This article is sponsored by Capital One. We get approached for sponsored articles all the time, and only ever do business with companies we believe are delivering something new and awesome to customers and readers. This is one of those times.
Goodbye, long lines…
It’s hard to quantify the happiness found when you walk directly past a lengthy airport security or passport line, zipping instead into a speedy lane where you can keep your shoes on, your electronics in your bag and your sanity in tact. The only way to make that feeling even better, is if you can quantify that the perks are comped.
Capital One is launching some seriously exciting additions to their Venture travel card (learn more), starting with a credit of up to $100 for TSA Pre✓® or Global Entry. Your next trip just got a whole lot easier. Oh, and even if you already have TSA Pre✓® you can gift it!
Capital One Venture (learn more) is currently waiving the first year annual fee ($95 after that), making this pretty much a no brainer. You’re getting 50,000 miles, worth $500 toward any travel purchase, after spending $3,000 in the first 90 days of card membership. That’s equal to $500 of travel, without the need for a PHD in points to spend them! On top of that you earn 2X miles, which can bring 2% cash back on every purchase, when you redeem your miles for recent travel purchases. Yes, we said every purchase, not just some random ones, every blue moon – making it a best in class earner.
And on top of that… they’re throwing in a credit of up to $100 when you apply for TSA Pre✓® or Global Entry, ensuring your journey is more streamlined than ever. Well, especially the airport part. And if you’ve already got TSA Pre✓®, you can actually use the fee credit to get Global Entry or TSA Pre✓® for a family member or friend instead. That’s right, you can pay for anyone else’s application – and gift it. How generous.
Global Entry includes complimentary TSA Pre✓®, so it’s an amazing value and is now surprisingly easy to apply for. Global Entry requires an in person interview, but you can also go for an interview on arrival. The interviews are generally brief and hassle free, but are necessary to take biometric and fingerprint information, since you’ll be largely bypassing immigration officers and long lines in the future. Not bad, right? If you don’t often travel internationally, TSA Pre✓® is a breeze and an application can be completed at 380 centers or 50 Staples stores across the country. That was easy!
Up To 20% Back On Hotels
What if you could get up to $20 of value back for every $100 you spend on hotels? Well – you can, over and over again and it’s actually super easy, with no points mastery required. Capital One Venture has an exclusive Venture partnership with Hotels.com, where you score 10 miles per dollar spent on all Hotels.com purchases made through the special cardmember link Hotels.com/Venture, using your Venture card.
In addition, you can still take advantage of Hotels.com’s lucrative, easy rewards program, where you earn a free night you can redeem at any hotel around the world, once you’ve booked a total of 10 nights. That’s a buy 10 get one free – 10% rebate, and your free night is worth whatever the average you paid for the 10 nights (minus taxes and fees). Put the two together and you’ve got 20x!
Regardless of how many hotels you stay in, or how many nights you stay in each, for every 10 total nights booked, you’ll get a free night (minus taxes and fees) without any blackouts or restrictions, kind of like your Capital One Venture Rewards. Your free night is simple, because it’s based on the average price you paid for the 10 nights.
So, if you spend an average of $100 a night for 10 nights, you’d have $100 toward any future hotel night, with no blackout dates. You just book any hotel, and $100 is covered. And yes, for any high rollers, if you averaged $500 per night for 10 nights, you’d have a $500 free night credit. Put the two together (10x miles from Capital One Venture and 10% back from Hotels.com), and that’s about the most lucrative hotel value proposition on the credit card market.
So, Why Wouldn’t You?
Hefty annual fees, complicated points you can only use on a select date every six months and other red tape make many credit cards seem rather pointless, but this is definitely not one of them. With no annual fee for the first year ($95 after that), you can lock in $600 worth of travel (which includes earning the 50,000 mile bonus), just for paying everyday bills, shopping and living your life. At 2X miles on all purchases, Venture is one of the strongest earning cards on the market and is clearly evolving into a travel centric stalwart in the rewards game. Earning 2x, whatever you spend your money on – combined with the flexibility of using points for all things travel like any flights or hotels makes this pretty compelling stuff. And with the TSA Pre✓®benefit, you have no excuse but to get out and travel.
So when you call capital one about this, they have no clue. Is this for real?
Phone agents notoriously don’t have the best information. This is 100% accurate and direct from Capital One. Hope you enjoy the new benefit.
Rejected, despite significant assets and 6-figure income and a credit score > 800. Wow!!! Who can actually qualify for this card.