The Amex Gold Card is a charge (not credit) reward card that’s part of the American Express Membership Rewards program. In addition to offering some nice travel benefits, including trip cancellation and lost baggage insurance, you’ll also get double points at restaurants and you’ll never have to pay foreign transaction fees. The annual fee is also waived for the first year.
The Delta SkyMiles credit card is an entry-level card that allows you to earn SkyMiles without flying. Although it doesn’t have a large sign-up bonus, or as many of the bells and whistles of its more celebrated cousins—the Gold Delta SkyMiles, Platinum Delta SkyMiles and Delta Reserve cards—it does have the lowest annual fee.
Lufthansa, the largest airline in Europe, also has the largest frequent flyer program in Europe, Miles & More. Since its inception in 1993, 13 airlines have joined Miles & More. Lufthansa and most of those airlines are members of the Star Alliance, giving the program a truly global scope.
If you fly on Korean Air and use its loyalty program, SKYPASS, you’ll probably want one of the five co-branded credit cards offered to residents of the United States. And if you want to minimize your annual fee, but don’t want bare-bones benefits, the SKYPASS Visa Classic card is probably the right option for you.
If you often fly to Central or South America, Avianca could be the right carrier for you. The Colombia-based airline is a holding company for seven South American carriers, making it the second-largest in South America after LATAM, which is composed of TAM and LAN Airlines. Avianca is a member of the Star Alliance, and it operates a frequent flyer program called LifeMiles.
Korean Air offers several co-branded credit cards to U.S. residents. The SkyBlue SKYPASS credit card is the only one without an annual fee. As you might expect, the card doesn’t have all the benefits that come with the premium SKYPASS Visa Signature card, which has a $75 annual fee. But the SkyBlue card is a good fee-free choice for collecting Korean Air miles.
LAN Airlines is the flag carrier of Chile. Its award program, LANPASS, has some very nice features, and since the merger with Brazilian giant TAM, it has become even more valuable. The LANPASS Visa Signature card from U.S. Bank is a great option for earning extra kilometers with the program, so anyone who frequently travels to South America should consider adding it to their portfolio.
Korean Air has several credit cards available to U.S. residents, all issued by U.S. Bank. Although the SKYPASS Visa Signature card has the highest annual fee of any of the offerings, it’s worth the extra cost if you’re serious about earning Korean Air miles. It has a higher sign-up bonus, better earning potential and more benefits.
The Alitalia American Express card is a great option for earning some extra miles with the airline’s generous loyalty program, MilleMiglia. The card also offers some nice perks to cardholders who often fly on Alitalia, including two free checked bags, two lounge passes a year and a $50 annual coupon.
All Nippon Airways is a world class airline and the ANA Mileage Club is one of the best frequent flyer programs in the world because of its generous award chart. If you fly to Japan and Asia with any sort of frequency, you will want to make this airline a part of your travel routine.
The Japan Airlines USA card is good for people who want to collect JAL Mileage Bank miles, but may not fly the airline that often. With only one transfer partner, Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG), it can be difficult to accrue miles with the airline. This card allows members to earn on every purchase, plus it gives them the ability to collect extra miles while flying on JAL.
The Virgin Atlantic Black Card is a great source of miles for anyone who flies on Virgin Atlantic. While Virgin Atlantic’s White Card has a lower annual fee, the Black Card has more benefits.
Virgin Atlantic offers two credit cards to loyal flyers in the United States: the White Card and the Black Card. The White Card is good for those who are collecting Virgin Atlantic miles but don’t want to pay a big annual fee. The Black Card comes with a few more benefits, but also a higher annual fee and more conditions.
Citi Prestige® Credit Card is an upscale premium travel reward card that is comparable to the American Express Platinum Card®. It has many similar travel benefits, and quite hefty $495 annual fee. The Citi card is no longer accepting new applications, but current cardholders still enjoy its outstanding perks, particularly those who travel a lot.
