Alaska Airlines has sweetened the terms on its travel rewards credit card.
The carrier bumped up the bonus miles it’s offering its new Visa signature card holders to 30,000 after a qualifying spend ($1,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of account opening, according to its website.) It also did away with foreign transaction fees for all card holders. The changes took effect June 1.
Under the rewards program, Alaska Airlines cardholders get a free checked bag for themselves and up to six other passengers in their reservation. They earn three times the miles on Alaska purchases, one mile for every dollar spent on every day purchases, and receive an annual companion fare from $121 ($99 plus taxes and fees starting from $22).
The card has a $75 annual fee and a purchase annual percentage rate between 12.49% and 19.49%, depending on creditworthiness.
This credit card program is issued and administered by Bank of America.
Airline Credit Cards 101
If you’re shopping for a new airline credit card or travel rewards card, it’s a good idea to consider how often you travel and whether you tend to patronize a particular carrier. If you do fly a single carrier, or its partners, that company’s mileage card can be the right choice for you. But if you don’t have a hub in your area or your flights are varied, you might to look into general travel rewards credit cards.
You can also consider maximizing rewards by accumulating airline miles via loyalty programs, and complementing that balance by earning credit card rewards that can be transferred to those airlines.
If you’re in the market for a new credit card, it’s a good idea to check your credit before you apply, as a good credit score can help you qualify for better terms and rates. You can see where you currently stand by viewing two of your credit scores, updated every 14 days, for free on Credit.com.
If your credit is looking lackluster, you can try to improve your scores by disputing errors on your credit reports, paying down high credit card balances and limiting new credit inquiries.
More on Credit Cards:
- How to Get a Credit Card With Bad Credit
- An Expert Guide to Credit Cards With Rewards
- An Expert Guide to Airline Miles Credit Cards
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