The 10+ Best Credit Cards for Vacations & Vacation Packages [2023]

Planning an entire vacation can be complicated. As you attempt to book flights, hotels, ground transportation, activities, and other pertinent elements of your journey, the process can soon become overwhelming.

Fortunately, vacation packages were designed to simplify the process by delivering a 1-stop solution that can combine all of your vacation components. A vacation package can be as simple as a flight combined with a rental car or it can include your flight, hotel, rental car, activities, ground transportation, and more.

Booking each element of your vacation separately also has its benefits. Perhaps you have points and miles spread across several loyalty programs and want to utilize them all in 1 vacation. Booking a package may not always work for you in that situation.

Regardless of whether you book your trip elements separately or choose to purchase a package, knowing you’ve offset a portion, or all, of your vacation expenses with points, miles, or cash-back can be a satisfying accomplishment.

If that’s the direction you’d like to go, covering your vacation expenses with points, miles, or cash-back, you’ll find today’s article right on target. We’ll talk about the best credit cards to consider for building your trip piece by piece, and for vacation packages.

Hang in there as there’s a lot to cover.

Vacation vs. Vacation Package

Should you try to book every component of your vacation separately, or select an all-in-1 vacation package? Let’s look at some of the advantages of each option.

Advantages of Building Your Own Vacation

If you found a great deal on a hotel, airfare, or another element of your trip, you might not want to consider a vacation package. You may be able to build each piece of your trip based on that deal. Here are some advantages of BYOV (Building Your Own Vacation).

• Cost — BYOV allows you to find the best deal for each element of your vacation. For example, you found a killer deal on a hotel and can add the airfare and other elements of your trip later.
• Ability To Use Points/Miles From Several Programs — If you have a lot of points/miles spread across several loyalty programs, booking separately may allow you to utilize each reward currency for its maximum value.
• Flexibility — Changes may be easier to make on individual hotel, airline, and ground transportation bookings than with a travel package. If you decide to forgo the big city hotel, for example, and secure a country bed and breakfast, you can do that within the cancellation terms of your individual hotel booking. Additionally, if you’re planning a lengthy trip, you might not want to lock in all your hotel stays upfront with a vacation package.

Advantages of a Purchasing a Vacation Package

Booking a vacation package creates an all-in-1 itinerary that can be easy to manage, save you money versus booking each element separately, and may offer the option to utilize points and miles.

• Convenience — Having your flight, hotel, rental car, and activities all in 1 package eliminates the need to coordinate each element of your trip. If you’re looking to book for several travelers, the package option may be more convenient than booking each element separately.
• Cost — Purchasing your flight, hotel, rental car, and activities together can result in bundled discounted pricing.
• Ability To Utilize a Large Stash of Points and Miles — Many airlines and credit card rewards programs allow you to use your frequent flyer miles/points to book vacation packages. If you have a lot of miles/points in 1 loyalty program, you may be able to maximize their value by booking a vacation package.

If you decide to purchase an all-in-one package, check out our posts about finding the best websites for family vacation packages, all-inclusive vacation packages, Hawaii vacation packages, and Mexico vacation packages.

Bottom Line: Whether you’re a fan of building your own vacation, element by element, or securing an all-in-1 vacation package, the right travel rewards card can help you earn the points or miles you need to pay for a portion, or all, of your trip. 

Best Travel Rewards Cards for Vacations

Chase Sapphire Reserve^®

The Chase Sapphire Reserve card earns valuable Ultimate Rewards points that can be redeemed for travel via the Chase travel portal. Additionally, you have the option to transfer points to airline and hotel partners where those miles/points can be used to purchase flights or vacation packages.

But there are so many more reasons for using the Chase Sapphire Reserve card to book travel!

Why We Like the Card for Booking Vacations and Vacation Packages

• A generous welcome bonus that can help offset travel expenses
• $300 travel credit each year that can be used toward any travel expense, including vacation packages
• Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed for 50% more value via the Chase travel portal
• Use Ultimate Rewards to purchase flights, hotels, ground transportation, experiences, or rental cars
• Worldwide airport lounge access to over 1,300 properties via Priority Pass Select membership for the cardholder and 2 guests
• Earn 3x Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining
• Transfer points to Chase transfer partners for even greater potential value for flights, hotel rooms, and vacation packages
• Travel benefits and protections including primary car rental coverage, trip interruption and cancellation coverage, and emergency evacuation

Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card is one of our favorite travel rewards cards. We like its lower annual fee, the ability to earn flexible Ultimate Rewards points, and its solid collection of travel benefits and protections.

Why We Like the Card for Booking Vacations and Vacation Packages

• A generous welcome bonus that can be used to offset travel expenses
• 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
• 3x points on dining
• 2x points on all other travel purchases
• Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed for 25% more value via the Chase travel portal
• Use Ultimate Rewards to purchase flights, hotels, ground transportation, experiences, or rental cars
• Transfer points to airline and hotel partners for even greater potential value to book flights, hotels, and vacation packages
• Travel benefits and protections including primary car rental coverage, trip interruption and cancellation coverage, baggage insurance

The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express

Hot Tip: Check to see if you’re eligible for a huge welcome bonus offer of up to 170,000 points with the Amex Business Platinum. The current public offer is 120,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

We like that the Amex Business Platinum card often has a generous welcome bonus that, once earned, can jumpstart your travel fund. Plus, every purchase you make with the card will be earning additional rewards that can help cover those annual vacation expenses, whether booking separately or for a vacation package.

