Saving Money With A Travel Credit Card
I know what you're thinking. SAVING with a credit card? Have you lost your mind? I can't guarantee my mind is all there, but I can promise you that if you stick with me a second you will see why that blog title is a true statement. Even if you don't usually go for credit cards, keep reading. This is a long post, but its worth it!
I don't like debt. I have grown up watching people that I love go into debt to buy new cars, an education, lavish gifts, update their home, etc. Some reasons were understandable and some were unnecessary, but almost always the end result was the same: stress and worry.
That is something I always told myself I didn't want for my life and I have stuck to my guns. I am a frugal person and am blessed to have a husband that shares my desire for financial freedom. I have no problems wisely spending money that I have, but if I couldn't pay it off right now (or in the very near future) I don't buy it. Obviously there are exceptions due to necessity (house, medical bills, ect) but this is generally my rule. I've only had one credit card I used for things I was already paying for like bills and groceries and I only had it to build up my credit. The only other debt I have ever had is a mortgage. The hubs only debt has been student loans that are oh so close to being paid off. (Yay!) Because of how we choose to spend our money, we do not and have NEVER fought about money. Not one time. Crazy, I know. If you set up personal rules, prioritize your spending and use a BUDGET (!), this is a totally obtainable goal.
I feel like although I don't like to shove my beliefs in others faces, I have to add that we are Christians. As a family, we tithe and believe that a huge reason for our financial stability is because we tithe and because the Lord has blessed us with what we have. But I think that the financial decisions we make are huge as well.
I said ALL that to say this- if you can't trust yourself with a credit card or if you are already under financial hardship, stop reading this post right now. I in NO way advocate you getting a credit card if it will have a negative effect on you or your family. I wish for everyone to be or work towards becoming free of the burden of debt.
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Now that I've gotten that out of the way... I will get to the point of this post!
Vacations can be expensive, which is something I know we can all agree on. When we first decided to go on this trip I knew that even with frugal planning, we were going to be shelling out some dough. Enter travel credit card. If we are spending the money anyway, we might as well get some kind of perk for it! (Am I right?!) If you can be disciplined and pay off your bill every month, a travel credit card can really benefit you and give you extra cash in your pocket towards that vacation. I did what I always do and researched my little heart out. By a long shot, the best card I could find was the Barclaycard Arrival World Mastercard. This card is the bees knees, ya'll.
NOTE: Barclay in no way compensated me for this review. I really just love them!
NOTE: Barclay in no way compensated me for this review. I really just love them!
Here are a few perks:
-Unlike most travel cards, you don't have to use your rewards with a specific company.
-Earn miles at 2 miles per dollar. A lot of other cards I've seen have only been 1 point per dollar so that is a great deal.
-You get the most value when you redeem miles towards reimbursing a travel expense. It starts at 25$ for 2,500 miles.
-You can redeem towards ANY travel expense! BnB's, train rides, hotels, taxis and so many more.
-If you spend 3,000$ in the first 90 days (easy to do if you're paying bills) you earn 40,000 bonus miles! (That's 400$!!)
-No mileage limits and no foreign transaction fees. That is huge!
-Free year long subscription to TripIt Pro (49$ value)
-When you redeem towards travel, they give you 10% of the miles you are trading in, back in your miles bank. So if you redeem those 2,500 miles for 25$ off your bill, they are also going to put 250 miles towards your remaining miles balance.
-0% intro APR on purchases for the first 12 months after account opening. After that, variable APR, currently 14.99% or 18.99% depending upon your creditworthiness.
-No annual fees for the first year
-Includes certain kinds of travel insurance for your vacation!
In addition to these awesome deets, Barclay has tons of other small perks and EXCELLENT customer service. I have never been happier as a customer than I am with Barclay! I am NOT being reimbursed to write this, I just love them that much! I used my card to pay all the expenses for the trip and all the bills we would be paying anyway and every month I pay off the card. I have been able to claim at LEAST 1,000$ towards my bill for this trip. I will be able to keep earning miles and keep redeeming them towards trip expenses for 120 days after the travel purchase I wish to reimburse so that amount will go up.
If you want to check out the Barclaycard, head to their site here. The points guy has written a pretty good breakdown here. Check him out for more in depth information.
Do any of you have a travel credit card that you love? How has it helped you go on those life changing vacays?!