Do you have a credit card that you use to book your cruises?

[Midwifelife7]

We don't use credit cards, but I was thinking of getting one to book our cruise.  I see that RC offers one, but I don't know when we will cruise again outside of this one that we are booking soon so I'm not sure if that would be worth getting a RC card for just one cruise, but it may be......

I'm not familiar with travel credit cards/perks. Do you have a suggestion?  

 

[mattg43]

If you are only going to use it for cruises, it's not bad.  2% I think goes to OBC with some new customer perks.

 

If you want it for an every day card, it's not good, only 1%.

 

If you don't pay it off in full every month (outside of 0% promotions), no benefit program will make up for the interest charges.

 

Not sure why people don't use credit cards.  It's free money and safer than a debit card.  Everything outside of my mortgage and car loans go on a credit card.  Pay it off every month and pocket, in my case, 1.5% in free money on every dollar I spend.

Edited December 27, 2022 by mattg43

[Biker19]

18 minutes ago, Midwifelife7 said:

Do you have a suggestion?  

Stick with what has worked for you - don't change your routine; certainly not for one cruise with one cruise line.

[crzndeb]

I use airmiles credit card, and pay bill off every month. Pretty much everything is a flight for me, and I have gotten great prices using miles for international destinations.

[Midwifelife7]

34 minutes ago, mattg43 said:

If you are only going to use it for cruises, it's not bad.  2% I think goes to OBC with some new customer perks.

 

If you want it for an every day card, it's not good, only 1%.

 

If you don't pay it off in full every month (outside of 0% promotions), no benefit program will make up for the interest charges.

 

Not sure why people don't use credit cards.  It's free money and safer than a debit card.  Everything outside of my mortgage and car loans go on a credit card.  Pay it off every month and pocket, in my case, 1.5% in free money on every dollar I spend.

So which credit card do you use and prefer? (with the most perks)

[mugtech]

Wells Fargo offers a card with 2% rewards for all purchases, better than the restrictive RCI card.

[Cruiser_1977]

Not specifically. However, I try not to use my debit card for any over the phone or internet transactions.

 

Also, I would not use a credit card if I couldn't pay if off without interest each month. The exception would be some sort of emergency expense (e.g. medical, car, etc.). I wouldn't apply for a credit card for a one time purpose UNLESS for some reason I lacked the cash to pay for some type of emergency.

 

I choose to use a cash rewards credit card from my bank. You can change the 3% category monthly. Choices are online shopping, travel, dining, drug stores, gas, or home improvement/furnishings. Always earn 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs, 1% all other purchases. I then can transfer the rewards cash either back to the balance on the credit card or into my bank account. The card also offers some travel benefits when booked using the card. I also like, that because it's issued by my bank, I can pay off the balance by simply transferring funds through the app. Often, if I'm making say an Amazon purchase for $30, I'll immediately transfer the $30 from my checking to the credit card.

 

 

Edited December 27, 2022 by JennyB1977

[mattg43]

42 minutes ago, Midwifelife7 said:

So which credit card do you use and prefer? (with the most perks)

 

I currently am using the Capital One Quicksilver card.  1.5% cash back on everything.  I can either request a credit on my account or use it directly to cover Amazon purchases. 

 

Considering others that give more on certain categories, but need to find the time to figure out if they're going to be on average better than the straight 1.5%.

 

But of course you have to be disciplined to pay it off every month no exceptions or no rewards program is worth it.

Edited December 27, 2022 by mattg43

[Ozark_Kid]

No, it wouldn't be worth it to get a credit card for one cruise.   If you want to learn the advantages of using a credit card there are websites like The Points Guy that explains the pros and cons of different credit cards.  Here is an example talking about the best travel credit cards.   https://thepointsguy.com/credit-cards/travel/

As others said, it is safer to use credit cards than debit cards.  If your credit card is hacked the bank does all the work to make things right.   Not always the same with debit cards.

[SG65CB]

Citibank Costco Visa gives 3% back on all travel expenses.

[cruise1957]

3 hours ago, Midwifelife7 said:

We don't use credit cards, but I was thinking of getting one to book our cruise.  I see that RC offers one, but I don't know when we will cruise again outside of this one that we are booking soon so I'm not sure if that would be worth getting a RC card for just one cruise, but it may be......

I'm not familiar with travel credit cards/perks. Do you have a suggestion?  

 

Saw your other post, with all the cruise fares you are going to book I would do it. I have Royals visa, you get double points for every Royal transaction. With what you are doing that could mean some quite a bit of onboard credit for shore excursions or drinks, or whatever else you wanted to do.

[torpeedo]

1 hour ago, SG65CB said:

Citibank Costco Visa gives 3% back on all travel expenses.

We used to use the Citibank Costco Visa because it gave you cancellation insurance if you used it to pay for your cruise.  They stopped it but sometimes I use it for the 3% cash back or I use the Royal visa card but we cruise often so it's worth it and we use it for onboard credit.

