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Why you might want three credit cards
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Moneyville
Don’t tell the credit counsellors this, but if you like to travel and have the discipline to pay off your card balances each month you should have a Visa, a MasterCard and an American Express card in your wallet.
I recommend all three cards to my readers because each card has different promotions, benefits and discounts.
Airlines and hotels are always running promotions for bonus miles or points, free nights or big discounts, but in many cases the promotions are tied into a specific card.
Here are some examples of how it can work in your favour:
Visa
Hilton hotels : Holders of Visa Infinite cards can get instant Hilton HHonors Gold Elite Status and then earn 40,000 Bonus HHonors points when they stay at least four nights by the end of May. Those points could get you anywhere from one to five free nights, depending on the hotel category.
Air Canada : Visa cardholders have on occasion been able to get discounts of 10 to 15 per cent on Air Canada flights. The discount is usually listed at Visaperks.ca along with other travel discounts or benefits of being a Visa cardholder.
Marriott Rewards : Several times per year Marriott runs a MegaBonus promotion where you can earn a free night after staying two nights at Marriott hotels. At least once per year the promotion only works if you pay for your stay with a Visa card.
Check out Visaperks.ca for more discounts and benefits, not only for travel but for a whole slew of shopping and activities.
MasterCard
US Airways runs a promotion a few times per year where you earn 500 to 1,000 bonus Dividend Miles for buying US Airways flights on a MasterCard card.
Hotel chains such Best Western, Concorde Hotels, and Mandarin Oriental offer MasterCard holders discounts, free breakfasts, complimentary room upgrades, free drinks and more when paying for their stays on a MasterCard card.
MasterCard also lists exclusive offers on their website at MasterCard.ca
American Express
Front of the Line: This famous benefit from American Express offers cardholders early access to concerts and other events, which can include reserved seating access.
Starwood Hotels : American Express is a big partner of Starwood and has lots of exclusive discounts for stays that are paid for with an Amex card.
Thrifty Car Rentals: American Express card members can save 15 per cent at Thrifty in Canada until the end of the year
American Express also lists exclusive offers.
I recommend one card as a primary card that is tied into your main loyalty program (or the credit card’s own program) and have that card as your annual fee card to ensure you earn the most rewards and benefits from the insurance and benefits packages. Then find no-fee options for the other two brands of cards (all three brands have no-fee cards) and only use them when a promotion comes along that requires the use of one of those two brands.
Credit cards are not only a major source for earning loyalty program points and insurance benefits, but can provide the cardholder with many other perks beyond those standard credit card features. The onus is on the cardholder to make use of these promotions.
Many offers go unnoticed, as typically it is not the credit card brand or the issuing bank who markets the promotion but the merchant offering the perks or benefits.
Finally, be sure to mention the promotion at the cash register, check-in or wherever it is, as the person manning the desk may be unaware of the promotion and not extend you the full benefits that should come along with it.
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