefty sum for mine, but, I have always gotten that value back in point accumulation, ability to attain or maintain medallion status, lounge access, free bags, companion tickets, upgrades, premium rental coverage, etc. I use it as my daily card, charging most everything, racking up additional miles.

In Europe though, my go to card is the UNFCU Elite. It is a true Chip and Pin, with PIN priority, contactless capable, and 3D verification capable. No FTFs, and if I ever need it, an ultra low fee cash advance capability. In multiple trips, the card has worked flawlessly at manned, unmanned, and online transactions.

But, as I mentioned, life changes. Since retirement, I am not flying every other week, Delta has radically changed their loyalty program along with gradually chipping away at some of the perks, especially in lounge access for the cardholder and guests. I saw my status go down this year (from Platinum to Gold) and I assume next year to Silver. I will likely downgrade my card, but keep using it for the basic perks.

What I may do is shop for a card just for points, not do the card churn thing, just add in another card, maybe gain some flexible points/miles to take advantage of some non-Delta flights.

Points not the consideration, the most well accepted card in Europe has always been Master Card. Am Ex (I carried a high limit business card for 35 years) is not well accepted. I recall 4 of us being turned away from out Munich Hotel because we only had Amex cards.... Try finding a bank that wants to advance cash on one in Tuscany.......
I have carried a United Chase Card for at least 20 years and collect mileage points with it. This is the card I generally use but I also carry a Master Card as a backup.

I prefer the higher end Chase cards for travel. Highly flexible points and very good travel specific perks.

The devaluation of airline miles makes cash rebates more attractive than they were years ago, but I have recently benefitted from being able to change United mileage tickets without paying any fees, so having miles available has been very helpful. Not having to pay extra for a changeable ticket in order to have schedule flexibility has meant significant savings for me. And a couple of days ago I rebooked my return flight from Europe in order to save 4000 miles and about $30. Not a lot of money, but worth doing.

For overseas travel one feature is top priority ,,,no foreign transaction fee.

Other features I look for are: no annual fee, percentage of points awarded to restaurants, groceries, and travel, ie, 1.5 % is not satisfactory given competition from other credit cards, plus a PIN of my own choosing, not one that is assigned to me.

Re: your question....AAA Visa and Amtrak MC.

Unfortunately, Delta is a transfer option of Chase's Ultimate Rewards, but you can transfer Amex Membership rewards. I prefer the Chase ecosystem but you can still get the Amex Gold or Platinum to work with Delta. There are limited-time offers on the Delta cards, but there are still much better credit cards for travel miles. https://johnnyjet.com/best-credit-cards-for-travel-miles/

You don’t need to be able to transfer to delta to book delta flights. Actually, delta points are the least valuable out there so I would discourage you from ever transferring to them. The best travel card is subjective based on your spending and travel habits. I personally love Capitol One’s Venture X because of the lounge access and the card is effectively free, but lots of people prefer the Chase Sapphire either reserve or preferred. Amex Gold is a great card for all around everyday spend but does have a higher annual fee.

Being P.F. I look at things maybe differently.

Yes, I put every bill that isnt charging me extra for the privlidge on a credit card. Even then when you are in my income (thus expense) bracket we arent talking much. I do this principally because its so easy, my entire life is on autodraw. On the 25th of each month (pay day) my bank account automatically transfers enough to cover all my bills to my credit card. Then over the month the bills are all autodrawn agains the card. Hell I could be dead six months before anyone noticed.

So which card?
I cant see myself choosing which airline I fly based upon getting points. I fly on the cheapest economy flight that lets me pick a seat. No other requirement. Since I fly the cheapest and that rarely means the same airline twice in a row. And no, not even the same codeshare. So airline cards are out. Same theory with hotels so those cards are out.

That leaves me with a Bank Card, with no annual fee (because I have been a customer for so long they wave it, otherwise sort of steep), no foriegn transaction fees, refunds on ATM fees.

Wow, great thread with some good ideas... I didn't see anything about the insurance some cards provide, but since you're based in Ireland, you will need to check the fine print. LDW, or Loss Damage Waiver on rental cars in the USA (excluding fancy cars, blah blah off roading etc), is entirely covered by Chase Visa cards (my personal fav), as long as you use that card to rent the vehicle. So that saves me about $20-$30 per day when renting a car. (I just checked the fine print this morning ahead of a quick trip to Palm Springs.)

There is also some small insurance coverage for lost bags, etc. but it's not the primary coverage I carry, though might be worth considering. I'm in the put-everything-on-my-UA Chase visa card camp & have also gotten a second Visa card during a big promotion, first year there is no fee. At the end of that year before annual fee renewal, I called and requested a no-fee card for the older card, so my fee went back to just one card. (Reminder to self, call again and get the newer card changed to a no-fee card,) I seem to recall there are some changes in benefits if you opt for a no-fee card, but with UA Gold for life (million miler), that's not a problem. So whichever card you choose, check the fine print!

Mac,
If I have heard right, most credit card CDW coverage applies to most European countries EXCEPT Ireland and Italy. Double check with your card issuer.

Chase is ok with Italy. I have had it in writing.

Don’t know about Ireland as I have never traveled there.

Chase is ok with Ireland. I have that in writing also. :) The car rental insurance alone makes it worth my $95/year fee.

... I have recently benefitted from being able to change United mileage tickets without paying any fees, so having miles available has been very helpful. Not having to pay extra for a changeable ticket in order to have schedule flexibility has meant significant savings for me.

I didn't know about this until very recently, and benefited from it also. I cancelled a points booking, had the points refunded, and booked another flight. Without paying any fees.

Sniffing 600k Chase points balance now with the Sapphire card. Chase points are incredibly flexible, can be converted into scores of airline mileage and hotel points (and usually 1-1), can be used to purchase travel outright through Chase portal.

Only recent downside is that Hyatt, which used to be outstanding value for points rooms, has significantly raised their points rates. Last summer for instance we booked a 3500 point family room at a Hyatt near Schipol for an early morning flight. So few points it felt essentially free. But now I think those sort of deals are gone.

But that's a Hyatt thing, not a Chase points thing. IMO Chase points, if you are using one program, are usually the best choice.