Best Travel Credit Cards for 2019

As 2018 is coming to an end, you may be thinking about the cheapest ways to travel next year. From experience, the best travel credit cards for 2019 could help you get there! How do you like to travel by just using points and minimal fees, essentially FREE vacation? I know I DO!

The list below are some of the credit cards I own. I will break down the good and the bad so you can decide for yourself which card is best for your situation. I’ve also added a link in each credit card for easy application, if you choose to apply. Also, some of the award valuations here are from the December 2018 The Points Guy valuation. Keep in mind that the credit card perks could change at any point. These are just the highlights on each card in my opinion. Make sure you read the fine print on your application. Also, note that all the credit cards below have no foreign transaction fees except for Southwest Rapid Rewards (3% fee).

1.CHASE SAPPHIRE RESERVE– this is by far MY favorite card.   Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18–50K bonus points worth $750 towards travel.
• Earn 3 points for dining and travel, 1 point on all other purchases
• Reward redemption uses Expedia so you have a lot of choices when redeeming your points
• Points are valued at 1.50 for travel rewards that means that if you have 10,000 points, the dollar value is $150 or cash value of $100
• Annual travel credit worth $300 to offset the yearly credit card fee
• Global entry credit valued at $100 every 4 years. This means you can get pre-check on your flights so you could skip the huge lines in the airport, you don’t have to remove your shoes/laptop/jackets, etc. It’s travel made easy!
• Great travel protection. I’ve had friends who booked a non-refundable hotel stay and was able to get refunded in full due to bad weather.
• Offers are available in your chase app/website where you can get X% back for purchases on certain stores via credit on your credit card statement. Keep in mind that you have to click “Add to card” for the offer to work when you use your credit card.
• Priority Pass. Such a great perk because you can get into lounges/restaurants around the world. Use the Priority Pass app or search on the website the availability per airport. Depending on the lounge, you get free food/drinks and for restaurants, you typically get around $30 credit or $60 credit for two people.
• Points can easily be transferred to various hotel and airline partners

THE BAD

• $450 annual fee, not waived in the first year but this could easily be offset by the various credits above
• If you don’t travel or dine out as much, I would suggest a lower fee credit card.

2. CHASE PREFERRED–this is a great credit card for those who are starting to travel. Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18–50K points worth $625 toward travel. Also, you might be able to get an extra 5K points for adding an authorized user.
• Earn 2 points for dining and travel, 1 point on all other purchases
• Reward redemption uses Expedia so you have a lot of choices when redeeming your points
• Points are valued at 1.25 for travel rewards that means that if you have 10,000 points, the dollar value is $125 or cash value of $100
• Great travel protection
• Offers for credit on your credit card statement (similar to Chase Sapphire Reserve)

THE BAD

• The intro fee is $0 but the next year is $95. However, you can easily get this back via purchases made during the year.
• Recently (in 2018), Chase will not approve you when applying for this credit card if you already have the Chase Sapphire Reserve so it’s one or the other.

3. AMEX SPG LUXURY–my fave hotel credit card! Note that this has now changed to Marriott Bonvoy card starting February 2019. The items below may have changed, check the terms on your application but the general idea of the benefit should be the same. Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18, earn 75K points valued at $675.
• Earn 6 points for SPG/Marriott hotels, 3 points for restaurants, 2 points on other purchases
• $100 global entry credit every 4 years
• SPG/Marriott gold elite member. This means you can get preferred/upgraded rooms, extra points, free breakfast, late checkouts, etc. depending on the hotel.
• Free night award up to 50K points each anniversary which helps offset the annual fee. This is not available the first year you open the card. You will get the award after your one year anniversary.
• Priority Pass (same as Chase Sapphire Reserve above)
• $300 statement credit each year for hotel stays/purchases in SPG/Marriott hotels

THE BAD

• $450 annual fee, not waived in the first year but this is offset by the $300 credit, free night award and priority pass

4. AMEX HILTON HONORS–I’ve earned $$$ by using this card! I typically use this for grocery and gas purchases as those are usually less points elsewhere. Apply here

THE GOOD

• No annual fee
• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18, earn 100K points, valued at around $600.
• Offers for credit on your credit card statement. I’ve saved $35 so far by using this credit card for only a few months!
• Earn 7 points on Hilton stays, 5 points on dining/supermarket/gas station, 3 points on other purchases
• Silver Status so you get bonus points for stays, late check out, 2 free bottled water, etc.

