What Credit Card Should I Get for Award Flights to England?
TPG reader Kerry emailed me to ask:
"I'm off to England next summer and would love to know what credit card is best to cover the flights. Thanks!"
This is a pretty broad question, and the answer depends on factors like where you live, and whether you want to fly Economy class or Business/First class. Without knowing any of that, I would suggest getting the US Airways Premier World MasterCard from Barclaycard, because it currently has a sign-up bonus of 50,000 miles (after your first purchase and payment of the $89 annual fee), along with other perks like a 5,000 mile award discount when you book US Airways operated flights.
US Airways also has off-peak awards to Europe for just 35,000 miles round-trip, and with that 5,000 mile discount, that means you can get to Europe for just 30,000 miles round-trip. Granted, that's only during off-peak dates and you'll have to be flexible, but it's still a fabulous deal. Even at regular saver rates you're looking at 60,000 miles round-trip for Economy and 100,000 miles round-trip for Business class, which is competitive with other rates. US Airways also doesn't add huge fuel surcharges (except on partner British Airways).
You could also look to fly on American Airlines, as they have a great award chart, but again, stay away from British Airways flights to avoid their huge fuel surcharges. Delta could also be an option at 125,000 SkyMiles round-trip for Business class, or you could fly on their partner Virgin Atlantic, which typically has good award availability to go with that hip in-flight and lounge experience.
If you have any other questions, please tweet me @thepointsguy, message me on Facebook, or send me an email at info@thepointsguy.com.
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