It’s pretty nerdy of me, but with so many credit cards I need to strategize which cards I’ll bring on any given trip. This is even more important for me when going overseas – certain cards provide advantages over others. Since I’m leaving for Ireland in a couple of days, I thought I’d share my thought process for what’s in my wallet.
Here are the cards that will be in my and my wife’s wallet, and my thought process behind each:
1. Chase Sapphire Preferred (Visa)
Quite frankly, this is my go-to card for international travel. The key about this card is no foreign transaction fees. That means I can use it wherever and not have to worry about being charged extra by my credit card company. I’d never leave the country without this card.
2. Chase Freedom (Visa)
Normally, I’d leave this card at home because it causes foreign transaction fees, but this quarter I’ll receive a 5% bonus on all points spent on hotels – so that will net me a 2% profit overall (5% – 3% in fees). I used my Freedom to reserve a room at a Hilton property, and am bringing it in case I need to for check out (you always have the option of putting it on a different card).
3. American Express Platinum Card (Amex)
This is kind of cheating, because it’s my wife’s card, but we always bring the Amex Platinum card with us overseas. Why? Well, no foreign transaction fees, for one. Secondly, it has one of the best car insurance policies. Thirdly, the concierge service could be useful in a pinch, and generally Amex treats its Platinum customers very well. Finally, if we needed to, we could use it to get into a lounge at an airport (Delta, American, or US Airways), although that has its limitations.
3. American Express Platinum Card (Amex)
This is kind of cheating, because it’s my wife’s card, but we always bring the Amex Platinum card with us overseas. Why? Well, no foreign transaction fees, for one. Secondly, it has one of the best car insurance policies. Thirdly, the concierge service could be useful in a pinch, and generally Amex treats its Platinum customers very well. Finally, if we needed to, we could use it to get into a lounge at an airport (Delta, American, or US Airways), although that has its limitations.
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4. Chase British Airways (Visa)
I’m bringing this card along because it’s my only card with the “chip” technology that a lot of vendors use in Europe. Of course, it’s not actually “chip and pin”, but chip and signature, but just having the chip gives me a little bit of piece of mind that I might be able to use the card where other American credit cards might not be accepted. And of course, no foreign transaction fees.
Final Thoughts
Anyway, this short post just outlines some of my thinking behind the cards in my wallet on a given trip. It’s not meant to be a definitive guide, but I would encourage people who are traveling to go through a similar process to make sure you have the right cards. Also – try to find out what type of cards you might need to use: I ended up spending a lot more time at immigration in Bali this year because I didn’t have a Mastercard on me. These things matter!