How to Pick a Premium Travel Credit Card – NerdWallet

You’ve probably seen that one friend who always lives it up on vacation. They frequently post pictures of themselves inside secluded airport lounges, champagne in hand. They always seem to be getting suite upgrades at their hotels. Meanwhile, you’re waiting at the gate as the last group to board, trying to cram your airport sandwich into the backpack you’ll soon try to cram under the basic economy seat in front of you.

While your current credit card rewards account might consist of a measly few hundred points that you’ll exchange for a restaurant gift card, it’s possible to get a taste of the VIP life by upgrading to a premium travel credit card.

Use this quiz to help you pick the best premium travel credit card:

There’s no official definition of a premium travel credit card. On the whole, a premium travel credit card usually means it comes with valuable benefits (though they vary widely by card). Some are airline-specific, like free checked baggage and priority boarding. Others are hotel-specific, like automatic elite status, free night certificates and free breakfast. And some credit cards are more general, but still just as ritzy with access to airport lounges, extra spending rewards on purchases like travel and dining, TSA Precheck credits and more.

One thing premium travel credit cards do have in common: three-figure annual fees.

There are nine cards out there today that we consider “Premium Travel Cards.” They are:

• The Platinum Card® from American Express (Annual Fee: $695).

• Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Annual Fee: $550).

• Citi Prestige® Card (Annual Fee: $495).

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (Annual Fee: $395).

• Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (Annual Fee: $595).

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (Annual Fee: $650).

• United Club℠ Infinite Card (Annual Fee: $525).

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (Annual Fee: $550).

• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (Annual Fee: $650).

All the great benefits don’t come for free. Every card in this guide but one has an annual fee of $450 or more. While it’s generally not difficult for frequent travelers to justify the annual fee, that’s still a big cost upfront.

Hold a Delta credit card, and you need to commit to traveling a fair amount with Delta, regardless of whether that United flight is more convenient. Even the flexibility of a Chase or American Express travel portal won’t have all the booking options you may want. If you don’t like that level of commitment, a cash-back credit card is more flexible, but the trade-off is your cash back is unlikely to match the value you could earn by committing to travel rewards.

These cards tend to have high APRs. If you’re not able to keep up with your bills in full, you’ll pay interest charges and other fees that’ll quickly eat into the value of any potential rewards. If you tend to carry a balance, consider a low-interest credit card instead.

You’ll likely just have one (maybe two) premium credit cards, so think carefully about which one you want. Unlike when you built your existing credit card collection, where you might have four store credit cards — Target, Amazon, Costco plus that Old Navy credit card you got in college — that tactic probably won’t fly on cards with $450 annual fees.

Once you’ve committed to getting a premium travel credit card, prioritize the benefits you value most and whittle down your options from there. There’s no one ultimate credit card that has everything, like airline status and hotel status and Centurion Lounge access and travel credits. But some cards come pretty close.

To help you narrow it down, we’ve created a short survey to understand your goals and help choose the best premium travel credit card for you:

Some people find it easy to show brand loyalty. In some cases, it feels like the choice is made for you, like if your local airport happens to be an Alaska hub or if your corporate headquarters are next to a Marriott. Others like brand loyalty so they can build up status.

While brand-specific cards probably won’t help you much when you’re traveling with the brand’s competitor, they can propel you to VIP status at that brand with benefits like upgrade priority, free room nights on hotel cards or extra lounge access with the airline cards.

If you’re already loyal to American, Delta, United, Hilton or Marriott, or any of those brands’ transfer partners, then consider the following cards:

The Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® is mostly about access to the carrier’s exclusive Admirals Club airport lounges. On its own, individual Admirals Club membership costs up to $850, depending on elite status and whether you pay for a new membership or a renewal.

• Complimentary Admirals Club membership.

• Bonus miles (4 AAdvantage miles per dollar spent on American Airlines purchases, 10 AAdvantage miles per $1 spent on eligible rental cars and hotels booked through American Airlines, and 1 AAdvantage mile per dollar spent everywhere else).

• Earn 1 Loyalty Point for every $1 earned from purchases.

• Global Entry / TSA Precheck application fee credit.

• Your first bag checked free on any American Airlines-operated domestic flight for the primary cardmember and an additional eight companions booked under the same booking reference.

