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If you stay at hotels often—or even occasionally—being part of a rewards program is a no-brainer. In fact, you might be enrolled without even realizing it since these days most major chains require you to sign up to access in-room wifi. But that’s only the first step in becoming a savvier traveler. To maximize your hotel benefits, you should know these seven best credit cards for hotels.
If you play your (ahem) cards right, you’ll be treated to complimentary upgrades, breakfast on the house, access to exclusive lounges, and even free nights.
Loyalty enthusiasts know that with the right program, travel becomes smoother—and less costly. To put you on a path to major perks and points, here are our seven picks for exceptional credit cards for hotel stays.
Hyatt offers some of the best value in the biz when it comes to hotel redemptions. Put simply, you need fewer points to redeem a hotel night here than at most of its competitors.
With this card in your pocket, you can lock in otherwise expensive properties at below-market rates. High-end brands under Hyatt’s corporate umbrella, such as Park Hyatt, Alila, Andaz, and Miraval, are all fair game—plus a wide selection of independent hotels.
If you’re a fan of the Hyatt portfolio, the World of Hyatt Credit Card is also a must-have for its many other rewards. Its everyday earning rates are excellent, and the fact that you’re entitled to one free hotel night each card membership year (up to Category 4) helps offset the annual fee, which won’t break the bank at $95.
To top things off, this card gets you entry-level Discoverist status (with features like 2:00 p.m. late checkout), which makes anybody feel like a VIP.
Marriott Bonvoy has a massive footprint worldwide with over 30 hotel brands and 10,000 global destinations. Translation? Anywhere you travel, a dependable Marriott is almost certainly nearby.
With the Boundless Card, travelers gain protections such as baggage delay insurance and trip delay reimbursement, plus entry-level Bonvoy Silver Elite status, which includes 10 percent bonus points on stays and priority late checkout. Best of all, the card offers a reward certificate worth up to 35,000 Bonvoy points every year upon account renewal. Cash that in for a complimentary night, and you’ll have likely recovered the $95 annual fee.
All information about Hilton Honors American Express Aspire has been collected independently by SAVEUR. Hilton Honors American Express Aspire is no longer available through AmericanExpress.com.
Hilton Honors has a global reach of 8,000 hotels across 24 distinct brands, from luxury labels such as Waldorf Astoria and Conrad to the more budget-friendly Hampton and Hilton Garden Inn.
While Hilton has several co-branded credit cards with American Express, the Aspire is the most premium (read: expensive) of the bunch, with an annual fee of $550. But you get what you pay for: a doozy of high-end benefits including top-tier Diamond status and one free night at virtually any Hilton property worldwide (after opening your account and on your cardmember anniversary each year).
About that Diamond status: It’s beloved by cardholders for perks encompassing airport lounge access, complimentary breakfast (or food and beverage credit), and space-available room upgrades.
But perhaps the most noteworthy benefit is up to $200 in annual airline credits, broken down as follows: up to $50 in statement credits each calendar quarter for flights purchased directly from the airline or through AmexTravel.com.
While the three cards above are tied directly to a hotel chain, the Chase Sapphire Reserve is an everyday premium travel credit card that’s brand-agnostic. The advantage of not having all your eggs in one basket is, of course, flexibility.
Though the $550 annual fee may give applicants pause, frequent travelers—especially hotel-goers—should be able to wring enough value out of this card to more than justify the cost. Cardholders bag three points for every dollar spent on travel and dining worldwide, and one point per dollar on all other purchases. Plus, if you spend through Chase’s easy-to-use travel platform, you’ll earn even more: 10 points per dollar on Chase Dining, hotel stays, and car rentals and five points on air travel purchased through the brand. (Note that points are not earned until after the first $300 is spent annually on purchases in the travel category, and the first $300 spent goes toward the $300 annual travel credit.)
About that fan-favorite credit: the Reserve automatically reimburses you for $300 in travel expenses charged to the card each year. (Purchases reimbursed with the credit do not earn points.) The automatic credit effectively cuts the annual cost of carrying the card to $250.
Toss into the mix a 50 percent boost in point value when redeeming for travel booked through Chase, access to premium airport lounges, and the ability to transfer points to about a dozen airline and hotel partners, this card is a bonafide winner.
Another wonderfully versatile card, the Citi Strata Premier lets you leverage a wide variety of hotel and airline transfer partners via the Citi Travel portal.
You’ll pocket a generous three points per dollar across a wide range of categories (hotels, air travel, restaurants, supermarkets, gas, and electric vehicle charging)—and a whopping 10 points per dollar on hotels, car rentals, and attractions when you book through the Citi Travel portal.
Finally, cardholders can use a $100 hotel credit for any single-stay booking that exceeds $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, when booking through the Citi Travel website. All of this is included in the surprisingly reasonable $95 annual fee.
This Expedia card is ideal for those who book hotels online—i.e., just about everybody we know—through the group’s brands: Expedia, Hotels.com, or Vrbo. Yes, the One Key+ has a $99 annual fee, but there are plenty of perks and benefits that justify the ongoing cost.
On every cardholder anniversary, you’ll earn $100 in OneKeyCash (which can be used on any Expedia Group site) to put toward travel over the following 12 months. This no-fuss funny money makes the card’s annual fee easier to stomach. You’ll also get 3 percent in OneKeyCash on Expedia Group purchases, at gas stations, grocery stores, and dining; and 2 percent on everything else.
The Platinum Card® from American Express
Amex Platinum is one of the most lucrative cards for premium travelers, with a range of benefits to level up your hotel stays. First, all cardholders can enroll in complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite and Hilton Honors Gold status, which translates into perks that include room upgrades and late checkout.
In addition, Platinum cardholders receive up to $200 back in statement credits each calendar year when they make bookings through Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts (FHR) or The Hotel Collection. Both programs are found on Amex Travel’s website and give travelers a range of extras at higher-end hotels. For instance, Amex FHR provides elite status-like benefits (breakfast, property credit, room upgrades, and more) at more than 1,100 luxury properties worldwide.
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit AmericanExpress.com to learn more.
Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
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