Why We Like the Card for Vacations and Vacation Packages

• A generous welcome bonus that can be used for travel
• 5x earnings on prepaid hotels and flights booked via Amex Travel
• 35% rebate when using points to book your flights via Amex Travel
• Worldwide airport lounge access, including Centurion Lounges
• Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors, upon enrollment
• Car rental perks
• Transfer points to airline/hotel partners for potentially increased value for flights, hotel nights, or vacation packages
• Up to $200 statement credit for airline incidental fee purchases

The Platinum Card^® from American Express

Hot Tip: Check to see if you’re eligible for a welcome bonus offer of up to 125k (or 150k) points with the Amex Platinum. The current public offer is 80,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

With a heavy collection of premium travel benefits, statement credits for select purchases, and several ways to receive value at redemption time, the Amex Platinum card is a good choice for booking vacations.

Why We Like the Card for Vacations and Vacation Packages

We like that you can use Membership Rewards points to pay for your flights. It’s worth noting, however, that the card is not the best choice for purchasing vacation packages with your points as points are worth just 0.7 cents each when used for this purchase versus 1 cent per point for flight purchases.

• A generous welcome bonus that can be used for travel
• 5x earnings on select travel, including prepaid hotels, flights, cruises, and vacation packages purchased via Amex Travel (up to $500,000 per year)
• Worldwide airport lounge access, including entry to the prestigious Centurion Lounges
• Hundreds of dollars in statement credits for select purchases including up to $200 for airline incidental purchases
• Ability to use American Express travel partners and use miles to purchase flights or vacation packages
• Ability to transfer points to hotel partners to book free hotel award nights
• Rental car perks and Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors (enrollment required)
• Travel benefits and protections

Capital One Venture Rewards Card

With its simplistic earning structure and several good-value redemption choices, the Capital One Venture card offers plenty of reasons to consider the card for booking your vacation or vacation package.

Why We Like the Card for Vacations and Vacation Packages

• A generous welcome bonus that can be used for travel
• Earns 2 miles per dollar on every purchase, including travel
• Transfer miles to airline partners to use for flights or vacation packages

Bottom Line: When selecting a card to use for building your own vacation or purchasing a vacation package, you’ll want to select a card that allows you to accumulate rewards quickly, such as a card with a generous welcome bonus and one that has elevated earnings on your most common purchases. You’ll also want the card to have redemption options that will allow you to use those rewards to cover the major elements of your trip. 

Best Cash-Back Cards for Vacations and Vacation Packages

Cash may be king when you’re looking for vacation dollars, however, these no-annual-fee cards can help you accumulate that cash faster or earn rewards that can be used to help you purchase your next vacation.

Chase Freedom Unlimited^® Credit Card

Chase Freedom Flex℠

In addition to elevated earning on travel, drugstores, and dining, the Freedom Flex card offers quarterly bonus category merchants that may sell travel-related gift cards. You’ll earn 5% cash-back on up to $1,500 in purchases each quarter.

Why We Like the Cards for Vacations and Vacation Packages

• Welcome bonuses that can be used toward travel purchases
• 5% cash-back on travel purchased via Chase travel portal
• Points add up quickly with 3% cash-back at drugstores and on dining
• Cards earn cash-back in the form of Ultimate Rewards points that can be redeemed for 1 cent each for cash-back, travel, gift cards, and more
• Ultimate Rewards points earned on the cards can be transferred to premium Chase cards and redeemed for travel for up to 50% more in value
• Ultimate Rewards points transferred to premium Chase cards can then be transferred to travel partners for even greater value for flights, hotel rooms, and vacation packages

Can’t decide which card is better for you? Check out our comparison of the Freedom Unlimited card and the Freedom Flex card.

Citi^® Double Cash Card

With a simplified earning structure and redemption options, the Double Cash card is a good choice for those who want an easy route to earn and redeem rewards.

Why We Like the Card for Vacations and Vacation Packages

• No annual fee
• Earn 1x when you make your purchase and an additional 1x when you pay for a total of 2x points that can be converted to cash-back
• We like that you can accumulate the cash-back in your account and redeem it for cash or a statement credit to offset vacation expenses
• You can also redeem points for travel through the Citi travel portal or through limited transfer partners

Note that while these cash-back cards work well for earning rewards that can be used for vacations, the cards do not travel well internationally as all of these cash-back cards charge foreign transaction fees.

Hot Tip: Booking a Disney or Universal vacation with credit card rewards requires some research. If you’re looking for the best credit card for a Disney or Universal vacation, you won’t want to miss our article with some of the best cards to use and also a few booking tips.