Learn more about the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®:

• Complimentary access into Delta Sky Club, plus four Delta Sky Club one-time guest passes each year. Beginning Feb. 1, 2025, cardholders will receive only 15 visits per program year. Members can earn unlimited visits after spending $75,000 on the card in a calendar year. Once earned, unlimited visits will last through Jan. 31 of the following year.

• Complimentary access to The Centurion Lounge when you book your Delta flight with the card (that’s especially useful in cities like Charlotte and Las Vegas, where you’ll find a Centurion Lounge but no Delta SkyClub).

• An annual round-trip companion certificate flights to select locations. It’s awarded each year upon renewal of your card, and it’s essentially a buy-one-get-one ticket: Pay for yours and your friend flies free, aside from taxes and fees.

Learn more about the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card:

• There’s a $400 Hilton resort credit (up to $200 semi-annually).

• A $100 property credit for two-night minimum stays at Waldorf Astoria or Conrad Hotels & Resorts.

• A Hilton Honors annual free night reward during each year of your card membership.

Those resort credits plus the free night reward can justify the card’s annual fee right there, as long as you stay at Hilton hotels to use them. Plus you’ll get automatic Hilton Honors Diamond status.

Learn more about the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card:

• Up to $300 in statement credits per calendar year (up to $25 per month) for eligible purchases at restaurants worldwide.

• A free night award at any participating Marriott hotel that’s priced under 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

• Complimentary Platinum Elite status.

While there are a few other general travel benefits, including Priority Pass Select membership (enrollment required) and fee credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, most of the card’s benefits come from spending money and staying with Marriott, so consider this card only if you’re ready for that commitment. Terms apply.

Learn more about the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card:

• You’ll receive a United Club membership, which costs $650 on its own.

• Plus, free first and second checked bag.

• Priority check-in, security screening (where available), boarding and baggage handling.

Economy class passengers can typically expect to pay $35 for the first checked bag on domestic flights and $45 for the second. Priority Boarding costs $15 on its own. That’s $95 of value right there for a one-way flight had you purchased those things out of pocket. Spend that kind of money on three round-trip flights per year, and you’ve already justified the annual fee — and that doesn’t even factor in other benefits like lounge access.

Learn more about the United Club℠ Infinite Card:

Loyalty to one brand means minimal flexibility to book at others, which is challenging if your airline doesn’t serve your next travel destination. It also poses a cost-saving conundrum if a similar hotel from the competitor hotel chain is offering a huge discount.

You’re considered a “travel credit card free agent” if you:

• Like the flexibility to book different hotel brands or airline flights at the cheapest price.

• Don’t want to commit to one brand.

• Don’t stay at big brands at all, instead preferring mom-and-pop hotels, boutique lodging, or bed and breakfasts.

If that sounds like you, you’re probably better off with a card that lets you earn and redeem rewards through a broad “travel spending” category, which might entail any of the following three cards:

The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is another top of the line premium travel card that is a great fit for those not concerned with brand loyalty:

• Earn 5x points on air travel and 10x points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase.

• Earn 3x points on other travel and dining.

• A $300 travel credit every year in the form of statement credits.

• Priority Pass Select lounge membership.

• TSA PreCheck, Global Entry or NEXUS application reimbursement.

What’s more, your options for travel redemptions are ultra-flexible. Since Chase’s travel portal is powered by Expedia, you have the flexibility to book rooms beyond just the big hotel chains.

Learn more about the Chase Sapphire Reserve®:

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is Capital One’s first foray into the premium travel credit card space. It offers the points redemption flexibility that you get with Capital One’s low-to-no-fee Venture cards alongside premium card perks like lounge access and an annual travel credit, all for a lower annual fee than the other premium cards discussed here.

High earning rates on bookings through the Capital One Travel portal (5x on flights, 10x on hotels and rental cars) and a yearly account anniversary bonus of 10,000 miles makes the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card a solid card for general travel spending.

Capital One’s roster of more than a dozen transfer partners gives you the option to transfer points and book directly with big-name brands if you prefer.