For starters, cardholders are reimbursed for Global Entry application fees. If you fly frequently, Global Entry will save you a lot of time in airport security lines. It guarantees you a coveted spot in a TSA Precheck line, and you will be able to skip immigration lines on your return home from international destinations.
Cardholders also receive a Priority Pass Select membership, which gives you free access to one of the best airport lounge programs available today. It’s good for you plus your family or two guests, and membership can be extended to authorized users for $50 each.
The Prestige card comes with some other great benefits, such as a $250 annual credit toward air travel and a free fourth hotel night. In addition to the airlines listed below, you can transfer points to your ALL – Accor Live Limitless, Choice Privileges®, Leaders Club, and Wyndham Rewards® account.
| AIRLINE TRANSFER PARTNERS | Aeromexico Avianca LifeMiles Air France KLM Cathay Pacific Etihad Guest EVA Air Emirates Skywards JetBlue TrueBlue Qantas Qatar Airways Singapore Airlines Thai Airways Turkish Airlines Virgin Atlantic |
| ANNUAL FEE | $495 |
| Recommended Credit Score | 750+ |
| Type of Card | World Elite MasterCard |
| ISSUER | CitiBank |
Although the Citi Prestige isn’t currently available to new applicants, previously, the card’s sign-up bonus was 50,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first three months.
Citi ThankYou is an incredibly flexible program. It’s the only major travel reward program that allows you to share points with other members.
This is a fantastic benefit, especially considering that other reward programs are adding more restrictions to prevent people from sharing points and miles. Shared points expire in 90 days, so don’t transfer unless you or your friends or family are ready to use them.
You can redeem your points for air travel online through the Citi ThankYou Travel Center at a value of 1.33 cents per point.
While none of the airline transfer partners are based in the U.S., each carrier is either a member of a major alliance or has powerful partners of its own. That means you’ll be able to redeem miles on dozens of airlines all over the world, including all of the major U.S. carriers.
Some of the airline partners are also the most desirable and luxurious carriers in the world, including Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, Etihad and Qatar Airways. These are an excellent option if you want to fly in business or first class.
If you’re interested in premium class travel, one of the best ways to experience ultimate luxury is with Singapore Airlines’ First Suite. It’s best to transfer your ThankYou points to Singapore’s loyalty program, KrisFlyer, because it offers a 15 percent discount to members booking award flights online.With the discount, you can fly one way between New York and Frankfurt, or Houston and Moscow, in the carrier’s extravagant First Suite for 57,375 miles and $203 in taxes and fuel surcharges.
The Citi ThankYou Preferred card may not have all the perks that the other ThankYou cards offer, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have one. With no annual fee, it essentially gives you free access to the ThankYou Rewards program and many of its benefits.
Anyone who enjoys traveling will appreciate the multiple options the Citi Premier® Card offers for redeeming points, as well as its generous earning potential.
Anyone who flies regularly between the United States and Mexico or South America, will benefit from this credit card. Aeromexico has a strong network in those regions, but it is also a SkyTeam member and has some partners of its own. Its global network and partnerships make the airline’s Club Premier kilometers very valuable, especially since its award chart is quite reasonable and generally offers a better value than partner Delta Air Lines.
The Frontier Airlines World MasterCard is the perfect way to earn more miles and enhance your flying and booking experience on the Denver-based carrier. Frontier’s loyalty program, EarlyReturns, offers some good deals, and the card comes with some essential benefits for cardholders. So if you’re a member of the program, or thinking of becoming one, having the co-branded MasterCard is a no-brainer.
The Asiana Airlines card appeals to anyone who regularly travels to Asia and appreciates Asiana’s impeccable service. Asiana miles can also be very valuable. Premium class award seats on Asiana flights and some Star Alliance partner flights are notably cheaper when bought with Asiana miles rather than United MileagePlus miles.
Capital One has made a name for itself among consumers with splashy, celebrity-filled ads, but marketing isn’t the only way the company pushes the envelope. Capital One is constantly creating new credit card offers and reward programs, each with more perks than the last.
