Is the Capital One Venture X Travel Rewards Credit Card Worth It?
Have you been trying to decide whether this travel credit card is a good fit for your lifestyle? Well, I’ve officially had the Capital One Venture X Travel Rewards Credit Card for over a year now and I decided to pay the annual fee again which means I’ll be using this card for at least another year!
The Capital One Venture X Card is a great option for travelers looking to earn rewards that can be redeemed in the form of travel. You may have seen Tik-Toks or Instagram Shorts of people claiming to fly in the first-class, lay-down seats (you know the ones!) on long, international travel routes. Usually, that’s made possible because of great travel credit cards, like the Venture X Card and its competitors!
This card appeals to both budget and luxury travelers with a lot of it’s perks. Access to airport lounges satisfy the luxury traveler’s need to wait for their flight in a well-designed, exclusive area. Airport lounges also allow budget travelers to satisfy their hunger at no additional charge!
Whether you’re trying to stretch your dollars or indulge in you travel experience, this card can be a good fit for your lifestyle! Let’s see if it’s worth it for you…
Annual Fee of $395 is on the Low End of Competitors
One of the biggest things you need to determine to figure out if this card is worth it for you is if you can stomach the $395 annual credit card fee. There are several credit cards out there that do not have any annual fee, however, their benefits are usually much more limited than those of cards with an attached annual fee.
The Capital One Venture X Credit Card’s annual fee of $395 is lower than some of its main competitors in the travel credit card space.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve – $550 Annual fee
- American Express The Platinum Card – $695 Annual fee
- Marriot Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card – $650 Annual fee
Perks to Offset the $395 Annual Fee
Automatically recoup $300 with the Annual Travel Credit
If you are considering this card because you are an avid traveler, then the $300 annual travel credit is a good place to start recouping the cost of this credit card. Cardholders currently receive a $300 travel credit every year, but the catch is you MUST purchase the travel through their Capital One Travel Portal.
This $300 can go a long way and if you are smart about the hotels, flight, or cars that you book then you can end up stretching this to equate to more than $300.
Get an extra $100 worth of Travel Credit each anniversary
On top of the $300 annual travel credit cardholders receive to use in the Capital One Travel Portal, cardholders will also receive an extra 10,000 miles to redeem in the travel portal each year on their anniversary. This 10,000 mile travel credit is worth roughly $100 in the portal.
Between this and the $300 travel credit you’ll have made your $395 annual fee back already! But there’s still more benefits!
Access the impressive Capital One Lounges and the Priority Pass Network
Capital One is a newer player in the airport lounge industry, but as far as I’m concerned that’s a good thing! Not only are Capital One Lounges new and well designed, but they’re popping up at some of the most popular airports in the US.
Currently there are three Capital One Lounges open –
- DEN: Denver International Airport in Colorado
- DFW: Dallas Fort-Worth International Airport in Texas
- IAD: Dulles International Airport in Washington D.C.
and two more Capital One Lounges being built –
- LAS: Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada
- JFK: John F Kennedy International Airport in New York, New York
On top of the breathtaking Capital One Lounges, you’ll also have access to the extensive Priority Pass network of lounges. This is perfect for international travelers as Priority Pass boasts over 1,500 lounges worldwide! The Priority Pass “Prestige” membership level, which includes the same unlimited access you receive with the Capital One Venture X Card, is worth $469 annually.
Another amazing perk is that each cardholder receives two additional guests for FREE! If you’re traveling with family or friends, you get to spoil them with lounge access while you wait for your flights.
Become a member of TSA Precheck or Global Entry for free
The Capital One Venture X Travel Credit Card will credit the primary cardholder up to $100 for a TSA Precheck or Global Entry membership.
Let me be your big sister and tell you to get Global Entry! Global Entry includes TSA Precheck and has international benefits as well. Yes, you’ll need to do a small interview, but it’s so worth it and can save you hours each time you travel abroad!
All you need to do to redeem this credit is to purchase the TSA Precheck or Global Entry membership with you Capital One Venture X Credit Card.
Earn reward points based on categories
Like most reward credit cards, there are different tiers of rewards you can earn depending on what you use the credit card to purchase. Below are the three categories of this travel card.
The catch-all 2x miles on all purchases is actually a pretty good perk, with many competitors only offering 1x or 1.5x reward miles on their “all other purchases” category.
- 10x Miles – Hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- 5x Miles – Flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel
- 2x Miles – All other purchases
Other Perks Worth Noting
There are a few other perks worth noting!
- Sign-On Bonus – Earn 75,000 bonus miles from spending $4,000 in the first 3 months
- No Foreign Transaction Fees – Perfect for traveling abroad
- Credit Card Referral Bonus of 100,000 Miles – Share your link with friends to get even more travel credit
- Free Secondary Cardholders – Great for adding a spouse
- Hertz President’s Circle Status – Nice for free upgrades on car rentals
My Final Take
If you love to travel, then you can definitely get your money’s worth out of this travel credit card.
The first year easily pays for itself between the sign on bonus (currently worth $750!), the $300 annual travel credit, and the $100 TSA Precheck/Global Entry credit. In addition, the lounge access is worth a pretty penny, however, I always view lounges as a “neutral” benefit since I would not go out of my way to buy lounge access if I didn’t have this card.
Subsequent years also can easily pay for themselves between just the $300 annual travel credit and the $100 annual anniversary credit. Not to mention the worth of the lounge access year after year will save you money on airport dining over the years.
If you have decided this is the card for you, you can apply here with my referral link! Capital One Venture X Credit Card Referral Link
