Why I Love the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card as a Traveler

There are many different types of credit cards on the market today, but if you’re into travel, there’s one card that makes a lot of sense to have in your wallet.

And that card is the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card!

I’ve had the Venture X for many years as a regular traveler, and there’s a reason (or many) that it’s often one of the first cards I reach for when making a transaction.

So let’s talk about all of those reasons why the Venture X is one of the best cards for travelers and is a personal favorite of mine.

1. More miles = more travel opportunities

Miles and points are the golden currency for us travelers who dabble in the credit card world.

And frankly, the more miles and points you can accumulate, the more opportunities you’ll have to use them for both flight and hotel award redemptions (hellooo, nearly free travel 😉).

The Venture X’s current welcome offer is insane: Earn 100,000 bonus miles once you spend $10,000 on purchases in the first 6 months from account opening - equal to $1,000 in travel.

That’s a LOT of miles.

Plus, with Capital One’s extensive hotel and airline transfer partner list, you’ve got plenty to work with and can put those miles to good use.

I’m thinking of a business-class flight (or two) to Europe, or multiple premium economy or economy flights throughout the U.S. and far beyond.

If you’d like a step-by-step guide of how to actually transfer your miles to some of the top airlines and hotels in the biz, check out this resource.

2. High earning rates for travel AND everyday purchases

Let’s just get this out there—here’s what you’ll earn on the Venture X:

• 10X miles per dollar on hotels and car rentals booked via Capital One Travel

• 5X miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked via Capital One Travel

• 2X unlimited miles per dollar on everything else

I find myself making regular purchases that are a blend of travel transactions and regular old, everyday things (this is life, eh?).

I do often prefer to book directly with an airline or hotel when I can, but sometimes it just makes sense to go through a credit card portal.

And in this case, I’d be raking in 5-10X miles per dollar spent when booking those specific travel items through Capital One.

Just think… A five-day, $500 car rental booked through Capital One Travel would get me 5,000 bonus miles that could then be put toward a future travel redemption 🤗

Wild.

And for the things that don’t fall into a travel category? Double miles earned at a minimum. On everything else.

I love having the Venture X be my “catch all” for all the other random purchases that don’t fit anywhere else.

It’s a great feeling knowing that you’ll never earn less than 2X miles per dollar spent.

3. The $300 travel credit

I haven’t mentioned this yet, but the Venture X does come with a $395 annual fee.

Initial thoughts are… oof.

But with its yearly $300 travel credit, you’re almost completely canceling out that fee altogether.

I have successfully used this travel credit every year that I’ve had the Venture X, and this year, I used it to book a couple of free nights at the cutest hotel in Windsor, England.

Bookings must be made through Capital One Travel, of course, but applying this credit as your means of payment is about as simple as it gets.

4. The cheeky anniversary bonus

How does an extra 10,000 miles sound to you? To me it sounds GREAT.

That’s right—on every account anniversary, starting with your very first one, you’ll receive 10,000 bonus miles dropped into your account to be used however you wish.

I recently used my bonus to redeem for an award flight to Paris on Air France, thanks to the ability to transfer Capital One miles to Air France’s Flying Blue program.

And again, if you’re curious how this works, check out our guide to credit card transfer partners.

It just doesn’t get much better than that for travelers looking to save their hard-earned cash (and use miles and points instead!).

5. Coveted lounge access

Okay, woah. Free food, drinks, WiFi, and sometimes even beds and showers while I wait in an airport?

Count me in!

With the Venture X, you (and up to two guests) get complimentary access to visit Capital One Lounges and over 1,300 Priority Pass^TM Lounges worldwide (after enrollment).

A Priority Pass membership can cost hundreds of dollars on its own, so the fact that you get this as another perk of this card is just simply amazing.

I can’t even begin to tell you how many hours of my life I have (comfortably) spent in airport lounges thanks to the Venture X, but… it’s been many, many hours.

And I’m SO grateful for it.

6. Skip the lines with Global Entry or TSA PreCheck

There really is nothing better than being able to keep your belt and shoes on when passing through security.

OR hopping into the short Global Entry line whenever you return to the U.S. from abroad.

The Venture X offers up to $120 in statement credits to cover the cost of either application for you, so there’s really nothing stopping you from signing up for one of these programs!

If you fly at all, even just a couple times a year, breezing through security and customs is a no-brainer.

7. Covering travel expenses is simple

Perhaps the most unique perk about the Venture X is the ability to cover (even retroactively) any eligible travel purchase made in the last 90 days with your Capital One miles.

Simply log into your account, head to the Rewards tab, and select Cover travel purchases.

You’ll be presented with any and all recent travel purchases that you can choose to redeem for miles instead.

You also have the option to book travel directly through the Capital One travel portal and select miles as your payment right then and there!

Even though the redemption value for this method isn’t great at just 1 cent per mile (e.g. a $100 train ticket would cost you 10,000 miles), it’s certainly the most simple…

And sometimes, that’s the best option.

Bottom Line

As you can see, the Venture X presents as an excellent option for travelers who are looking to get a little more luxury and fun perks out of their travel experiences.

In my opinion, despite its higher annual fee, the amount of benefits you get with this card far outweigh it!

All of these reasons are why I’ll continue to keep my Venture X for many wonderful travel years to come.