Travel Goals

1. Climb to Everest Base Camp.
2. Climb Mt Kilimanjaro.
3. Learn to Scuba Dive.
4. Visit every continent.
5. See the Galapagos Islands.
6. Sail down the Amazon River.
7. Climb Ayer's Rock.
8. Ride the Trans-Siberian.
9. Go into space.
10. Go wild at La Tomintina.
11. See the sunrise from Mt. Fuji.
12. Gaze at Borobudor.
13. Visit the Pyramids
14. Safari in East Africa.
15. Go to the World Cup!
16. See Machu Picchu.
17. Join the Century Club.
18. Visit Antarctica.
19. Do development work.
20. See Petra Jordan.
21. Backpack the Eastern Block.
22. See the Northern Lights.
23. Vegas Baby! Vegas!
24. Greek Island hop.
25. Cycle Tuscany.
26. Visit India.
27. Lounge in the Seychelles.
28. See Morocco.
29. Oktoberfest!
30. Caravan across the Sahara.
31. Visit Tibet.
32. Fly first class.
33. Go to Israel.
34. Carnival!!!!
35. Mardi Gras!
36. Cannes Film Festival.
37. Sundance Film Festival.
38. Eat a sushi meal at NOBU
39. Pacific Island hop.
40. Spend a night in the Ice Hotel.
41. See Glacier National Park.

Learn a Foreign Language

Are you planning to travel around Europe? Why not learn Italian or French before you go to maximize your experience.

Book Your Travel Here!!

One of the greatest expenses a traveler has is air travel. Planes just cost money and, in the face of rising oil prices, they cost even more money. So what’s a good way to get around them?

Credit Cards. Credit Cards that offer rewards.

If you are going to use them, you might as well get something for them!!

Travel cards offer a great opportunity to earn free points that can be redeemed for airfare, hotels or cold hard cash. And with so many cards offering sign up bonuses, it’s a good time to consider them, especially if you have travel coming up.

What to look for
With so many options to choose from, it’s hard to know which card to get sometimes. But no matter card you pick in the end, it’s important they have the follow things, otherwise it will take you ages to get a free ticket.

HUGE sign-up bonus. Most cards offer sign up bonuses of 20,000 points/miles. Don’t join one that doesn’t, it will take you ages to gain a flight without the bonus.

Special rewards. Join a card where you have the opportunity to gain extra miles. A majority of credit cards offer 1 dollar = 1 mile. That’s standard and I wouldn’t expect more. But many cards partner with retailers that allow you to gain extra points by shopping at their retailers. Additionally. you should try to get cards that give you extra points for gas or food. it will help you get miles quicker.

Usability. I’d like to define this as the ability to use the card anywhere. Many cards, especially those who are specific to an airline, limit your ability to use the card anywhere. You don’t want to be tied to a specific airline, hotel, or certain travel dates.

High conversion rate. Make sure you get the most from your card by making sure they give you a good conversion rate! For example, Capital One gives you 1.25% for airline rewards but for cash back, you get .5% percent for cash back. Citi gives a about 1% now that have fully teamed up with Expedia if you book online but you can get better deals by calling their hotline. However, there cash back rate is higher than Capital One. Whether you choose, Citi, Capital One, or Amex, make sure you work out the math to see what rate you are really getting.

Annual Fees?
No one likes paying annual fees for credit cards. Many of the fees for credit cards range from $45-$80 dollars. I pay an annual fee. For those who travel a lot and fly a lot, I think it is worth it to get a card with a fee. Fee cards give you a better rewards scheme. With my Citi Card, I get free companion tickets for domestic flights. If I just use that once, my fee pays for itself many times over. A lot of companies will sometimes offer the first year free. If you are a heavy traveler, consider a fee card.

Weigh your options!!! Capital One may have a higher rate but it also takes longer to gain points on the card. Citi has a lower percentage but more opportunities to gain points. Discover gives you less bonus miles but is also easier to get points. Each card has its pluses and minuses- make sure you don’t view each thing in a bubble!

Some good choices
CitiCard Premier Pass
Starwood Preferred Guest (Amex)
Miles with Discover
Citi Hilton Honors Card
Chase TravelPlus

Other important things:
All of these cards offer travel insurance and you should get a card that offers it.

Watch out for fees! When you use your card overseas, ALL credit card companies except Capital One and Discover will charge you a 3% currency conversion fee.

Summary
I use the Citi Premier Pass Card. I’ve had it since 2005 and I pay the annual fee (the first year was free). I’ve paid 150 dollars but I’ve gotten a free flight to Europe and about 500 dollars in other rewards back. As I have no real allegiance to any airline, I don’t mind holding a general travel card because I go by price and price alone. If you are like me, consider a general travel card like the Citi Premier Pass or the Starwood Guest Card.

However, if you prefer one airline over the rest, use that airline’s card. Make sure though that you check the card to make sure that it’s the best one out there. If it’s not switch! Airlines are part of an alliance so even if you use those credit cards; you can still gain points within the same alliance and transfer miles.

6 Responses to “Travel Credit Cards”

1. Anthony on June 23rd, 2008 6:52 pm

   I hadn’t giving a fee credit card any thought before. Always saw the cost instead of the benefit. Great article, provides me with options now that didn’t know of or overlooked before.

2. Christine Gilbert on June 24th, 2008 1:13 pm

   The 20,000 mile bonus is a big deal. It’s almost enough for a free ticket, and if you plan it right, that could be up to a $1000 value…. just for signing up for a credit card.

   Some great tips in here, Matt, that I hadn’t thought of!

3. Drew on June 24th, 2008 1:16 pm

   Hey Matt, this is very informative and speaks to an area that Christine and I are complete n00bs at. Like she said, totally hadn’t even occurred to us. I hope you will drop some more knowledge on us for the less experienced traveler, this is great info to have on hand.

4. Quickroute on June 25th, 2008 5:30 am

   Nationwide in the UK offer a debit card with NO ATM fee withdrawls (typically 5 dollars or pounds by US/UK banks) and a credit card with minimum charges compared to CHASE or CITI. Shop around it makes a HUGE difference to your atm / cr card charges!

5. NomadicMatt on June 25th, 2008 1:31 pm

   @all: Glad it could be of use!!!!

   @quick: that’s a great tip. When I am overseas, I use HSBC because they have a low fee compared with BankofAmerica or Chase (two big banks here!) Fees are something you need to look out for!!!

6. scott on July 14th, 2008 12:34 pm

   Hey thanks for the information that you have provided through your post. This is truly interesting to know about.

   Getting around the world is a wonderful experience and this can be made truly great with a safe and affordable car hire at your service. For any of your car hire needs and any information regarding car hire please feel free to visit us at http://www.rhinocarhire.com

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