Saving money while booking flights and hotels is always a smart move, especially if you can maximize your rewards with a credit card like the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. This card offers a great way to earn miles on your travel purchases, which can then be redeemed for even more savings. In this article, we will explore a strategy to help you save money when booking travel with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.
The Value of Capital One Miles
According to The Points Guy (TPG), Capital One miles are valued at 1.85 cents each when transferred to airline and hotel partners such as British Airways, Turkish Airlines, and Wyndham. This means that for every mile you earn with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you’re getting a decent value when you transfer them to these partners. However, there’s another way to look at the value of your Capital One miles that can make them even more valuable.
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card offers 10 miles per dollar for hotels booked through Capital One Travel and 5 miles per dollar for flights booked through the portal. Compared to other Capital One cards like the Venture Rewards Credit Card and the Spark Miles for Business, which offer lower earning rates on travel purchases, the Venture X Rewards card stands out for its generous rewards structure.
Earning Extra Savings
When booking travel through Capital One Travel, you have the option to pay with either cash or miles. Let’s take an example of a weekend stay in Miami where the cost is $583.73 or 58,373 miles (1 cent per mile). If you were to pay with miles, you wouldn’t earn any rewards on the purchase. However, if you pay with the Venture X Rewards Card, you would earn 10 miles per dollar, which translates to 5,838 miles for this purchase.
Capital One allows you to cover travel purchases from your statement within 90 days of the purchase date at a rate of 1 cent per mile. This means that even if you initially paid with miles, you can still earn miles for that spending by redeeming them to offset the expense. So, in the case of the Miami hotel stay, you could use 58,373 miles to remove the charge from your statement, while still earning 5,838 miles for the purchase. This effectively gives you a 10% rebate on your hotel booking.
If you were to book a flight through Capital One Travel using the same method, you would earn a 5% rebate by paying with the card and then using your points to erase the statement. This strategy allows you to maximize your rewards and get more value out of your Capital One miles.
Considerations and Limitations
While this strategy can help you save money and earn more rewards on your travel purchases, there are some limitations to keep in mind. Booking through Capital One Travel may not allow you to earn hotel points or access elite status benefits, as many hotel chains require direct bookings for these perks. However, flights booked through Capital One Travel typically earn miles as usual and are eligible for all elite status benefits, so be sure to add your frequent flyer number before you fly.
In conclusion, using the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card to earn miles on your travel purchases and then redeeming those miles to offset the expenses can be a smart way to save money and maximize your rewards. By following this strategy, you can earn more miles for your spending and get more value out of your Capital One miles. So, next time you’re booking flights and hotels, consider using the Venture X Rewards Card to get the most out of your travel expenses.