Travel card for flights, Airbnb, Uber/Lyft?

Anonymous · ‎05-28-2018

I’ve been using a 2% cash back card for our travel purchases but we are about to start traveling more and I am wondering if there is a better option. Pretty much we pick a destination, then find the cheapest flight and room. Our stays range from 2-7 days and we estimate to travel between 10-15 times per year both in state and internationally. We almost exclusively use Airbnb since it can be so cheap it allows us to travel more, we also don’t spend much time in the room anyway unless we get the entire place and make our own food to save on eating out, so hotel perks are not very important to us. And lastly we use lyft/Uber to get around. Is there a card that fits these categories or am I better off picking an airline specific card and my 2% on the other purchases? I am looking to add one card only just for simplicity.

CBartowski · ‎05-28-2018

@Anonymous wrote:
I’ve been using a 2% cash back card for our travel purchases but we are about to start traveling a lot more and I am wondering if there is a better option. Pretty much we pick a destination, then find the cheapest flight and room. Our stays range from 2-7 days and we estimate to travel between 10-15 times per year both in state and internationally. We almost exclusively use Airbnb since it can be so cheap it allows us to travel more, we also don’t spend much time in the room anyway unless we get the entire place and make our own food to save on eating out, so hotel perks are not very important to us. And lastly we use lyft/Uber to get around. Is there a card that fits these categories or am I better off picking an airline specific card and my 2% on the other purchases? I am looking to add one card only just for simplicity.

There are a few options and a big question will be if you want an annual fee or not. If not I'd say the clear winner is the Uber visa card (3% on all travel and explicitly recognizes Airbnb as a merchant code for the 3%; 4% on all food/bars/etc; 2% on all Uber AND Lyft. A nice perk for you with this card is that when you link your Uber card to your Uber account your points/cash back can be applied directly toward Uber rides in the corm of Uber credits. Additionally, there are "local offers" that offers an extra 5% on certain local restaurants which will give you effectively 9% back.

There are also no FTFs. If you get a high enough limit it is also a Visa Signature card that comes with those perks.

If you dont mind an annual fee then there are many choices:

-Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x points on travel and dining with an extra 50% in redemtion value if you book flights thru chase)/preferred (2x points on travel and dining with an extra 25% in redemption value if booked thru Chase)($300 travel credit that can be used with flights or Uber/Lyft purchases). My reading also indicates (I don't have a CSR or CSP JUST yet) that Airbnb codes as travel with these cards as well so you can get 3x/2x respectively. 100$ Global entry/TSA Precheck credit

-AMEX Platinum ($200 in annual Uber credits) 100$ Global entry/TSA Precheck credit

-Citi Prestige (3x on airfare/hote, 2x on dining); $250 travel credit; 100$ Global entry/TSA Precheck credit

There are many others out there but these may not be a bad place to start. You may experience sticker shock at the annual fees, but with the travel credits and included access to Priority Pass lounges at airports, the effective annual fee is greatly reduced.

Good luck!

iheartwings · ‎05-28-2018

@Anonymous wrote:
I’ve been using a 2% cash back card for our travel purchases but we are about to start traveling more and I am wondering if there is a better option. Pretty much we pick a destination, then find the cheapest flight and room. Our stays range from 2-7 days and we estimate to travel between 10-15 times per year both in state and internationally. We almost exclusively use Airbnb since it can be so cheap it allows us to travel more, we also don’t spend much time in the room anyway unless we get the entire place and make our own food to save on eating out, so hotel perks are not very important to us. And lastly we use lyft/Uber to get around. Is there a card that fits these categories or am I better off picking an airline specific card and my 2% on the other purchases? I am looking to add one card only just for simplicity.

You have a lot of options, and many folks here have an opinion.