Best Hotel-Branded Cards for Vacations and Vacation Packages

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

Why We Like the Card for Vacations

• Generous welcome bonus worth several free hotel nights
• Complimentary top Hilton Honors Diamond elite status
• 14x earnings at Hilton
• Worldwide lounge access via Priority Pass Select membership
• $250 Hilton resort credit
• $250 statement credit for airline incidental purchases
• $100 property credit at Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts or Conrad Hotels & Resorts
• Free weekend hotel night certificate each card anniversary year

While Hilton Honors points can be transferred to Delta Air Lines, the redemption ratio is 10,000 Hilton Honors points yielding just 1,000 Delta SkyMiles and not good value. Hilton Honors points are best used for free hotel nights.

To learn more about the best cards for Hilton loyalists, you’ll find this article packed with useful information.

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card

Why We Like the Card for Vacations

• Generous welcome bonus
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status
• 25 elite night credits
• 6x earnings at Marriott
• Worldwide lounge access via Priority Pass Select membership
• $25 monthly dining credit
• Free night certificate worth for hotels that cost up to 85,000 points per night
• $100 property credit at Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis properties on 2-night minumum stays booked at a select rate
• TSA PreCheck or Global Entry application fee credit

Hot Tip: Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors loyalty programs offer the benefit of receiving your fifth consecutive award night for free. Marriott offers this benefit to all Marriott Bonvoy members while Hilton offers it to elite members. Hilton-branded cards come with complimentary Hilton Honors elite status so it’s easy to qualify and make your points go further.

Best Airline-Branded Cards for Vacation Packages

Earning miles on an airline-branded credit card can help you build a stash of travel currency you can use for your next vacation. Let’s look at some popular airline-branded cards that serve this purpose well and allow you to use miles/points for a portion, or the entire cost, of your vacation package.

Delta Air Lines-Branded Credit Cards

Use your Delta SkyMiles (or a combination of miles and cash) to purchase vacation packages that include flights, hotels, rental cars, ground transportation, and activities for all the travelers in your group. Delta offers vacation packages for over 300 destinations.

A minimum of a flight and 2 nights hotel is required to book a Delta Vacation and there is no minimum as to how many miles you can use for payment.

Delta SkyMiles are normally worth 1 cent each towards a vacation package but watch for specials where miles could be worth more.

To find out which Delta-branded card is a fit for you, you’ll want to read our comprehensive article that illustrates the features and benefits of each Delta Air Lines credit card and how the cards enhance your travel experience.

American Airlines-Branded Credit Cards

Booking your vacation package with American Airlines Vacations gives you access to discounted airfare for your customized vacation package. You can pay for the non-flight portion of the vacation package, including hotel rooms, ground transportation, activities, car rental, and more with AAdvantage miles.

To learn more about earning AAdvantage miles and the best cards for American Airlines loyalists, you’ll want to check out these informative articles that covers these topics well.

JetBlue Airways-Branded Credit Cards

Earn TrueBlue Points on The JetBlue Card, The JetBlue Plus Card, or The JetBlue Business Card and use your points to pay for the flight portion of your JetBlue Vacations package.

Bottom Line: Many airlines allow you to book vacation packages using your frequent flyer miles and points. Check the airline’s vacation package terms and conditions to determine if you are allowed to use miles/points to pay for a portion, or all of, the cost of the vacation package. 

Best Credit Cards for Bad Credit To Use for Vacations and Vacation Packages

You will normally need good to excellent credit to secure any of the travel rewards cards mentioned here. However, there are several cards that you can qualify for with bad credit. We’ve put together a collection of the best secured credit cards for no credit or bad credit and the best overall credit cards for bad credit to help you get started in the right direction.

You may also want to check to see if you have credit card offers already available to you. Use the no-risk CardMatch tool to check for offers with no inquiry on your credit report.

Hot Tip: If your next vacation is a road trip, don’t load up the minivan before reading our article on the best credit cards for funding a road trip and for earning while you’re on the road.

Best Credit Cards for Vacations and Vacation Packages — Summary

We’ve covered some of the best cards to use for building your own vacation, to use while on vacation, and for purchasing vacation packages. Let’s summarize all the information in 1 spot and see how the cards compare.

Final Thoughts

Utilizing credit card rewards to offset the cost of your vacation is a grand economic accomplishment that can be the result of making purchases you’d normally be making anyway.

However, you’ll want to select a card that aligns with your travel goals to receive the most value at redemption time. The best card for individual flights, hotels, activities, or ground transport, for example, could be a card that earns flexible rewards such as Ultimate Rewards points or Membership Rewards points. The best credit card for purchasing a vacation package may be a hotel- or airline-branded card.

Then, of course, you’ll want the card to earn lots of rewards you can use for your vacation expenses. To do this, you’ll want your highest most common spending categories to be rewarded well, and/or you’ll want the card to have a generous welcome bonus you can use for travel.

Finding a card that meets your travel redemption options and ensures your spending earns maximum rewards will help you nicely offset a portion, or nearly all of your next vacation expenses. You may even be able to elevate your trip experience with the associated card perks and benefits.

The information regarding the Chase Freedom Unlimited^® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Chase Freedom Flex℠ was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding The JetBlue Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the JetBlue Plus Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding The JetBlue Business Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. 

For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of The Platinum Card^® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® card, click here.