Best Travel Credit Cards

Card Details	The Offer	Is it Worth It?
Pros and Cons	Why 4 Stars?	Fees
Benefits

Card Details

Regular APR:	If you activate Pay Over Time: 17.49% to 24.49% (Variable)
Intro APR (Purchases):	None
Intro APR (Balance transfers):	None
Rewards Rate:	4 Membership Rewards points per dollar when you dine at restaurants worldwide 4 Membership Rewards points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X) 3 Membership Rewards points per dollar on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
Credit Needed:	(670 – 850) Excellent/Good
Annual Fee:	$250
Card Brand:	American Express

*See online credit card application for details on the terms and conditions.

Offer Highlights

• Click APPLY NOW to apply online
• Earn 35,000 Membership Rewards Points after you spend $2,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 3 months.
• Earn 4X Membership Rewards points when you dine at restaurants worldwide. Earn 4X Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X). Earn 3X Membership Rewards points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com.
• Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub, Seamless, The Cheesecake Factory, Ruth?s Chris Steak House, Boxed, and participating Shake Shack locations. This can be an annual savings of up to $120. Enrollment required.
• $100 Airline Fee Credit: up to $100 in statement credits per calendar year for incidental fees at one selected qualifying airline.
• You can carry a balance with interest on eligible charges of $100 or more, giving you more control over the amount you pay. When your payment is due, you can choose to pay your Account Total New Balance, the minimum due or any amount in between, with interest
• No Foreign Transaction Fees.
• Annual Fee is $250.

Is American Express Gold Card worth it?

American Express Gold is a great card for cardholders who spend a lot on dining out and grocery shopping. These categories earn four points per dollar (up to $25,000 per year in purchases for supermarkets, then one point per dollar).

American Express offers the following charge cards: American Express Plum Card, American Express Business Green Rewards, American Express Business Platinum and American Express Platinum, and American Express Business Gold and American Express Gold Card. Just like for the others, If you need to carry a balance with American Express Gold, you can use American Express Pay Over Time feature, which for American Express Gold uses an APR of 17.49% to 24.49% (Variable). You essentially now have a credit card, but not all charges will get carried over into the next month. You choose between the Extended Payment Option, where charges over $100 are automatically moved into your Pay Over Time balance, Select & Pay Later, where you manually choose charges over $100 to move into your Pay Over Time balance, or Sign & Travel, where airline tickets, hotel stays, car rentals, cruises and charges in other countries are moved into your Pay Over Time balance. It’s not the simplest program but whichever choice you select, you basically now have a credit card, where you can choose to pay the full balance, the minimum payment, or anything in between. This is in contrast to what would normally happen with a charge card, where you are required to pay the full balance every month, and if you don’t, you incur a late fee even if you pay an amount that would be above what would be considered the normal minimum payment if the card were a credit card. Charge cards also don’t impact your credit, because you are not extended a credit line.

Pros

• High four points per dollar on dining and groceries
• Higher than average three points per dollar travel rewards, redeemable on Amex Travel, which in most cases offers competitive rates with Expedia and Orbitz

Cons

• $250 Annual fee
• Inflexible rewards requirements: other cards offer a similar rewards rate on all travel purchases – but unlike other cards – American Express Gold will not earn rewards on bookings through third-party travel sites

Why 4 Stars?

Regular APR

4 Stars

Intro APR

4 Stars

Fees

4 Stars

Perks

5 Stars

Overall

4 Stars

Fees

Foreign Transaction Fee	$0
Balance Transfer Fee	No Balance Transfers Allowed
Cash Advance Fee	Either 5% of transaction amount or $10, whichever is greater
Penalty APR	See Terms

Benefits

$0 Fraud Liability

Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver

Concierge Service

Extended Warranty Program

Travel Accident Insurance

Lost Luggage Reimbursement

Purchase Protection

Travel Assistance

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinion, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed on this page are those of the author?s alone, and may not have been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.

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