Travel Credit Cards
Discover which travel credit cards offer the best value across major airline and hotel brands as well as those that earn points that can be used with any travel partner. Learn when to use credit, when to use cash, and how to tell whether your travel credit card offers the best deal.
Travel Credit Cards
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Visa and Mastercard are essentially the same in terms of merchant acceptance outside of the United States so neither has an advantage for foreign travelers. Visa and Mastercard have different country-specific policies regarding car rental while abroad so this can be important to understand prior to travel.
Learn More: Visa vs. MasterCard: The Main Differences -
Swipe, or merchant acceptance, fees do tend to be higher for travel cards. The reason major card networks charge merchants higher fees for these types of cards is because card usage and charge volume tends to be higher compared to non-rewards credit cards.
Learn More: The Truth About Credit Card Swipe Fees -
All credit cards issued in the U.S. by Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover now have security chips and still typically require signatures at checkout with most merchants and can be inserted into point of sale terminals or the chip can be read by holding the card over the terminal reader. Chip and signature cards still carry a magnetic strip on the back which can be swiped through point of sale terminals as well. They are different from cards outside of the U.S. which require a four-digit PIN to be entered at the point of sale.
Learn More: Chip-and-Signature Card Definition -
Any credit card fee that the customer doesn’t feel is fair can be contested. Studies have shown that it is remarkably effective to simply call the customer service number of the card issuer to ask for a fee to be removed. Certain factors such as how long you’ve been a customer, if your account is in good standing and politeness can influence the level of success when asking for fee waiver or reduction.
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Currency Conversion Fee
The currency conversion fee is the fee charged to the cardholder when charges are made in a foriegn currency, whether when traveling or when buying an item online with a foreign merchant.. This fee covers the process and expense involved with the conversion of foreign currencies into U.S. dollars.
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Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC)
Dynamic currency conversion allows credit card customers to make a transaction with a foreign merchant in their home-country currency at the point of sale. While this allows the cardholder to better understand the cost of the product or service the conversion rate is usually less favorable than if the charge was made in the local currency.
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Co-Branded Card
A co-branded credit card is a card offered by a provider of consumer goods or services, such as an airline or hotel, in partnership with a bank card issuer. Co-branded cards are designed to enhance loyalty between the retailer and the consumer through reward points or miles that are earned with use of the credit card.
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Chip-And-PIN Card
A chip-and-PIN card is a credit card that has an EMV security chip along with a personal identification number set by the cardholder. The combination of the chip and PIN creates a very secure card transaction and has become the security standard across much of the world, though not currently in the U.S.
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Transactor
Transactors are credit card customers who pay their balance in full each month rather than carrying balances forward each month and incurring interest changes. Card issuers once regarded customers who didn’t pay interest as “deadbeats” but have since realized they can be very profitable and loyal customers. Travel credit card customers tend to be transactors, since they are focused on earning travel rewards through routine spending, compared to non-rewards credit card customers.
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Explore Travel Credit Cards
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