Quick Points: How to save 5% on all hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars with Capital One

Want to save even more money when booking flights and hotels with your Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card?

TPG values Capital One miles at 1.85 cents each, per our March 2025 valuations, when you transfer your miles to airline and hotel partners such as British Airways, Turkish Airlines and Wyndham Hotels. But if you don't plan to transfer your miles to one of Capital One's 15-plus partners to maximize your rewards, here's an easy hack you can use.

With the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, you'll earn 5 miles per dollar spent on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through the Capital One Travel portal and 2 miles per dollar spent on all other purchases.

Currently, new cardholders can earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. Plus, upon approval, you'll receive a $250 Capital One Travel credit to use during your first year.

So, where do extra savings come in?

If you book through Capital One Travel, you can pay with miles at a fixed value of 1 cent per mile or with cash. For example, for this stay in Miami, at checkout (not including the hotel service fee due at check-in), you'll pay either $411.74 or 41,174 miles (a value of 1 cent per mile).

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If you were to redeem your miles at checkout, your card would never be charged; therefore, you would not earn any additional rewards. However, if you were to pay with your Venture Rewards card, you would earn 5 miles per dollar spent on this purchase. That translates to 2,058 miles.

Since Capital One also lets you cover travel purchases from your statement within 90 days of the purchase date at a rate of 1 cent per mile, redeeming your rewards this way allows you to earn miles for your spending.

Therefore, once this travel purchase is posted to my account, I can still use 41,174 Capital One miles to remove it from my statement as though my card was never charged. Because I initially purchased my travel with cash instead of redeeming my miles, I'm 2,058 miles richer. That's around a 5% rebate on my hotel booking through the portal.

The downside to doing this? You likely will not earn hotel points or be able to use elite status benefits on bookings made through Capital One Travel. This is because the major hotel chains usually require you to book directly to receive these benefits. However, flights booked through Capital One Travel typically earn miles as usual and are eligible for all elite status benefits, so make sure you add your frequent flyer number before you fly.

Therefore, if you don't plan to transfer your Capital One miles to partners but want to redeem your rewards on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars, you can book through the Capital One portal and pay with your credit card, earning 5 miles per dollar spent. Then, redeem your miles at a rate of 1 cent per mile to effectively save 5% on all hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars.