Why I Love Our US Bank Flex Perks Travel Rewards Credit Card (and so will you)!

Before I met Matt, I'd never even heard of US Bank, let alone used their services. Now that I've married into it, I don't know how I ever worked with another bank. Their customer service is actually helpful and they DON'T charge ATM fees. Let me count the ways I love thee.

Loving your bank. It's a wonderful thing.

Now, what's even better, is the bank you love so very much offering the credit card from heaven. Enter the US Bank Flex Perks Travel Rewards Signature Visa. 

And let's be clear - I am not being compensated for writing this. Although I should be, because I'm always singing the praises of this credit card. We put all of our monthly expenses (that are credit card charge-able... so basically everything except utilities) on this card so we rack up the points pretty quickly. We recently used it to book our flights to Italy. Yes, meaning we are flying there for FREE. 

It's perfect for people who love to travel, and here's why.

Points

• 1 point per every $1 spent. So if you spend $1,000/month, you'll get 1,000 points. 
• 2x points on the category you spend the most on in that month between gas, groceries, or airline travel. The best part about this is you don't have to sign up or choose - it automatically doubles your points for you.
• 2x points on cell phone expenses 

flying into NYC on my free flight thanks to my reward points

Rewards

• Reward flights are booked through Travelocity. This means you can book on ANY major airline. Unlike the Southwest card or Delta Skymiles Amex, your miles can go anywhere on any major airline through Travelocity. 
• Delta, United, Virgin, Jet Blue, Sun Country, Alaska Airlines, Spirit, American, US Airways, and Frontier and probably a few others on Domestic flights
• Aer Lingus, TAP Portugal, AA, British Airways, Delta, Finnair, Iberia, Lufthansa, United, Virgin Atlantic, Air Canada, US Airways, Swiss Air, Brussels Air, KLM, Air France, Air Europa, SAS, Icelandair, Quantas, Air New Zealand, China Southern, Cathay Pacific, Singapor Airlines, Asiana Airlines, Japan Airlines, Air China, China Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Fiji Airlines, Air Tihiti.... just to name a few International options.
• I just did a few searches and these are what came up. The sky truly is the limit.
• Here is the award travel chart. Unlike most mileage programs, the points are directly related to the money you spent. Unlike others (I'm looking at you, American Airlines) who charge more points for peak times. 

• You can also bundle hotels, car rentals and more to save points. 
• Last year we booked 2 flights to NYC and a gorgeous hotel for about 50,000 points total. 20k per ticket & added 4 nights in the Conrad New York in Battery Park for 10k points. An incredible deal for 4 nights in a hotel that costs over $500/night & flights that were ringing in around $350/ticket! Our almost $2,700 trip (let's be honest... I never would have paid $500 a night for a hotel in New York, but still) was paid for except a Metro Card and meals. That's what I call cheap & cheerful.
• You can read about all of the reward options here.

enjoying drinks in the Conrad Hotel bar... happy to splurge because of our free flights and hotel!

Perks

• Booking through Travelocity means NO blackout dates or times. You just have to decide what points you want to spend (there are always great options since you can choose from any airline)
• On paper, Flex Perks is "buying" your flight on Travelocity. This means you'll get all of your standard airline frequent flyer miles even though you've purchased with "miles"! This is a big perk when thinking about international flights! 
• Every ticket you book using Flex Perks rewards, you're entitled to $25 in flight credit. This can be used to buy in flight wifi, a glass of wine, movie rental, or a nice snack pack. It will automatically be erased from your statement.
• It has a chip to work with International purchases. When I was in Canada, I had no problems with this card whatsoever.
• Speaking of International, there are NO International fees associated. 
• Tons of other perks, like $25k in travel insurance, Hotels Perks (some offer free wifi or free parking) and more. You can read all about them here!

We MILK all of the perks from this card. It really pays off to have it! I am in no way condoning using credit cards to buy things you can't afford (I use Mint.com to do our budget), but there's no reason not to earn points for the things you would be buying anyway! Have I convinced you of the wonders of this card yet?

Do you use a rewards credit card? Do you like it? What makes it work for you? Does anyone love the FlexPerks card as much as I do?

xo