Learn more about the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card:

The Citi Prestige® Card is for people who prefer choice when it comes to hotel brands and who stay at least four nights in a row. That’s thanks to a benefit in which your fourth hotel room night is free when you book and prepay for a four-night hotel stay through Citi’s ThankYou rewards portal.

The discount is based on the average nightly rate, not including taxes and fees (rather than the literal cost of the fourth night), and the benefit can be used twice per calendar year. You’ll find that especially valuable when you want free nights at hotels that don’t otherwise have loyalty programs.

If you like the idea of booking travel on points or miles, you have that option too, as you can transfer ThankYou points to partners including Turkish Miles&Smiles, Singapore KrisFlyer miles and Avianca Lifemiles. Notably, there are no hotel transfer partners for Citi.

Learn more about the Citi Prestige® Card:

The Platinum Card® from American Express might be a good choice. You can’t have it all, but you can get pretty close.

The Platinum Card® from American Express provides some level of VIP status at many of the brands listed previously as well as general travel perks:

• Complimentary Gold status in both the Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors programs. Enrollment required.

• You can still get into the Delta SkyClub when flying with Delta — just show your card and same-day airline ticket to the club’s front desk.

• A $200 airline fee credit that can be used on one qualifying airline of your choice to provide a statement credit for incidental fees (like bag fees). Enrollment required.

• 5x Membership Rewards points earned on flights purchased directly from airlines or American Express Travel, and 5x points on prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel.

• Complimentary lounge access to Centurion and Priority Pass lounges. Enrollment required.

• Global Entry or TSA Precheck fee credit.

Learn more about The Platinum Card® from American Express:

Now that you’ve decided whether you want to be loyal to one brand versus having point flexibility, you can rule out a big chunk of cards from your list of premium cards to consider.

Other factors to consider when picking the best premium credit card for you include airport lounge access, in-flight extras and checked bags, Global Entry and TSA Precheck, bonus points on spending, trip insurance benefits and car rental coverage. Here’s a closer look at which cards make sense for your specific preferences.

Are you the kind of person who brags about showing up to the gate five minutes before it closes? Or are you the kind of person who shows up two hours early to avoid the stress of missing your flight, and enjoys sipping a cappuccino before takeoff?

If you’re the former, you probably don’t need lounge access. If the latter, airport lounge access can drastically improve the quality of your trip. It’s amazing what a free drink consumed in a less-crowded, quieter setting can do.

All nine cards give you some degree of airport lounge access; a good one for you will depend on which lounges you want access to.

• The Platinum Card® from American Express: More than 1,300 airport lounges, including Centurion, Priority Pass (sans restaurants), Delta Sky Club and several others. Enrollment required.

• Citi Prestige® Card: Priority Pass Select (including restaurants).

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Priority Pass Select (excluding restaurants beginning Jan. 1, 2023), Plaza Premium lounges (including select Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses) and Capital One Lounges.

• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card: Priority Pass Select (sans restaurants). Enrollment required.

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Delta Sky Club.

• United Club℠ Infinite Card: United Club membership.

• Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®: Admirals Club.

Do you regularly check bags, line up to be the first to board, and treat yourself to an in-flight beverage or snack beyond the usual soda and pretzels? Or do you pack light, bring your own in-flight meal and prefer being last to board anyway?

If the former, you’re either going to want a credit card that automatically covers the costs of those extras, or at least one that provides a statement credit reimbursing you for them.

Other than the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (which comes with only $300 in Marriott hotel credits) and the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card the other cards discussed here come with some form of airline specific or general travel credit to cover these types of fees.

• Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®: Free checked bags, early boarding and more (on American flights).

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Free checked bags, a Companion Certificate and more (on Delta flights).

• United Club℠ Infinite Card: Free checked bags, upgrades on award tickets and more (on United flights).

• The Platinum Card® from American Express: $200 in airline incidental credits for one airline of your choice.

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card: Up to $200 back annually ($50 each quarter) on eligible flight purchases.

• Chase Sapphire Reserve®: $300 in broad travel credits.

• Citi Prestige® Card: $250 in broad travel credits.

Global Entry and TSA PreCheck are two types of programs that allow you to get through airport security quicker, which means you probably won’t have to take off your shoes, and you’ll likely get to your gate (or airline lounge) faster. Many premium credit cards on the market today will reimburse you for your application fee (TSA PreCheck is $78 and Global Entry is $100).

