SEATTLE, May 7, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- If you're about to book summer travel, don't forget to take advantage of travel rewards credit cards offering money-saving perks such as lucrative sign-up bonuses, no annual fees, and ways to easily rack up free points, miles, and awards. This according to Creditnet.com, the free resource for anyone who wants to learn more about credit and compare hundreds of the best credit card offers online.
"By simply signing up for a new credit card and meeting a reasonable spending threshold within the first few months, consumers with good credit could rack up more than $500 in free travel awards to use this summer," says Josh Heckathorn, who runs Creditnet.com. "And the best part is many of these credit card offers waive the initial annual fee, which means cardholders can quickly bank major miles without paying a dime out-of-pocket during the first year. Cha-ching!", continued Heckathorn.
For those just starting their research, Creditnet.com has reviewed hundreds of card offers and lists the very best airline miles credit cards.
According to Heckathorn, here are the top 5 credit cards for booking summer travel right now:
1.) Chase SapphireSM Preferred Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card not only offers 40,000 bonus points to new cardholders who spend $3,000 within 3 months, but the card also waives its $95 annual fee for the first year, and provides a 7% annual bonus on all points earned.
The 40,000-point bonus alone is worth $500 in airfare, which makes this the most generous sign-up bonus on the market for anyone who can meet the spending threshold.
2.) Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card from Chase
Make any purchase (even a pack of gum) with the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card and new cardholders will earn 25,000 bonus points—worth over $400 in "Wanna Get Away" fares.
Bonus rewards points earned can be redeemed at a rate of 60 points for $1 in "Wanna Get Away" fares, which means a $400 ticket that would normally cost 40,000 points with competing cards would only require redemption of 24,000 points with the Southwest Rapid Rewards card. The annual fee for this card is $69.
3.) British Airways Visa Signature Card
New cardholders will earn 50,000 Avios points after making their first purchase on the British Airways Visa Signature Card. That's good enough to snag two roundtrip tickets to Hawaii from the West coast on a partner airline such as American or Alaska Airlines. After spending $20,000 on the card during the first year, an additional 50,000 bonus points will be awarded.
While the $95 annual fee isn't waived the first year, the British Airways Visa Signature Card doesn't levy foreign transaction fees and cardholders will also earn 2.5 points per dollar spent on British Airways and 1.25 points per dollar spent on everything else.
4.) Capital One® Venture(SM) Rewards Credit Card
The Capital One® Venture(SM) Rewards Credit Card is currently offering new cardholders 10,000 bonus miles, which is worth $100 in free travel. While the sign-up bonus isn't the largest at the moment, the card does offer 2 miles for every dollar spent, which means miles will add up fast.
The $59 annual fee is waived for the first year, and like all Capital One cards there are no foreign transaction fees.
5.) United MileagePlus® Explorer Card
The United MileagePlus® Explorer Card is currently offering new cardholders up to 40,000 bonus miles during the first year, one free checked bag for up to 2 people per reservation, priority boarding, and 2 free United Club passes per year. Anyone who regularly flies United should have this card in his or her wallet.
The $95 annual fee is waived for the first year too, but cardholders should recognize that only 30,000 of the 40,000 bonus miles can be earned after making their first purchase and adding an authorized user within 2 months. To get the additional 10,000 bonus points, users will have to spend at least $25,000 during the first year of use.
About Creditnet.com
Creditnet.com is a free resource for anyone who wants to learn more about consumer credit and compare hundreds of the best credit card offers online. Creditnet.com provides expert reviews of no annual fee credit cards, 0% interest credit cards, credit cards for bad credit, and more.