What’s in
Our Wallet?
Every card we carry, why we have it, and what we actually use it for
Affiliate disclosure: Some links on this page are referral links — we may earn a bonus if you apply and are approved. We only list cards we actually carry and use ourselves.
⭐ Our Favorite — Start Here
💎
Chase Sapphire Preferred
$95 annual fee
🎁
Sign-up bonus is consistently generous — one of the best entry-point offers in travel cards.
🛡️
Trip insurance saved us twice — both times a kid got sick before a trip, we recovered non-refundable costs in full.
🍽️
3x points on dining — all restaurant spending goes on this card.
🏨
Hyatt transfer partner — the best transfer in the Chase ecosystem. Our Maui stays were booked this way.
🔧
Extended warranty — covered a kitchen appliance right after the manufacturer warranty expired. Unexpected but very welcome.
💰 Premium Cards
🚀
Capital One Venture X
$395 fee — offset to essentially free
💵
$300 travel credit + 10K anniversary points each year. Net effective annual fee: essentially $0 or better.
🛋️
Priority Pass lounge access + Capital One Lounges. Airport waits with kids are much more bearable.
🚗
Hertz President’s Circle status included. Skip the counter, choose your car, drive off. 15-minute process vs 90-minute line.
✈️
2x on everything — we put daycare, groceries, and all general spending here.
⚜️
American Express Platinum
$695 fee — high credit stack offsets most of it
💵
$200 airline + $200 hotel credits plus $200 Uber, $240 digital/Walmart+ credits. Stack them and the effective fee drops significantly.
🏨
Amex FHR / Hotel Collection — $200 cashback, food & beverage credits, and room upgrades at hundreds of hotels. We used this at the Swan & Dolphin (Disney) and Portofino Bay (Universal).
🛋️
Amex Centurion Lounge + Priority Pass — the best airport lounge network available on any card.
🛂
CLEAR credit included — with kids in tow, bypassing the security line is genuinely priceless.
🏨 Hotel Cards
🏩
Chase IHG Premier
$99 annual fee
🎁
Free night cert (40K points) every year. We redeemed ours at the Kimpton in DC — would have cost $345 in cash.
🌋
Sign-up bonus put to use on Big Island — 120K points covered a 4-night Holiday Inn stay worth $1,600 in cash.
🌙
4th night free on points — book 3 nights with points and the 4th is free automatically.
✈️
$50 United TravelBank cash + Global Entry / TSA PreCheck credit each year.
🌺
Chase Marriott Bonvoy
$95 annual fee
🎁
Free night cert (35K points) every year — fee is recouped immediately with even a modest redemption.
🌊
Sign-up bonus used on Big Island — two free nights at Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort worth $1,200 in cash.
🌙
5th night free on points — redeem 4 nights and get the 5th automatically. We’ve used this in Hawaii and Banff.
Quick Reference
| Card | Fee | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Chase Sapphire Preferred | $95 | Start here. Best all-rounder. |
| Capital One Venture X | $395* | Lounges, car rental status, 2x everything |
| Amex Platinum | $695* | Hotel credits, FHR perks, CLEAR |
| Chase IHG Premier | $99 | IHG hotels, 4th night free |
| Chase Marriott Bonvoy | $95 | Marriott hotels, 5th night free |
*Credits and perks offset these fees significantly — see each card above for details.
New to travel cards? Read our full rewards explainer first
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