My recommendation would be to consider a card that allows for accumulation of points for either statement credit, cash back, or transfer to airline partner of your choice. Also, since these cards may provide additional points for targeted spending (i.e., 2-3 points per $ spent on travel), make sure that the card considers airbnb/Lyft/Uber as travel. For me, I have to say that I am loving the Chase Sapphire Reserve because you do get 3UR points per $1 spent on dining and and 3UR points for trave after your the first $300 spent annually (which actually is credited back to you)l, which includes Airbnb, Uber/Lyft, etc. UR points can bring great value if you can transfer to airline partners to redeem for flights, or at least 1.5 cpp if you use the Chase portal. That said, not everyone wants a $450 credit card (even if you get a $300 travel credit). The CSP is also a decent deal, as it give you 2 UR points per $1 spent on dining and travel. Usually the first year AF ($95) is waived. If you use the Chase portal to book travel, this will give you 1.25 cpp (a 25% bonus). Both cards have a 1 point per $ spent on non-travel/dining spending. If you have other Chase Freedom or Ink cards, you can pool all your points together and get lots of additional value.

So, yes, I love my Chase Sapphire. Before that, I loved my Citi Costco, which gives you cash back with 3% dining and travel. Travel, however, is more narrowly defined, and you won’t get 3% for the Airbnb, Lyft, Uber.

I can’t speak to their merits, but there are a lot of travel cards to consider, and I’ve given my two cents on the ones I use for most travel that might be of benefit to you (I also have AmEx Platinum for lounge access and 5x points on airlines and Delta Platinum for Companion fare + free luggage).

HTH

Anonymous · ‎05-28-2018

@CBartowski wrote:
If you dont mind an annual fee then there are many choices:
-Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x points on travel and dining with an extra 50% in redemtion value if you book flights thru chase)/preferred (2x points on travel and dining with an extra 25% in redemption value if booked thru Chase)($300 travel credit that can be used with flights or Uber/Lyft purchases). My reading also indicates (I don't have a CSR or CSP JUST yet) that Airbnb codes as travel with these cards as well so you can get 3x/2x respectively. 100$ Global entry/TSA Precheck credit
-AMEX Platinum ($200 in annual Uber credits) 100$ Global entry/TSA Precheck credit
-Citi Prestige (3x on airfare/hote, 2x on dining); $250 travel credit; 100$ Global entry/TSA Precheck credit

There are many others out there but these may not be a bad place to start. You may experience sticker shock at the annual fees, but with the travel credits and included access to Priority Pass lounges at airports, the effective annual fee is greatly reduced.

Good luck!

I would rule out the Citi Prestige for the OP, because the major advantage of that card (over the CSR/Amex Plat) is the fourth night hotel free feature. Even if Airbnb is covered, it's going to be relatively cheap so the value of the 4th night free is low.

Anonymous · ‎05-28-2018

Alright awesome, I am pre approved for the AMEX Platinum which is what made me look into this more, and she uses Chase so maybe I can get one of the Sapphire cards and none of the inquiry 😁. I also have an offer for the PenFed Pathfinder AMEX but I am having a hard time finding out what’s in their rewards section to know if it works for us. I haven’t searched that one much though.

Anonymous · ‎05-30-2018

I looked into this as well, not know which travel card made the most sense. At the end of the day I just took forbes advice for travel credit cards and I got the Chase Sapphire Preferred. It seemed like the rewards points ability to transfer was what made this the key card to hold. So far no regrets.

wasCB14 · ‎05-30-2018

@Anonymous wrote:
Alright awesome, I am pre approved for the AMEX Platinum which is what made me look into this more, and she uses Chase so maybe I can get one of the Sapphire cards and none of the inquiry 😁. I also have an offer for the PenFed Pathfinder AMEX but I am having a hard time finding out what’s in their rewards section to know if it works for us. I haven’t searched that one much though.

If you're saying you think you can get approved for CSP or CSR without getting a HP, that is not the case. At least, it would be a shock to me, and I have five Chase cards, including CSR.

With your travel spend, the extra rewards and benefits from a CSR may be worth the extra $55 vs. CSP. Be aware that CSP has free authorized users, while CSR charges $75 for an AU.

