If you love to travel, using a dedicated travel credit card can greatly enhance your adventures by earning you rewards like points, miles, or cash back that you can redeem for flights, hotels, and other travel expenses.
The top travel credit cards in 2025 come packed with perks – from big sign-up bonuses and high reward rates on travel purchases, to benefits like airport lounge access, travel insurance, and no foreign transaction fees. In this section, we’ll review some of the best travel credit cards of 2025, their key rewards and benefits, and how travelers can maximize points to get free or discounted trips.
What Makes a Great Travel Credit Card?
First, it helps to know the criteria for a good travel card. Generally, the best cards offer a large welcome bonus (often after you spend a certain amount in the first few months) – for example, a card might give you 60,000 points after spending $4,000 in 3 months. Those points could be worth, say, $600 or much more if used strategically (many travel points can be worth 1 to 2 cents each or more when transferred to airline/hotel partners).
Next, a strong ongoing rewards structure is key: good travel cards earn elevated points on travel purchases (airfare, hotels, car rentals) and often on related categories like dining or gas. For instance, a card might give 3X points on travel and dining, and 1X on everything else. Using such a card for your everyday spending means you rack up points faster. Another hallmark of travel cards: travel benefits and protections.
Premium cards often include things like free access to airport lounges (through programs like Priority Pass), credits towards TSA PreCheck or Global Entry (to speed through security), travel insurance (trip cancellation/interruption insurance, baggage delay insurance, rental car collision waivers, etc.), and perhaps annual credits for travel purchases or hotel stays.
They also typically have no foreign transaction fees, which is vital for international travelers to avoid the usual 3% surcharge most basic cards charge on overseas purchases. Some cards are co-branded with specific airlines or hotels (like a Delta Skymiles card or Marriott Bonvoy card) and provide specific perks for that brand, such as free checked bags on the airline or elite status in the hotel program.
Those can be the “best” if you are loyal to that brand. Otherwise, general travel cards that let you redeem points flexibly (either for any travel or transfer to many partner loyalty programs) are very popular.
Top Travel Credit Cards of 2025
- Chase Sapphire Preferred®: Often regarded as one of the best all-around travel cards, the Sapphire Preferred offers a generous sign-up bonus (commonly ~60,000 points) and earns 2X points on travel and 3X on dining (among other bonus categories). Points are Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which are highly valued because they can be transferred at a 1:1 rate to partners like United Airlines, Southwest, Hyatt, Marriott, and more, or redeemed through Chase’s travel portal with a 25% bonus (meaning points are worth 1.25 cents each on travel bookings). The card has a moderate annual fee (around $95) but provides strong value – cardholders also get benefits like primary rental car insurance coverage and trip interruption insurance. For many travelers starting out in travel hacking, Sapphire Preferred is a go-to card thanks to its flexibility and high rewards. (Note: There’s also the more premium Chase Sapphire Reserve® with a $550 fee but it offers 3X on travel, lounge access, and a $300 annual travel credit, among other perks.)
- Capital One Venture Rewards Card: This card advertises a simple rewards approach – it earns 2X miles on every purchase (essentially a flat 2% back towards travel). The Venture often has a sizable welcome bonus (e.g., 75,000 miles for new applicants after meeting spend). What’s nice in recent years is Capital One’s miles can now be transferred to various airline partners (like Air Canada Aeroplan, Emirates, etc.), making them more valuable than when they could only offset travel charges. However, even if you don’t want to fuss with transfers, you can just use your miles to “erase” travel purchases on your statement (at 1 cent per mile). It also comes with credits for Global Entry/TSA PreCheck and no foreign transaction fees. With a $95 fee, it’s straightforward and rewarding, great for someone who wants solid rewards without category complexities.
- American Express Gold Card: While technically marketed as a charge card and a hybrid of travel/food card, the Amex Gold is a powerhouse for travelers especially who dine out. It earns 4X Membership Rewards points on restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets (up to a cap), and 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or Amex Travel. Membership Rewards points are very versatile for travel – Amex has many airline and hotel partners (like Delta, British Airways, Hilton, etc.). The Gold Card has a higher annual fee (around $250), but it offers credits that can offset it: for example, up to $120 a year in dining credits at select restaurants/food delivery and up to $120 in Uber Cash (usable for Uber rides or UberEats in the U.S.). If you use those, the net fee is much less. Travelers value the Gold for the huge points on food (food is a big part of travel spend for many) and the strong airline point transfers. Note Amex points don’t convert to cash or statement credit at a good rate, so it’s best for those who will leverage the travel partners.
- Citi Premier® Card: The Citi Premier is notable for broad rewards categories – it gives 3X points on travel (including gas), 3X on dining, and 3X on supermarkets. That covers a lot of spend areas relevant to travelers and families. Its points are Citi ThankYou points, which can be transferred to various airline partners (like Turkish Airlines, which has some sweet spot awards, or Singapore KrisFlyer, etc.) or used through Citi’s travel portal. The annual fee is $95. A unique perk of the Premier is an annual hotel savings benefit: $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more (booked through Citi’s portal) once per year, which can by itself outvalue the fee if used. It has no foreign fees as expected. It’s a bit under the radar compared to Chase/Amex, but in 2025 it remains one of the only mid-tier cards with 3x on such a broad range (travel, gas, dining, groceries), making it very rewarding for everyday spending.
