Capital One Launches Venture Card with Double Travel Miles, No Restrictions
Capital One announced yesterday the launch of the Venture Card, a travel rewards Visa credit card that offers double miles on all card purchases, with no restrictions on which types of purchases qualify for miles, and no restrictions on how and when miles are used — miles are good on any airline at any time, with no blackout dates. In this post Credit Card Act world, however, there is one feature consumers may not enjoy quite as much — an annual fee (waived for the first year, but $59 thereafter).
In addition to two miles per dollar charged, Venture Card customers can also get 10,000 bonus miles when they spend at least $1,000 in purchases with the card in the first three months of having it. Like all Capital One credit cards — and unlike almost all competitors’ cards — there are no extra transaction fees on purchases made outside of the United States.
The process for redeeming miles with the Venture Card may be a bit different than some consumers are used to, but in keeping with Capital One’s “no hassle” theme, it is straightforward. Cardholders pay for their travel purchases with the Venture Card, then contact Capital One via phone or over the Internet to redeem their miles against those purchases. Miles are essentialy worth a penny each in this formula — for example, a $300 travel purchase would require 30,000 miles if a cardholder wanted to completely pay with miles.
Interested consumers can apply for the Capital One Venture Card at http://www.capitaloneventure.com.
