The Capital One Venture X card entered the premium travel credit card space with a splash, offering a compelling mix of rewards, perks, and a lower annual fee compared to its competitors. Since its debut, the landscape of travel credit cards has evolved, with shifting benefits and new contenders entering the market.
So, does the Venture X still hold its place as one of the most valuable luxury travel cards? Let’s take a fresh look at its features, benefits, and how it stacks up today.
Capital One Venture X
Annual Fee
$395 per year. Four additional cardholders can be added at no additional charge.
Sign Up Benefits
This card currently has a 75,000-point bonus if you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
We’d appreciate it if you use our referral link for the Venture X card if you are interested in applying. If you’re approved, we’ll get a referral bonus.
Earning Rewards
Venture X’s bonus categories mainly focus on travel bookings made through the Capital One Travel website. Capital One refers to its rewards as “miles,” but the program is not distance-based for earning or redemptions. A more accurate term is that you earn points in the program:
- 10X on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- 5X on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel
- 2X on all other purchases
While the payouts for travel booked with the Capital One Travel website are significant, one disclaimer is that you’re ineligible for perks and earning points at hotels when booking with a third party.
Redeeming Rewards
The points you earn with your Venture X card can be used in several ways:
- You can use points to erase travel expenses charged to the card at the value of 1 cent per point. Purchases made from airlines, hotels, rail lines, car rental agencies, limousine services, bus lines, cruise lines, taxi cabs, travel agents and time shares are generally considered to be travel purchases and availability for redemption is based on the merchant category code assigned to them by the merchant.
- You can book directly through Capital One Travel using your points at the value of 1 cent per point.
- You can redeem for cash or statement credit at the value of 0.5 cent per point (PLEASE DON’T DO THIS! It’s a horrible value)
Besides the above ways to book or pay for travel with your points, there’s another option. Transferring points to partners is, by far, the best way to get the most value for your points. Capital One currently has 18 travel partners:
- Aeromexico Club Premier
- Air Canada Aeroplan
- ALL – Accor Live Limitless
- Asia Miles
- Avianca LifeMiles
- British Airways Executive Club
- Choice Privileges
- Emirates Skywards
- Etihad Guest
- EVA Air – Infinity MileageLands
- Finnair Plus
- Flying Blue (Air France KLM)
- Qantas Frequent Flyer
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- TAP Miles&Go
- Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
- Virgin Red
- Wyndham Rewards
All transfers are 1:1 except for EVA Air, which is 750 miles per 1,000 Capital One points and Accor Live Limitless (ALL), which offers a 2:1 conversion ratio. Of these partners, only Finnair is exclusive to Capital One and even then, you can transfer Avios between British Airways and Finnair.
Key Benefits and Perks
Venture X cardholders will receive a $300 annual travel credit based on the cardholder’s anniversary date, not the calendar year. Eligible travel needs to be booked through Capital One Travel.
Anniversary Bonus
Cardholders will receive 10,000 bonus points each year, starting on their first anniversary.
No Foreign Transaction Fees
As you would hope a card marketed to travelers would, the Venture X doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees.
$120 Global Entry or TSA Pre✓® credit
Every four years, you can get up to a $120 statement credit for the application fee for Global Entry or an $85 credit for TSA Pre✓®.
Lounge Access
You can access these lounges with the Venture X card.
- Capital One Lounges – Currently, there are only three Capital One Lounges: DFW, IAD, and DEN. More are in the pipeline, with LAS and JFK announced as the next locations. Venture X card members can bring two guests with them for no charge.
- Priority Pass – As a Capital One cardholder, you are entitled to a Priority Pass Select card, which allows you and two guests to access network lounges. It’s important to note that this card does not include non-lounge benefits, such as the airport restaurant credit.
Car Rental Benefits
The Capital One Venture X card provides complimentary Hertz President’s Circle status. This is Hertz’s top-tier status and usually requires 15 rentals or spending $3000. You need to link your Hertz account to Capital One, and it takes a while for the status to show on your rentals.
Primary Rental Car Coverage
The Venture X is one of the few cards that provide primary rental car CDW coverage. This means you don’t have to file a claim with your coverage. US rentals for up to 15 days are covered for cars valued up to $75,000. International rentals are covered for up to 31 days. This coverage is almost as good as what you’ll get with the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
Travel Insurance and Protections
Since it’s a Visa Infinite, the Venture X card has good travel protection insurance. You’ll have coverage for lost luggage, trip cancellation/interruption and trip delays. Unlike most delay coverages, this one kicks in at 6 hours or overnight. The one coverage missing is for luggage delay.
Exclusive Hotel Discounts and Perks
When booking through Capital One Travel, Venture X cardholders get special perks at high-end hotels. For the most exclusive “Premier Collection” hotels, bookings include a $100 experience credit, breakfast for 2, room upgrade and early check-in and late checkout when available. For the less expensive “Lifestyle Collection” hotels, cardholders get a $50 experience credit, room upgrade, early check-in and late checkout when available, and free Wi-Fi.
Cell Phone Insurance
If you pay your cell phone bill with your card, you’ll receive $800 in coverage for damage to or theft of your phone. There’s a $50 deductible and a max of 2 claims per year. You have to decide if it’s worth using the coverage from a credit card or paying for insurance.
Shopping Protection
You’ll have peace of mind knowing that the Venture X card provides purchase security/protection, extended warranty and return protection.
Travel Related Memberships
Capital One Venture X cardholders get a complimentary PRIOR subscription, a service that helps with trip planning, itineraries, and unique experiences. They also get a 6-month membership with The Cultivist, which provides the member and a guest complimentary access to 60 museums around the globe.
Is the Venture X Still Worth It?
When Capital One launched the Venture X, it made a bold statement in the luxury travel card space. With a competitive annual fee, valuable travel perks, and flexible rewards, it remains a strong contender for frequent travelers. The inclusion of lounge access, premium hotel benefits, and Hertz President’s Circle status gives it an edge, though the loss of Priority Pass restaurant access is worth noting.
If you’re considering adding a premium travel card to your wallet, the Venture X might be worth a spot—especially if you can take full advantage of its perks. Do you have the Venture X? Have the recent changes impacted your opinion of the card? Let us know in the comments!
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