Some cards do still give you cancellation insurance if you use their card but I think those cards are the cards you have to pay for, like a platinum thing so not buying a card.

 

[NancyIL]

For most travel charges - I use Chase Sapphire Preferred: https://thepointsguy.com/credit-cards/chase-sapphire-preferred-card/

[karena1]

My sister does not use Credit Cards either.  She just uses her debit card to pay off her cruise and her ship board account.

[Ret MP]

I use the BOA Royal Visa C.C. exclusively for Royal type purchases.  I do not use my Debit Card for anything other than grocery shopping and occasionally, dining.  There are no/very few protections (other than what the/your bank PROMISES) on debit cards.  

 

I have many C.C.'s and I use each for different types of purchases and the benefits that the business or C.C. company offers.  I don't fly if I can at all help it, so "Air Miles" is not a benefit for me.  

[EatonDoolittle]

If you are a AAA member, they have an affinity Visa that pays 3% cash back on all travel (cruise, hotel, airfare, car rental), grocery,  and restaurants, and pays 5% cash back on gas. 

[taglovestocruise]

3 hours ago, SG65CB said:

Citibank Costco Visa gives 3% back on all travel expenses.

Plus 4% on gas, which is already the best gas prices in our city.  Costco premium is $4.09 and the Chevron a block over is $5.20, double the prices to be found in Texas. 

[Mum2Mercury]

5 hours ago, mattg43 said:

Not sure why people don't use credit cards.  It's free money and safer than a debit card.  Everything outside of my mortgage and car loans go on a credit card.  Pay it off every month and pocket, in my case, 1.5% in free money on every dollar I spend.

Some people just aren't good with credit, and they stay away rather than get themselves into trouble. 

 

If you're one of those people, a debit card might be a good choice.  What's the difference?  A credit card tallies up your purchases and sends you a bill once a month; a debit card, on the other hand, deducts your purchases from your credit card immediately /no bill at the end of the month.  

4 hours ago, Midwifelife7 said:

So which credit card do you use and prefer? (with the most perks)

We have been loyal Discover card users for years -- twice they've caught /stopped someone who was trying to use our card.  They also give good rewards; we save our points for Christmas gift cards for our parents.  

18 minutes ago, Ret MP said:

I use the BOA Royal Visa C.C. exclusively for Royal type purchases.

Me too.  I use my RCCI Visa for cruises, and I use it occasionally in places that don't accept Discover.  

18 minutes ago, Ret MP said:

There are no/very few protections (other than what the/your bank PROMISES) on debit cards.  

True, which is why I much prefer credit cards, but my two super-powers are organization and money management.  

Edited December 27, 2022 by Mum2Mercury

[travisma81]

I use a Chase Sapphire card for everything I buy and pay it off each month.  You gain a ton of points that way.  I only use my points for hotels and flights.  It also comes with trip insurance that could come in handy when traveling.  

[George C]

for decades I used American Airlines card , but it was almost impossible to get decent flights, now I use a Hilton card I am able to book 5 or 6 rooms a year .

[lfox02]

If you travel semi regularly, I highly recommend the Chase Sapphire Reserve. It is a high annual fee, but we easily get that back in perks (annual travel credit for one). 
 

it usually has a LARGE sign on bonus that will pay for your flights. 
 

One of the most valuable perks is the trip insurance that seems very comprehensive, as long as the travel is booked on the card

[DaKahuna]

 We use a Costco Citi card like others.  Change almost everything except hotels (Chase Marriott Rewards) and airlines (Chase United Club).  I also have the Bank of America Royal Caribbean card and I use to use it but since I use the Costco card for so many other things I stopped using the Royal card. 

 

Since I retired this year I am not traveling for work any longer, I am considering cancelling the Marriott and United cards. 

 

[ZoeyVictoria]

We use a CitiCard custom rewards card.  We get 5% cash rewards in the category used the most that month, for the first $500.  So we put $500 on that card and the remainder on BOA for 3% cash rewards on one category (always set on travel).  We never pay interest, the cards are paid off monthly, so the rewards are definitely a benefit. 

[Babr]

2 hours ago, lfox02 said:

If you travel semi regularly, I highly recommend the Chase Sapphire Reserve. It is a high annual fee, but we easily get that back in perks (annual travel credit for one). 
 

it usually has a LARGE sign on bonus that will pay for your flights. 
 

One of the most valuable perks is the trip insurance that seems very comprehensive, as long as the travel is booked on the card

Be careful about relying on credit card insurance. You are playing with fire if you do not fully understand the pre-existing conditions exclusion, to whom it applies, and how to avoid the penalty.

[tokidoki]

Took advantage of the current offer with bank/America and got my 25,000 pts which converts to room rate or OBC.   On NCL, I have half a dozen I’ve used for many years for perks!