Getting the most out of the summer is a top priority for a lot of people. For many of us, there are only a few months of good weather every year – it’s important to enjoy them while they last!
Contrary to popular belief, making sweet summer memories doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. By simply choosing the right credit card, you could offset some of the expenses you’ll rack up during your warm-weather fun. Not sure which card to use for your particular summer activity? Don’t worry, the Nerds have you covered – take a look at our top picks below!
If you’re taking a road trip: Chase Freedom®
Hitting the open road to take in the sights along America’s highways and byways this summer? You’ll want a card that rewards you handsomely for all that money you’ll be spending at the pump, and the Chase Freedom® is a great choice!
With the Freedom, you’ll earn 5% cash back in quarterly rotating bonus categories (up to $1,500 in combined purchases per quarter) and unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases. Between July 1, 2014, and Sept. 30, 2014, gas stations are a featured 5% category. This means you could be earning a very high rewards rate at the pump this summer!
What’s more, the Freedom has historically featured gas stations for 2 out of 4 quarters of the year. That amounts to an annual average of 3% back on gas, certainly nothing to sneeze at!
The Freedom charges no annual fee and offers a decent signup bonus: Earn a $100 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. It’s one of the Nerds’ favorite cash-back cards, so you can feel good about getting it for your summer road trip and hanging onto it for a while!
If you’re spending a week at the beach: Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®
A beach vacation usually means a wide variety of activities – a few nights on the boardwalk, a round of mini golf and dining at all the local seafood joints. This means you’ll want a card that carries a high rewards rate no matter where you do your spending, plus the option to redeem those rewards for a number of different expenses. That might seem like a tall order, but the Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard® fits the bill!
With the Arrival Plus, you’ll earn 2 miles for every dollar you spend on any purchase. Assuming you redeem your miles for travel, this means you’ll be getting a sky-high rewards rate of 2.2% every time you swipe your card. What’s more, you can redeem those miles in the form of a statement credit for a wide range of travel options, including airfare, hotel stays, campgrounds and timeshares. This could really help bring the cost of a beach vacation down!
And if your beach vacation involves international travel, the Arrival Plus is a really good pick. It charges no foreign transaction fee and comes chip-enabled. Win-win!
Another stellar feature is the Arrival Plus’s signup bonus: Earn 40,000 bonus miles when you spend $3,000 or more on purchases in the first 90 days from account opening. If you’re planning on spending at least $3,000 during your week at the beach, you could be well on your way to your next vacation if you bring the Arrival Plus along!
Keep in mind that the Arrival Plus does charge an annual fee: $89 - Waived first year. But with all the great features this card provides, that’s a small price to pay for big travelers.
If you’re visiting an amusement park: Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card — Earn 20,000 Bonus Points
Spending a day riding roller coasters and wolfing down cotton candy is a quintessential summer activity. To add to the merriment, take along the Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card — Earn 20,000 Bonus Points and you’ll earn double points on your amusement park spending!
With the ThankYou Preferred card, you’ll earn 2 ThankYou points per dollar spent on entertainment and dining out and 1 ThankYou point per dollar spent on everything else. Amusement parks count as “entertainment,” so you’ll be getting double points on your day out and when you stop for dinner on the way home. Plus, if you have plans later in the week to take in a concert or cultural activity, you can keep racking up double points with this card.
The ThankYou Preferred doesn’t carry an annual fee, and it does provide a decent signup bonus: Earn 20,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after $1,500 in card purchases within 3 months of account opening - redeemable for $200 in gift cards or other great rewards. All-in-all, this card is a good choice for many different types of summer fun.
Nerd note: When it comes time to redeem your ThankYou points, your best options are gift cards or cash equivalents. With these redemptions, you’ll get about $.01 in value out of each ThankYou point; if you choose cash back, each point will only be worth about half a cent.
If you’re exploring a new city: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
If you plan to use your vacation days to experience the food, cultural events and nightlife of a new city, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is the perfect card to take along.
With the Sapphire Preferred, you’ll earn 2 points for every dollar you spend on travel and dining out and 1 point per dollar spent on everything else. Generally, Sapphire Preferred points are worth one cent apiece. However, they’re worth 25% more when redeemed for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards, which drives the value of each point up to 1.25 cents.
This is all great news if you’re traveling to a new city, since a lot of your time will be spent in restaurants and taxis (which count as travel). You’ll be racking up big rewards everywhere you go!
Also, if you’re headed to an international city, you can travel easy with Sapphire Preferred. It doesn’t charge a foreign transaction fee and comes chip-enabled.
In terms of a signup bonus, the Sapphire Preferred offers one of the best deals out there: Earn 40,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 in the first 3 months.
Keep in mind that it does charge an Introductory Annual Fee of $0 the first year, then $95. But if you spend a lot on travel and dining out, the high rewards rate you’ll get with the Sapphire Preferred makes its annual fee worthwhile.
Summer fun image via Shutterstock
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