The Travel + Leisure Guide to Maximizing Your Travel Rewards Credit Cards This Year

"It's a frequent sight these days: stressed-out travelers lining up outside an airport lounge. The past few years have seen an arms race to build high-end hideaways at terminals across the United States: American Express, Capital One, and Chase have opened a combined 40 lounges since 2020, at a cost that almost certainly stretches into the hundreds of millions of dollars. And yet there still aren't enough seats for everyone toting a premium credit card."

""What matters isn't that your bank has lounges-it's whether those locations are where you actually travel," says Gary Leff, a travel-rewards expert and the author of the View from the Wing blog. For his money, Leff says, the Capital One lounge network, though smaller than those of American Express and Chase, offers the best value-not least because there's a Capital One Landing with catering from the José Andrés Group at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, where he frequently flies."

"That calculus mirrors the larger rethink going on among points geeks-and everyday travelers. Recent annual-fee hikes and changes to the structure of rewards have made it more complex than ever to determine if a card is worth its cost. "These days, cards need to match your lifestyle to be worthwhile," Leff says. Investopedia editor in chief Caleb Silver concurs. "Many benefits are highly specific, so not all of them will be useful to every consumer," Silver explains. "It's important to do the math.""

Airports have seen a surge of new high-end lounges from issuers like American Express, Capital One, and Chase, with roughly 40 lounges opened since 2020 at costs likely in the hundreds of millions. Despite the expansion, lounge seating remains insufficient for many premium-cardholders. Lounge access remains a prominent card benefit while annual fees for flagship cards now approach $800–$900. Travelers are reevaluating card value as lounges grow crowded and fee structures change. Value depends on whether lounge locations match individual travel patterns. Issuers continue to entice applicants with sign-up offers and revamped premium cards promising substantial value.

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