NerdWallet’s Best Travel Credit Cards, Spring 2013

Looking for free flights, hotel stays and constant rewards? With a travel card, you could take advantage of some awesome rewards like nights at top tier hotels, access to exclusive airport lounges, and free flights anywhere, any time.

When searching for a solid travel card, make sure to look beyond the shiny signup bonus. You’ll want to pay extra attention to rewards rates and other perks that could really sway your decision. Here are our picks for the best travel cards that you should never leave home without!

Best airline miles card: The Capital One® Venture^℠ Rewards Credit Card

Use miles on: Any airline or hotel – redeem as statement credit for travel expenses 

The Capital One® Venture^℠ Rewards Credit Card is definitely one of our faves at NerdWallet. Its versatility, great rewards and extra little trimmings make it a tough card to beat. You’ll get 2 No Hassle Miles for every dollar spent, which can be redeemed for any travel expense you may have, including airfare, hotels and even gas. Also, you won’t be tied down to one airline or hotel, making it even easier to redeem your rewards.

Its 10,000 Capital One No Hassle Miles℠ signup bonus just sweetens the deal – the real showstopper is its high ongoing rewards rate, which is one of the best in the biz. And, like any other travel card worth noting, it has no foreign transaction fee, effectively saving you 3% of all the money you spend abroad. So, if you spend about $2,000 abroad (which is hard not to), you’ll make up for the $59 annual fee, which is waived the first year. One of the best cards in the business, it’s a real standout and a great card for the globetrotter in everyone.

Capital One® VentureSM Rewards Credit Card
	2 miles per dollar on every purchase, every day As seen in Money® Magazine's "Best" issue three years in a row. - Money® Magazine May 2010, 2011, 2012 Earn 10,000 bonus miles when you spend $1,000 on purchases within the first 3 months, equal to $100 in travel Redeem your miles for any travel expense No limit on the miles you can earn and miles don't expire Fly on any airline, any time with no blackout dates No foreign transaction fees $0 intro annual fee for the first year; $59 after that		Pros High rewards rate No foreign transaction fee Cons Has annual fee

Best no-fee travel miles card: the Capital One® Cash Rewards - $100 Cash Back Bonus

Use miles on: Any airline or hotel – redeem as statement credit for travel expenses 

Offering a full 1.5% cash back on all purchases, no annual fee and no foreign transaction fee, it’s easy to see why the Cash is a favorite among budget travelers. The card gives you 1.5% rewards on all purchases, so you don’t miss out on rewards because international merchants don’t categorize themselves as “dining” or “entertainment.” And like all Capital One cards, this one waives foreign transaction fees. You don’t have the Venture’s annual fee to contend with, but you  do get above-average rewards. Not bad for no fees!

Capital One® Cash Rewards - $100 Cash Back Bonus
	$100 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within the first 3 months 50% bonus on the cash back you earn every year 1% cash back on all purchases No annual fee Earn unlimited cash back that doesn't expire Redeem cash back anytime for any amount, even set automatic redemptions Personalize your card with an image of your choice 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers until June 2014		Pros High rewards rate No annual fee 0% until June 2014 on transfers No foreign transaction fee Cons Needs excellent credit

Best signup bonus: The Chase Sapphire Preferred

Use points on: United MileagePlus, Southwest, British Airways, Korean Air, Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, Hyatt, Priority Club, Amtrak 

The Chase Sapphire offers much the same versatility by allowing you to use your rewards for more than one airline carrier or hotel. But the Sapphire’s signup bonus blows every other card’s out of the water: 40,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards. Plus, your Ultimate Rewards points are worth 25% more when you make travel purchases through Chase’s booking tool. But, like we said, there’s more to a great travel card than its signup bonus. The Sapphire offers 2 points for every dollar spent on travel and restaurants, and 1 point per dollar everywhere else.

If you combine the 25% travel redemption boost and the 7% points dividend given at the end of the year, your base rewards rate could get bumped up to 1.34% and bonus rate up to 2.68%. The Sapphire does have a $95 annual fee that is waived the first year, but it can be made up pretty easily since the card also has no foreign transaction fee. If you’re big on bonuses, the Sapphire will be your favorite travel companion.

Chase Sapphire Preferred®
	40,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 in the first 3 months - that's $500 toward travel rewards! 2 points per dollar spent on travel and dining at restaurants & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases Get 20% off airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises when you redeem through Ultimate RewardsSM No foreign transaction fees Receive a 7% Annual Points Dividend on all new points earned on purchases - even on points already redeemed 1:1 point transfer to leading frequent travel programs - that means 1,000 Ultimate Rewards points equal 1,000 partner miles/points Direct access to expert service advisors anytime Introductory Annual Fee of $0 the first year, then $95		Pros No foreign transaction fee Cons Has annual fee

Best Hotel Card: The Starwood American Express

Use points on: Starwood (obviously), as well as a number of airline partners including American Airlines, British Airways, United MileagePlus and Virgin Atlantic (see full list)

If you like living large when you’re away, the Starwood American Express specializes in making a luxurious lifestyle just a swipe away. Its base rewards rate of 1 Starpoint per dollar spent may seem a little thin at first glance, but we value these points at about 2.3 cents on average and 5 if you play your cards right – that’s a better base rate than the famed Venture! If you redeem your points for hotel stays, your point value will skyrocket and make the 25,000 Starwood Points bonus even sweeter. You’ll get up to 5 Starpoints for every dollar spent at SPG hotels (1 base + 2 for elite status + 2 for having the card). You’ll be sitting on a mountain of points in no time!

The various hotel perks are what really move this card up the ranks. If you stay at a Sheraton, your third night is free, you get credits toward elite status, and you’ll get gold status after spending $30,000+ each year. Unfortunately, there is a 2.7% foreign transaction fee and since it’s AmEx, it might not be as widely accepted as Visa or MC. If you’re just looking for an all-around travel card, look to the CapOne Venture, but if you frequent SPG hotels, the Starwood AmEx is the way to go.

Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express
	Starpoints® bonus: earn up to 25,000 bonus points: 10,000 after your first purchase and another 15,000 after you spend $5,000 within the first 6 months of Cardmembership That’s enough for a weekend getaway to a Category 4 Hotel like the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa, or six free nights at a Category 2 Hotel Free Hotel Nights: redeem Starpoints at over 1,100 hotels in nearly 100 countries worldwide - with no blackout dates Free Flights: redeem Starpoints on over 350 airlines with SPG Flights - with no blackout dates Get 5,000 bonus Starpoints after you transfer 20,000 Starpoints to a frequent flyer program with more than 30 airlines No limits on the number of Starpoints you can earn $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $65 Terms and Restrictions apply.		Pros High rewards rate Cons Has annual fee Needs excellent credit

Transferring Starpoints to airline mile program
Starwood allows you to trade in your Starpoints to many major airline programs, usually at a 1:1 value. However, they’ve added a sweetener: if you transfer 20,000 Starpoints, they’ll throw in an extra 5,000 Starpoints for free. Therefore, if you redeem at a 1:1 ratio, you’re actually getting 1.25 miles for every Starpoint that you transfer as long as you do so in 20k-point blocks.