In the world of travel rewards credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card tends to get the lion’s share of attention. The Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard, however, definitely deserves center stage for its all-inclusive, generous rewards scheme (i.e. you don’t just get top points for dining and travel) and its flexible travel categories.
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Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
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$0 intro first year
$95 annual fee |
Earn 50,000 bonus points when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $625 in travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards® Read Review » |
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Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card |
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To grab your attention, Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite is offering a nice sign-up incentive. Cardholders will get 50,000 bonus miles once they spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months, which is equivalent to a $500 travel statement credit.
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Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®
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$0 first year
$89 after first year |
50,000 bonus miles When you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days Read Review » |
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Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard® |
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Where the card really stands out is with its standard 2x miles on every single purchase. That means that whether you’re buying a trip, gas or groceries, you’ll always get 2x the miles. This rewards ratio is one of the most generous on the market. Furthermore, when you redeem your miles for travel, you get an additional 5 percent of your miles back, meaning that, in essence, you’re getting 2.1 percent reward miles for travel purchases. Miles never expire as long as your account is open and in good standing.
Cardholders can redeem miles for travel or cash back statement credits, gift cards and merchandise. Travel statement credit redemptions begin at 10,000 miles for $100 (i.e. points are valued at 1 cent, with the bonus 5 percent miles back bringing the value to 1.05 cents each), towards an eligible travel purchase of $100 or more made within the last 120 days. It’s important to note that 120 days’ stipulation to ensure you’ll be able to redeem your miles in the time allotted. Cash back credits and gift cards start at 5,000 miles for $25 (i.e. points are worth .5 cents each).
The Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard also makes it easy to redeem your points for travel credits thanks to its flexible categorizing of what constitutes a travel purchase. Barclaycard’s definition includes airlines, hotels, motels, timeshares, campgrounds, car rental agencies, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites, trains, buses, taxis, limousines, and ferries. Another nice feature is that, unlike many other rewards credit cards, you don’t have to make your travel purchases via a specified website to earn points.
Cardholders also enjoy numerous benefits common with premium cards, such as price and purchase protection, extended warranty, travel and rental car insurance and complimentary concierge service.
The card, which features chip technology, has no foreign transaction fees. It does, however, have an annual fee of $89, which is waived in the first year. There is a 0 percent introductory APR for 12 months on balance transfers that you make within 45 days of opening the account. Afterward, the APR will be 16.24 percent, 20.24 percent or 23.24 percent, based on your creditworthiness.
If you like having a high rewards rate on all your purchases and appreciate the flexibility of not being restricted to one specific website to make your travel purchases, then the Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard deserves a place in your wallet.
[Image via Getty]