Personal spend: Amex Gold, Amex Schwab Plat., BofA PR+CCR(x2), Costco
Business use: Amex Bus. Plat., BBP, Lowes Amex AU, CFU AU
Perks: Delta Plat., United Explorer, IHG49, Hyatt, "Old SPG"
Mostly SD: Freedom Flex, Freedom, Arrival
Upgrade/Downgrade games: ED, BCE
SUB chasing: AA Platinum Select

CBartowski · ‎05-30-2018

@Anonymous wrote:
Alright awesome, I am pre approved for the AMEX Platinum which is what made me look into this more, and she uses Chase so maybe I can get one of the Sapphire cards and none of the inquiry 😁. I also have an offer for the PenFed Pathfinder AMEX but I am having a hard time finding out what’s in their rewards section to know if it works for us. I haven’t searched that one much though.

So I just opened this card, just waiting for it to show up. Other folks in the forums have mentioned the Pathfinder redemption isn't too great but for a no AF card, 4% on travel is pretty good. You also get an annual $100 credit for all travel incidental costs (in flight meals, wifi, etc). Here is the PDF of the rewards guidance they have on their site, they hide it well, just in case you haven't seen it yet.

PenFed should also use the HP from your account opening for the CC if it was done not too long ago. I wasn't hit with a HP after applying for the card and my understand is because I opened an account with them maybe 2 months ago.

https://www.penfed.org/content/dam/penfed/general/pdf/creditcardpdfs/AmericanExpress/axt-pathfinder-...

UpperNwGuy · ‎05-31-2018

@CBartowski wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
Alright awesome, I am pre approved for the AMEX Platinum which is what made me look into this more, and she uses Chase so maybe I can get one of the Sapphire cards and none of the inquiry 😁. I also have an offer for the PenFed Pathfinder AMEX but I am having a hard time finding out what’s in their rewards section to know if it works for us. I haven’t searched that one much though.
So I just opened this card, just waiting for it to show up. Other folks in the forums have mentioned the Pathfinder redemption isn't too great but for a no AF card, 4% on travel is pretty good. You also get an annual $100 credit for all travel incidental costs (in flight meals, wifi, etc). Here is the PDF of the rewards guidance they have on their site, they hide it well, just in case you haven't seen it yet.

PenFed should also use the HP from your account opening for the CC if it was done not too long ago. I wasn't hit with a HP after applying for the card and my understand is because I opened an account with them maybe 2 months ago.

https://www.penfed.org/content/dam/penfed/general/pdf/creditcardpdfs/AmericanExpress/axt-pathfinder-...

Correction: it's 4x points on travel spending, not 4%. The 4x points are worth somewhere between 3% and 4%.

Daily Carry: PenFed Power Cash • NFCU Flagship • NFCU More Rewards • Chase Freedom
Sock Drawer: PenFed Promise • NFCU cashRewards • Chase Sapphire Preferred • Chase Freedom Unlimited • United Explorer • UNFCU Azure

Anonymous · ‎07-31-2018

Thanks for all the advice! I know this is super late now but I figured I’d give an update, and I’m sure people will be shocked and disappointed haha. I was originally thinking the AMEX Platinum, we live in a city with a Centurion Lounge so that would have been amazing, but for our spending it seemed like we would also need one of the Everyday cards(Preferred likely) to really add up the points, so after considering the Platinum fee plus authorized user and everyday preferred fee, not to mention I only wanted one card... it sadly didn’t make the cut. We ended up going with the ultra exclusive Citi Costco card hahaha. I know we aren’t getting as much back as we could be, but we do get 100% of our gas there also so it will still benefit us really well in that regard. I’ll know in a few weeks if Airbnb is considered travel for them(probably not, which is fine) but overall I got basically everything I wanted in one card plus the simplicity of once per year reward check, and I’ll still have my other 2% card for everything else.