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[05:52:34 AM Wednesday, July 04, 2007]
Choosing Between Credit Card Offers with Travel Rewards Programs
It is true — there are countless good credit card offers that are available that include travel rewards programs. It’s also true that if you simply search the Internet for ‘Credit card travel rewards programs’, you will be faced with thousands of hits. The credit card companies all have a travel rewards program of some type but other offers are often interlaced among the travel rewards.
The good news is that with so many choices from the credit card companies, there is definitely a travel rewards program credit card offer that suits your needs. The only challenge is that you have to identify the primary considerations when you are searching for the best credit card offer for you.
One of the first considerations you have to take into account when you are comparing credit cards is whether you are a frequent buyer or a frequent flier? If you are a frequent buyer who doesn’t travel very often, you may want to choose a credit card offer that doesn’t limit the rewards to be used on only airlines.
These types of cards are called cash-back cards, where you are awarded points for every purchase you make with your credit card. These points can be redeemed for airline travel as well as discounts for rental cars and hotels, and some even include straight cash-back rewards.
If you are a frequent flier — that is someone who does a lot of airline travel, you will probably want to look at the best credit card that is offered from an airline. These cards generally reward points, termed air miles, for the number of miles you fly and these cards are generally run by the airlines. The rewards are, of course, restricted for use only with the particular airline.
Once you have made the distinction of what kind of credit card user you are, you have some other considerations to make while you compare credit cards. Making the distinction between good credit card offers and bad credit card offers can be tricky. Here are a few criteria you will want to consider during your evaluation of the credit card offers.
You will want to look at the annual fees that are associated with the credit card offer. The credit card offers that are run by airlines tend to have an annual fee, which can range from $75 upward and you will likely need to charge more than $8,000 on your card throughout the year to recoup the fee.
Most of the cash-back credit card offers are fee free and do not charge an annual fee of any kind. They also provide the flexibility of being able to choose from a variety of airlines. If you tend to carry a balance on your credit card, then you will want to also look at their annual percentage rate (APR). Many cash-back cards offer a low fee or low APR throughout the year, especially during the first few months of ownership of a new credit card offer.
The travel restrictions on your air miles may also be a factor worth considering. The cash-back cards do indeed deal with more airlines but also tend to have travel restrictions or black out dates.
This means that you can only travel to certain locations, on certain dates or have to span a specific period of time for traveling using your rewards. Regardless of whether you choose a cash-back card or an airline card, take a close look at the fine print of the credit card offer to determine how the rewards or air miles are used and redeemed.
Another factor to consider is how many of your reward points or air miles it will take to get a free airline ticket. Most good credit card offers require 25,000 reward points to get a ticket. Some new credit card offers credit you some reward points for opening the account with them.
Other good credit card offers include double reward points for specific items such as plane tickets, and other unique options. You should also consider the economic health of the airline if you are choosing a specific airline’s air miles credit card offer. If the airline goes out of business, your travel points would likely go with it.
Keep in mind that if you are using a specific airline’s air miles card, you will want to ensure that you have access to the airline — meaning it flies out of an airport near you.
Comparing credit cards online is a good way to go — you can start reducing the list by weeding out the bad credit card offers from the good credit card offers. Once you have a smaller list, and then start with a side by side comparison. Make yourself a flow chart so you can add credit cards and their features to your chart so you can see which credit card offer is the best for you.
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