- Co-Branded Airline/Hotel Cards: It’s hard to single one out as “best” since it depends on loyalty, but a few standouts: Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express – great for Delta flyers, offering a free checked bag, priority boarding, and an annual companion certificate (a free domestic round-trip companion ticket each year upon renewal) which can easily offset its ~$250 fee, plus it earns 3X on Delta purchases and hotels. United℠ Explorer Card (Chase) – offers free first checked bag on United for you and a companion, two United Club lounge passes per year, and good travel protection benefits, for a reasonable $95 fee (waived first year). Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Visa – for Southwest devotees, it gives perks like boarding upgrades and a travel credit, helping one earn the famed Companion Pass faster. On the hotel side, Marriott Bonvoy Boundless (Chase) or Bonvoy Brilliant (Amex) and World of Hyatt Visa (Chase) are loved – the Hyatt card especially has a relatively low fee $95 and gives a free night certificate annually (good at category 1-4 Hyatts) and is one of the few ways to rack up Hyatt points besides Hyatt stays. Marriott’s cards can grant elite night credits and annual free nights too. If you always stay with one brand, their card might indeed be your best pick.
Maximizing Travel Rewards
To truly get the best out of travel credit cards, consider these tips:
- Hit the Sign-up Bonuses: These introductory offers are often where you get a huge lump of points - upgradedpoints.com. Plan your sign-up during a period of larger expenses (like planning for holiday shopping or a home project) to meet the required spend without buying stuff you don’t need.
- Use the Card for Bonus Categories: Once you have the card, use it where it earns most. If your card gives 3X on travel and you’re booking a flight, use that card (as opposed to a generic 1X card). If you hold multiple cards, you can optimize purchases across them – e.g., use Card A for dining, Card B for gas, etc., each to their strengths.
- Redeem Strategically: Points values vary by redemption. Often, transferring to airline miles for premium cabin flights or expensive last-minute tickets yields much higher value per point than, say, redeeming through a bank’s portal for gift cards. For instance, using 60k Chase points via United MileagePlus might get you a flight worth $1000+, whereas taking $600 cash is a lower value for those points. It requires research (learning about award charts, sweet spots, and availability), but the effort can unlock outsized value. If that’s too much, at least redeem through your card’s travel portal where you often get a bonus (Chase Sapphire, for example, boosts value 25-50% on their portal depending on the card).
- Leverage Benefits: Don’t forget the side perks: If your card offers lounge access, make sure to enroll (some require a separate enrollment to Priority Pass) and enjoy free food/comfort at airports. If you have credits (like annual travel credits or Uber/dining credits on Amex), use them! Set reminders if needed. Taking full advantage of these can greatly offset annual fees and make the card effectively free or profitable for you.
- Avoid Interest and Fees: This is crucial – the rewards are not worth it if you carry a credit card balance and pay high interest. That will wipe out any travel benefit. So, only charge what you can pay off in full each month. Travel cards often have higher APRs and no 0% intro offers, so they’re best for people who won’t accrue interest. Also be mindful of annual fees; if a card’s fee isn’t providing value for you after a year or two (perhaps you got the bonus and your habits changed), you can consider downgrading or canceling it. However, many travel cards have retention offers if you ask (the issuer might give you extra points to keep the card open another year).
Choosing the Right Travel Card for You
The “best” travel credit card can vary depending on your travel style and spending habits. For example:
- If you are an infrequent traveler but want to accumulate points for a big future trip, a general-purpose card like Chase Sapphire Preferred or Capital One Venture that earns on everyday spending and has flexible redemption might be ideal.
- If you fly a particular airline often (say you live near a Delta hub like Atlanta or a United hub like Houston), getting that airline’s card could save you money on bags and give you status boosts or companion tickets that you’ll use.
- If you desire luxury perks and travel several times a year, a premium card like Amex Platinum (which wasn’t detailed above but is known for extensive lounge access and credits) or Chase Sapphire Reserve might be worth the high fee for the VIP treatment and higher earn rates (Source - frequentmiler.com)
- If you travel internationally, ensure the card you pick has no foreign transaction fees (all mentioned above do; many basic bank cards do not, so it’s a key feature of travel cards).
- Consider hotel vs. flight preference: Hotel cards can grant free nights and elite status (e.g., Marriott Gold status via Amex Platinum, or Hilton Gold via Amex Surpass, etc.), which is valuable if you prefer nicer hotel experiences. Flight cards often center around making flying more convenient (priority boarding, free luggage, lounge access).
- The sign-up bonus can also sway choice: In 2025, some cards might have limited-time elevated bonuses (like perhaps a 100k point offer on a card that’s normally 60k). Jumping on a big promo can yield a lot of travel if you meet the spend.
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