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Pull the rewards you earn across family credit cards to redeem them all on one trip
Bank-owned travel portals: Should you use them?
Posted on Aug 23, 2023
Updated on Aug 23, 2023
As an avid traveler, you may have ways and strategies to save on travel and maximize points or miles earning. Chances are you are using a travel credit card to earn rewards and redeem them for travel-related expenses as they usually offer more value. Plus, many travel rewards credit cards offer extra rewards when used at issuer's travel portals.
Banks' travel portals help you use your card rewards and benefits in the best way possible. Travel portals offer various redemption options, but the best value is usually offered for travel redemptions, flight redemptions to be more specific. Credit card travel portals may also offer exclusive experiences, event tickets, and premium services.
Why book through your issuer travel portal
Major credit card issuers like American Express, Capital One, Citi and Chase have their own travel portals where eligible cardmembers can book flights, hotels, or rental cars and earn additional rewards. Travel portals are also an easier and more straightforward way to redeem earned miles and points, and often with added value.
However, before you book a trip through a travel portal, it's worth cross-checking pricing and availability first. Here are the reasons for booking through your issuer's travel portal.
You can earn more on travel bookings
Credit card travel portals can offer extra rewards when you book travel directly though the issuer's portal. For example, with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you can earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel versus 2X miles on all other purchases.
Another example is the Citi Premier® Card that, for a limited time, earns 10X ThankYou® Points on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel portal through June 30, 2024. Unfortunately, air travel is excluded from the offer. If you do not book through the portal, you'll earn 3X points on air travel and hotels and 1X points on car rentals.
You can get more value from your rewards
Some issuers increase the value of earned points or miles when redeemed through their travel portal. Thus, for instance, with the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Credit Card, you'll get 50% more points on travel redemptions through Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, and if you use the Chase Sapphire Preferred® credit card, you'll get 25% more value.
American Express also has a similar offer for eligible cardmembers. For instance, the Business Platinum Card® holders can receive 35% Membership Rewards® points back after using the Pay With Points feature to book a first class or business class flight through American Express Travel (the maximum is up to 1 million bonus points back per calendar year).
You can combine credit cards rewards
There are ways to combine credit cards to maximize rewards earning and redeeming. Issuers like American Express, Chase, Citi, and Capital One allow you to pull the rewards you earn across family cards to redeem them all on one trip. For example, you can combine these three Citi credit cards to get maximum Citi ThankYou points: the Citi Premier® Card, Citi Rewards+® Card, and Citi Double Cash® Card.
Credit card combinations usually include a more premium travel credit card with one or more cards for everyday spending. This way you can optimize earning and redeeming rewards. However, if you have a habit of carrying a balance on your credit cards, we would not recommend card-combining strategies.
You can get additional benefits
Some credit cards may offer additional benefits and perks for using travel portals. Those can be in the form of travel credits, complimentary services, additional benefits on hotel bookings (a late checkout or free breakfast), or discounted airfare deals.
These extras are more common with premium travel credit cards that have higher annual fees. For example, with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you can get up to $300 back annually in statement credits for bookings through Capital One Travel. Another example is the Platinum Card® from American Express. The card gives $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel.
Best credit card travel portals
Travel portals are designed to make it easier for eligible cardmembers to redeem their points or get extra rewards and some travel perks. These booking platforms have different functionality and performance. The value of your credit card points depends on how useful they are. Here we gathered information about travel portals provided by major issuers: Capital One, Citi, American Express, Bank of America, and Chase.
Why you might not want to use card issuer's portals
While using your credit card at the issuer's travel portal can come with many benefits, there may be some disadvantages too.
The issuer's travel portals do not always provide the best prices. Even if you have enough rewards to book an award travel, that still may not be the best deal for you. There also may be limited availability for tickets and travel accommodations to book.
Another caveat is that you may not be able to use your elite status privileges and perks when booking through the issuer's travel portal. When you book a hotel stay especially, you may not be eligible for such benefits as room upgrades, late checkout, or complimentary meals if you book through a third-party website.
If you change your travel plans, it also may be difficult to change or cancel the airfare you booked with a third party.
Therefore, it's recommended to always read the terms and conditions of the issuer's travel portal booking closely. You can also use portals to compare prices against other sites. If the benefits you get through your issuer are not worth the convenience of booking through the portal, then you might want to bypass the issuer's platform.
Bottom line
There is no clear winner for the best travel portal as each has unique features and benefits. At the same time, they all are not ideal and have some flaws. The issuer's travel portal can be a great tool for comparing prices and for booking your next trip, though.
It's best to make your issuer's travel portal a part of your strategy to maximize your rewards, get discounts or exclusive travel deals. If you are not of a rewards strategy type, you can simply use portals to get the best deal possible.
