Establishing what constitutes travel expenses will enable you to make the best choice when selecting an entertainment credit card with an annual fee, and compare their rewards categories easily.
Determining what constitutes travel spending may differ depending on which card issuer you work with; generally, however, most travel credit cards consider airline tickets and hotel stays purchases to count towards travel purchases.
It’s a credit card
Credit card providers provide many different kinds of cards, such as travel and entertainment (T&E) cards. T&E cards function similarly to bank credit cards but come with additional perks and features that could come in handy in certain situations, including priority boarding/lounge access, four annual visits to Priority Pass Select lounges, as well as $100 off Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fees.
Most travel credit cards provide bonus points or miles when used to purchase airfare, hotels and other travel-related purchases; it’s essential to understand how card issuers define travel spending so as to select an ideal card for yourself.
Some Travel & Expense (T&E) cards are co-branded, meaning they partner with an airline or hotel loyalty program to reduce administrative costs for the University and improve reporting capabilities. Furthermore, certain cards provide quarterly travel charges summaries, which can come in handy during tax season.
It’s a charge card
While many may use the terms “credit card” and “charge card” interchangeably, there are subtle distinctions between them. Credit cards allow consumers to make purchases and earn rewards; charge cards have higher annual fees and require you to clear off your balance every month in full.
Travel and entertainment credit cards provide rewards related to travel, such as airline miles, airport lounge access and car rental insurance. In addition, some cards provide exclusive cardholder-only benefits like access to ticket presales or VIP packages.
Figuring out what constitutes travel spending remains something of a skill, as different card issuers might have different definitions of what counts as such spending. Typically though, a travel and entertainment card covers expenses at airlines, hotels, motels and resorts as well as car rental agencies, bus lines, cruise lines passenger railways taxicabs limousines ferries as well as co-branded cards with airline logos or hotel brands on them.
It’s a cash advance card
The Travel and Entertainment Card (T&E Card) is a university liability credit card distributed to faculty, career non-probationary staff and contract staff for use when incurring travel and entertainment expenses on behalf of the University.
Travel and entertainment credit cards often offer bonus rewards when used for travel purchases, access to exclusive VIP packages, ticket presales and more. Furthermore, these credit cards may have lower interest rates than traditional credit cards as well as possibly no annual fee.
Determining what constitutes travel expenses can be challenging, since this decision lies with individual credit card issuers. Most major card issuers we surveyed include purchases made at airlines, car rental agencies, hotels/motels/motels, taxicabs/ limousines/ limousines and passenger railways in their definition of travel; others define it more broadly, including tourist attractions like museums/art galleries as travel expenses or cruises as travel.
It’s a rewards card
Rewards cards are credit cards that provide multiple redemption options, such as merchandise, cash back and travel-related perks like airline miles or hotel loyalty program night credits. Most rewards cards typically offer at least one point for every dollar spent; some even offer increased redemption rates with certain purchases.
Your best way to select the appropriate credit card for your lifestyle is by calculating how much money is spent in each spending category. For instance, if entertainment purchases represent more of your expenses than others do, look for cards which offer bonus categories in those areas.
Consider also the annual fee. While some cards impose high annual fees, others only charge minimal charges. When choosing between cards with low annual fees versus those charging high annual fees, it’s also wise to avoid cards that charge late payment or over-limit charges as these could easily outweigh the benefits of rewards cards.
