 TITLE: How to Make the Most of Travel Credit Cards CONTENT: What Is a Travel Rewards Credit Card?\n-------------------------------------\nAlthough they come in many shapes and sizes, most travel credit cards fall into these three main categories.\n1.  **Airline miles or hotel points**: These are airline or hotel co-branded cards such as the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card and the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ credit card from Chase.\n    *   **How they work**: These cards earn airline miles or hotel points with a specific loyalty program. Cardholders can then redeem those airline miles for award tickets and other things like gift cards and magazine subscriptions, or put hotel points toward free stays among other options.\n    *   **Why you might want one**: In addition to earning points or miles toward free flights and nights, co-branded cards also offer valuable perks with their associated airline or hotel program. For instance, the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card includes access to Delta's Sky Club airport lounges when traveling plus free checked bag, priority boarding and a companion ticket to use toward one free domestic round-trip itinerary (plus taxes) each year.The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card includes $300 in statement credits each year toward Marriott purchases and mid-tier gold elite status with perks like room upgrades and opportunities to earn bonus points. Terms apply to American Express offers.\n2.  **Fixed rate or cash back**: The second type of travel rewards credit card is fixed-rate or cash back cards. These are products like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.\n    *   **How they work**: For every dollar you spend with one of these cards, you earn a set number of miles (confusingly, they're not airline miles but simply their own proprietary points that also happen to be called miles). For example, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card earns 2 miles per dollar spent on every purchase. Cardholders can then redeem these miles at a fixed rate—usually 1 cent apiece—toward travel purchases. Sometimes you get less value when redeeming these miles for non-travel items like groceries or a restaurant tab.\n    *   **Why you might want one**: Fixed-rate cards offer a lot of flexibility when it comes to using your miles. That's because you are basically paying for a travel purchase with your card like normal and then redeeming miles for it as cash back. Unlike redeeming airline miles for an award ticket or hotel points for a free night, you are not stuck waiting for award flights or nights to open up.\n3.  **Transferable points**: These include products like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.\n    *   **How they work**: These cards earn points in the issuers' own loyalty program that you can then transfer to a number of different travel partners. For instance, American Express Membership Rewards points can be transferred to 19 airline frequent-flier programs including Delta SkyMiles and Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer. Likewise, Chase Ultimate Rewards points can transfer to 13 different airline and hotel partners, including United MileagePlus and Marriott Bonvoy.\n    *   **Why you might want one**: Transferable points are valuable because you can redeem them for travel with many airlines or hotels rather than committing to a single one. Just rack up points on everyday purchases and then transfer them to one partner or another for a specific award when you need it. You can also use these points to \"top up\" your regular mileage or hotel points accounts for an award booking if you do not already have enough points from flying or hotel stays. Earning transferable points is also like having an insurance policy against any negative changes, like raising award prices, one particular airline or hotel might make to its individual loyalty program.\nThere is some overlap between fixed-rate and transferable points as many transferable points can also be redeemed at fixed rates for travel and other purchases. END