Any parent knows that traveling with a family is expensive. The cost of multiple airfares, hotel rooms, and meals can be prohibitive. But a good travel rewards card can help. A few cards stand out because their earning policies and benefits are especially family-friendly. Here are the best.
JetBlue Plus Card
JetBlue’s frequent flyer program and the JetBlue Plus card have particular benefits for families. JetBlue’s Family Pooling policy makes it easy for multiple individuals (whether they’re relatives or friends) to combine points. So, if parents and children all have a few miles, they can be pooled to buy an award ticket for anyone. While other airlines allow you to transfer frequent flyer miles to someone else, they usually charge a fee for the transfer. JetBlue’s family pooling, on the other hand, is free.
The JetBlue Plus card offers new cardholders 30,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases within 90 days of account opening. You’ll also get 10% of your points back every time you redeem, and 5,000 bonus points each year on your account anniversary.
Although there is a $99 annual fee for the card, you’ll get free checked bags for up to four people whenever you use the card to pay for a JetBlue flight, so the card could pay for itself with one family trip. Plus, you’ll save 50% on any in-flight purchases you make with the card.
Click here to learn more and apply for the JetBlue Plus card today!
Citi ThankYou® Premier Card
The Citi ThankYou® Premier Card from our partner Citi is especially good for families that take road trips and other vacations, because it offers 3x points on all travel purchases, including gas. Once you get to your destination, you’ll receive 2x points on both dining and entertainment purchases, such as theme park admissions. You earn 1x points on everything else.
ThankYou points can be redeemed for travel by transferring them to participating airline and hotel loyalty programs, or by using them to book airfare through the ThankYou Travel Center. When you choose the latter, your points are worth 25% more. You can also redeem ThankYou points for merchandise or gift cards. Best of all, you can share your points with family members and others at no additional cost.
The ThankYou Premier has a $95 annual fee that’s waived the first 12 months, and no foreign transaction fees on purchases.
Click here to learn more and apply for the Citi ThankYou® Premier Card today!
Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard®
The Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® awards a flat rate of 2x miles for all your purchases. There is also a bonus offer for new cardholders of 40,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 in the first 90 days of card membership. This bonus can be worth $400 in travel credit. You can redeem your miles for cash back, gift cards, or statement credit against nearly any type of travel purchase made in the last 120 days. Plus, you get a 5% redemption bonus each time you redeem. There are no foreign transaction fees. The annual fee of $89 is waived the first year.
Click here to learn more and apply for the Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® today!
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card awards 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants and 1X point for each dollar you spend on other purchases. New cardholders can earn a bonus of 50,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months of opening the account. This bonus can be worth $625 if you redeem your points through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. Plus, you can earn 5,000 miles if you add an authorized user and make a purchase also within the first 3 months. You can redeem your points in many ways, but you can also transfer them to other loyalty programs at a ratio of 1:1. There is no foreign transaction fee. There is an introductory annual fee of $0 the first year, then $95.
Click here to learn more and apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card today!
Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier card from Chase
This card makes perfect sense for families because Southwest is an extremely family-friendly airline. One of the biggest benefits is Southwest’s open seating policy. While some people consider it a hassle to not have assigned seats, the arrangement is a boon for families, who on other airlines may have to pay extra to get seats assigned next to each other. Southwest even offers priority boarding for families traveling with small children.
Southwest’s fee policies are also good for families. Since all passengers can check two bags for free, families don’t have to choose between paying to check baggage and lugging everything through the airport. And Southwest has no change fees, which comes in handy when the inevitable soccer game or school play is scheduled in conflict with the family vacation.
When it comes to Southwest’s Rapid Rewards frequent flyer program, families can’t beat the Southwest Companion Pass. This perk allows you to add a designated companion to fly with you for free on unlimited paid or award flights. To receive a Companion Pass, you need to earn 110,000 points in a calendar year, and points earned through the credit card count. The pass is then good until December 31 of the following year.
You’ll earn double points for all Southwest purchases, and one point per dollar spent elsewhere. There’s a $99 annual fee for this card, but that’s partially offset by the fact that you’ll receive a 6,000 point bonus each year on your account anniversary.
The information related to the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier credit card has been collected by Wise Bread and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card.