THE BAD

• You may have receive higher points than other credit cards but the value is typically much lesser.

5. CHASE WORLD OF HYATT–I used this to get my all inclusive trip to Jamaica. Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18, earn up to 60K points, valued at around $1,020.
• Earn 9 points for Hyatt stays, 2 points for dining/local transit/airline tickets, 1 points on other purchases
• Free award night each anniversary up to Category 4 hotel so this is available after one year and offsets the annual fee
• Free award night after $15K in purchases during an anniversary year
• Discoverist status which entitles you to earn bonus points and hotel perks

THE BAD

• $95 annual fee, not waived in the first year but this is worth it since you are getting over $1,000 from bonus points above

6. CHASE UNITED EXPLORER MILEAGE PLUS— I used this for my trip to Asia this coming summer! Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18, earn up to 65K points, valued at around $910.
• United awards typically have the smallest award redemption fees from my experience. It was only about $11 fee for 2 tickets to Asia using my miles.
• Earn 2 points for dining/hotel stays/United purchase and 1 point for other purchase
• 2 United club passes annually valued at $118
• Priority boarding. This is one of my fave perks. I like boarding early so I can secure a space for my carry-on bag.
• $100 global entry credit every 4 years
• First checked bag free and one for your companion on the same ticket, valued at $60
• 25% credit for United inflight purchases

THE BAD

• $0 intro fee, $95 annual fee but the United passes offset this fee
• You can use Chase Sapphire Reserve and earn 3 points instead of 2 and if needed, transfer those points to United

7. CHASE SOUTHWEST RAPID REWARDS–I like the bonus points on this card and I typically use Southwest (SW) to travel back to AZ! Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points for meeting the minimum spend when opening the credit card. As of 12/26/18, earn up to 60K points, valued at around $900.
• Receive 3K points per anniversary worth $45 so annual fee is essentially only $24 per year which is cheap. This is also good for those who are starting to use points for travel.
• Earn 2 points on SW purchases and 1 point for other purchases

THE BAD

• $69 annual fee, not waived in the first year but this is partly offset with 3K points awarded each year or the bonus points for first year
• You can earn 3 points instead of 2 for SW purchases from the Chase Sapphire Reserve and transfer the points to SW
• I don’t use this card often as there are various credit cards that are worth more

8. BARCLAY AMERICAN AIRLINES–I love the preferred boarding on this card and easy bonus points! Apply here

THE GOOD

• Earn bonus points after one swipe of the card. Literally one purchase of any value! As of 12/26/18, 50K points valued at $700.
• Earn 2 points on American Airlines (AA) purchases and 1 point on other purchases
• First checked bag free and up to 4 companions
• 25% credit for AA inflight purchases
• Preferred boarding for you and up to 4 companions on the same reservation

THE BAD

• $95 annual fee, not waived in the first year. However, the fee is offset by the bonus points the first year. Also, you can call after the first year and kindly ask for fee waiver. They did it for me this year and gave me 500 points!
• Award redemption fees on AA are typically higher than most airline rewards from my experience

Overall, there are so many credit cards out there for your travel needs. It really just depends on your situation and what your monthly expenses are. Be careful with the bonus points, make sure you can meet the minimum spend within the time frame so you don’t lose out on points. Also, make sure you don’t overspend and pay within the due date. Otherwise, the interest rate on purchases will defeat the purpose of getting the bonus points.

Read my post on Cheap Flights to Asia (click here), for ideas on how to use your points. Tell me your best travel credit cards in the comment below…

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