The Best Credit Card Summer Travel Perks You Probably Don’t Know About
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Written by
Joseph Hostetler
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Edited by
Levi Leidy
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Reviewed by
Jasmin Baron
You probably opened your travel credit card because of its enticing welcome bonus. Or perhaps there were a couple credit card perks that caught your eye — like a high-octane return rate in a spending category that you use often, or an annual certificate for a free night at your favorite hotel brand.
But travel credit cards offer a whole lot more than that. Whether your summer travel plans involve air travel, road trips, concerts or reservations at the trendy new restaurant downtown, your credit card can both save you money and improve your quality of travel in surprising ways.
Let’s pop the hood on the best travel credit card perks to show you the travel benefits you’re probably missing.
Prepare for the Worst With Credit Card Travel Insurance
Credit card travel insurance might be the only credit card benefit that you hope you’ll never use. But even if you’re an infrequent traveler, you’ll almost certainly use it eventually. The best credit cards with travel insurance come with perks like:
- Trip delay insurance: When your flight is canceled or delayed by six to 12 hours (depending on the card you have), or if your delay requires an overnight stay, your card can reimburse you hundreds of dollars for expenses like food and a hotel room.
- Baggage delay insurance: If your checked bag shows up more than six hours late to your destination, you can receive $100 per day (up to five days, depending on your card) for clothes, medicine, a phone charger and other reasonable expenses.
- Car rental insurance: Credit card rental car insurance gives you the luxury of skirting the rental agency’s exorbitant insurance rates. As long as you pay for the rental car with your card and decline the in-house collision damage waiver (CDW), you’ll be automatically covered (often up to the price of the car).
I’ve had the misfortune of using all of these protections more than once, and they’ve saved me a ton. For example, trip delay insurance has turned several of my inconvenient missed connections into a free mini vacation at a four-star hotel with an upscale meal.
Upgrade Your Airport Experience With Lounge Access
Airport lounge access is something you don’t realize you desperately need unless you’ve had a taste of it. Lounges typically come with free food and self-serve alcohol, business centers, plenty of electrical outlets and overall relative serenity compared to the noisy airport terminal.
The best credit cards for lounge access offer entry into well over 1,000 locations around the world, giving you an option at just about every reasonably sized airport you may find yourself at. For example, the best credit cards for Priority Pass let you freely use 1,300-plus airport lounges — often allowing you to bring two guests for free.
Lower Your Out-of-Pocket Costs With Airline Freebies
When it comes to airline versus travel credit cards, the big difference is the carrier-specific perks you’ll get. From day-of-travel benefits like priority boarding and free Wi-Fi to free checked bags and elite status boosts, airline cards are worth it for anyone who flies the same airline with moderate regularity.
Read our guide for how to choose an airline credit card to quickly spot the best card for your travel goals.
Score Exclusive Access to Tickets
If you buy tickets to live entertainment like concerts or sporting events, you’ve got a magic rectangular wand in your wallet that can help you to access popular experiences via exclusive presales before tickets open to the general public. It can literally be the difference between snagging a seat and completely missing out.
You can even book hard-to-reserve tables at in-demand restaurants, as some locations hold tables exclusively for holders of certain credit cards. Sounds crazy, but it’s true. Odds are, this is one of the best credit card perks you’re not using.
Use Travel and Emergency Assistance To Get Out of a Jam
Distinct from travel insurance, many travel credit cards also come with features to help you get out of a jam while abroad. This includes services like translation, helping you replace lost passports, medical and legal referrals, emergency evacuation and much more.
In short, you can call a 24/7 hotline and explain your issue to be directed to local providers for whatever solution you need. The advice and referrals are free, though you’ll typically have to pay for any services you decide to use.
Cover the Cost of Your Trip With a Welcome Bonus — Months After Your Trip
Generally, you’ll need to earn travel rewards before you can use them to book a trip. But some credit cards earn points and miles that you can use to retroactively offset the price of your travel. Just open a credit card before you pay for qualifying travel expenses, earn the card’s intro offer and then redeem the points to “erase” your past purchases from your credit card balance.