If you’re seeking Global Entry or TSAPreCheck, every card in this guide, with the exception of the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, will get you a credit for these programs.

One of the best ways to continually rack up more points and miles (to cover the cost of your travel) is by earning points for your everyday spending. Yet with premium credit cards, earning supercharged spending rewards can be a mixed bag. Some cards offer the best spending rewards you’ll find in certain categories, namely travel and dining. But other cards offer paltry earn rates, to the point where you’d be better charging your purchases to a cash-back card and using your earnings to pay for your next vacation.

Here are the returns you can expect to earn on each travel card. Dollar values are based on NerdWallet’s analysis of points and miles valuations.

Note that each issuer has a unique definition for each of the following categories. For example, some issuers may consider subway fares as travel while others don’t, and some consider bars or cafes as restaurants while others don’t.

Value of points per dollar spent on dining:

• Citi Prestige® Card (7.5 cents).

• Chase Sapphire Reserve® (5.7 cents).

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (2.8 cents).

• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (2.7 cents).

• United Club℠ Infinite Card (2 cents).

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (3.6 cents).

• The Platinum Card® from American Express (1 cent).

• Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (1.7 cents).

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (1.2 cents).

Value of points per dollar spent on airfare*:

• The Platinum Card® from American Express (5 cents).

• Citi Prestige® Card (7.5 cents).

• Chase Sapphire Reserve® (9.5 cents).

• United Club℠ Infinite Card (4 cents).

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (9 cents if booked through the Capital One Travel portal).

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (2.8 cents).

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (2.7 cents).

• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (2.7 cents).

• Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (2 cents).

*Bonus points on American, Delta and United branded cards are limited to airfare with their respective brands. For AmEx issued cards, flights must be booked directly with the airlines or through AmEx Travel. For the Chase Sapphire, flights must be booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® to earn 5x points.

Some credit cards — including many in this guide — provide travel insurance if you use your card to pay for your travel expenses.

The degree of coverage differs by card. Depending on how much coverage you need and the level of customization you’re willing to sacrifice, you might find your credit card’s coverage is sufficient enough that you don’t need to buy a separate policy from a travel insurance company at all.

The following travel cards also offer some sort of trip insurance:

Many credit cards also include some degree of rental car coverage. While most policies won’t cover absolutely everything, you might be able to avoid taking up the rental car company’s offer of coverage, usually for around an additional $10 a day, by charging your rental car to the right credit card.

For some cards, coverage is primary, while for others it’s secondary. If your card offers primary insurance coverage, typically you’ll have to decline the collision damage waiver or similar coverage offered by your rental car company in order for your credit card’s primary coverage to be applicable. Then use the card to pay for your rental.

The following travel cards also offer rental car coverage.

• Chase Sapphire Reserve®.

• United Club℠ Infinite Card.

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.

• The Platinum Card® from American Express.

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card.

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card.

• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card.

With annual fees starting at $450 for premium credit cards, you’ll probably have to think carefully about which one you want. Considering that many cards have overlapping benefits, it doesn’t make sense to pay two annual fees.

The biggest factor in deciding which premium card is best for you comes down to how flexible you’re willing to be with brands. If you’re flying with American, Delta or United regularly, you’ll find you get better benefits with their co-branded credit cards.

If you dislike the idea of sitting on a mountain of brand-specific miles you’re not certain when you’ll use, it’s almost always better to go for a general premium travel credit card.

Once you’ve committed, determine which other benefits you value most.

You can’t have it all, as there’s no single card that offers early boarding, airline lounge access, hotel status and unlimited free checked bags. If you’re looking for that, readjust your expectations.

But you can determine which credit card benefits are nonnegotiables, which ones might be nice-to-haves and which ones you don’t anticipate using at all.

It’s impossible to say whether one credit card is “the best.” After all, personal finance is personal. But for travelers who appreciate the finer things in life — and don’t mind paying hundreds of dollars in annual credit card fees to get them — the right premium credit card can greatly improve their travel experiences.

The information related to the Citi Prestige® Card has been collected by NerdWallet and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer or provider of this product or service.