Quick Points: Get 10% back in Uber Cash on reserved airport rides
Back in May, Uber unveiled several new travel-focused initiatives. One of these initiatives was the ability to get 10% Uber Cash back when you reserve a ride to or from the airport using Uber Travel.
However, reserving an airport ride through Uber Travel is different from using the Uber Reserve feature. And you'll need to set up Uber Travel within the main Uber app before you can reserve an airport ride.
So, here's what you need to know to get 10% back in Uber Cash on reserved rides to or from select airports through Uber Travel.
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Eligible cities
According to the Uber help page, Uber Travel is currently available in the following cities:
- Charleston, South Carolina.
- Charlotte.
- Denver.
- Fort Myers-Naples, Florida.
- Miami.
- Nashville.
- New York City.
- Philadelphia.
- Phoenix.
- Toronto.
- Washington, D.C.
So, at least for now, you'll only be able to use Uber Travel and get 10% back in Uber Cash on reserved rides to and from airports in these cities.
Related: You can now make dinner reservations, buy concert tickets and more with Uber Explore
What is Uber Travel?
Uber Travel shows information about your upcoming travel bookings, including flights, hotels and other reservations, in the Uber app once you opt in.
Your travel information is gathered through a third-party partnership with AwardWallet. AwardWallet finds emails in your inbox from travel providers, such as airlines and hotels, and collects information from these emails so that Uber Travel can show all of your bookings in one place.
You'll need to open the Uber app and tap the Travel icon to use Uber Travel. If you don't see the Travel icon, you can tap More and then you may see the Travel icon. However, some Uber app users may not see the Travel icon. In particular, neither my husband nor I could access Uber Travel on our Android devices.
Related: Uber and Lyft wait times improving as more drivers hit the road
If you can use Uber Travel on your device, you can sign in to your Google account and connect your Gmail account with your Uber account. Doing so will give AwardWallet and Uber Travel access to your emails, although Uber claims it will only have access to travel-related emails.
This might sound concerning. But AwardWallet determines which emails to scrape based on whether the email's header matches what is used by its supported hotel, flight and other travel-related programs. So, it will only look at (and pass on to Uber) travel-related confirmation emails from supported travel suppliers.
Once you've connected your Gmail account to your Uber account, you should see the itineraries of your future trips when you tap the Travel icon. Within these itineraries, you can reserve rides to or from the airport and get 10% of the cost back in Uber Cash.
Here's a look at how Uber Travel works, including the enrollment process:
Related: You can finally see what your Uber drivers really think of you
Bottom line
With the extra incentive of 10% back in Uber Cash when reserving airport rides through Uber Travel, I'll certainly try out Uber Travel once I see the Travel tile in my Uber app. I'm willing to give up some of my travel data to Uber Travel and AwardWallet in exchange for the convenience and discounts Uber Travel should provide.
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How we chose these cards
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Rewards
| 3X | Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets |
| 3X | Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Hotels |
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Intro offer
Annual Fee
Recommended Credit
Why We Chose It
The Citi Premier’s 3 points per dollar spent across a wide range of popular categories is one of the more lucrative offerings in the world of points and miles. The Citi Premier comes with a $95 annual fee and is currently offering a solid sign up bonus of 80,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months. It also has some valuable transfer partners to make the most of your rewards. Add in access to Citi Entertainment plus a $100 hotel credit for any single-stay hotel booking that exceeds $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, booked through the Citi travel website, there are few reasons why the Citi Premier should not be in every traveler’s wallet.Pros
- Earns 3x points on restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, air travel and hotels.
- $100 annual hotel savings benefit (on single hotel stay bookings of $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, booked through thankyou.com)
- Points transfer to 16 airline programs, from JetBlue to Virgin Atlantic.
- World Elite Mastercard benefits, extended warranty, damage and theft protection.
Cons
- $95 annual fee
- Lacks travel protections that other travel rewards cards come with
- For a limited time, earn 80,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening
- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets
- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Hotels
- Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all other purchases
- Annual Hotel Savings Benefit
- 80,000 Points are redeemable for $800 in gift cards when redeemed at thankyou.com
- No expiration and no limit to the amount of points you can earn with this card
- No Foreign Transaction Fees on purchases
Rewards Rate
| 3X | Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets |
| 3X | Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Hotels |
| 1X | Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all other purchases |
Intro Offer
For a limited time, earn 80,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account openingEarn 80,000 ThankYou® points60,000 pointsAnnual Fee
$95Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO© Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.670-850Excellent, Good
Why We Chose It
The Citi Premier’s 3 points per dollar spent across a wide range of popular categories is one of the more lucrative offerings in the world of points and miles. The Citi Premier comes with a $95 annual fee and is currently offering a solid sign up bonus of 80,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months. It also has some valuable transfer partners to make the most of your rewards. Add in access to Citi Entertainment plus a $100 hotel credit for any single-stay hotel booking that exceeds $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, booked through the Citi travel website, there are few reasons why the Citi Premier should not be in every traveler’s wallet.Pros
- Earns 3x points on restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, air travel and hotels.
- $100 annual hotel savings benefit (on single hotel stay bookings of $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, booked through thankyou.com)
- Points transfer to 16 airline programs, from JetBlue to Virgin Atlantic.
- World Elite Mastercard benefits, extended warranty, damage and theft protection.
Cons
- $95 annual fee
- Lacks travel protections that other travel rewards cards come with
- For a limited time, earn 80,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening
- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants and Supermarkets
- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent at Gas Stations, Air Travel and Hotels
- Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on all other purchases
- Annual Hotel Savings Benefit
- 80,000 Points are redeemable for $800 in gift cards when redeemed at thankyou.com
- No expiration and no limit to the amount of points you can earn with this card
- No Foreign Transaction Fees on purchases