How To Use the Capital One Travel Portal to Book a Trip on Points

Travel rewards credit cards are a great way to earn rewards from your daily spending that you can put toward a free vacation. 

If you have a Capital One credit card, the Capital One Travel portal is the easiest way to redeem your miles. You can book flights and make hotel reservations or redeem them as a credit on your next statement.

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How Does Capital One Travel Rewards Work?

The Capital One Travel portal is the best way to redeem Capital One travel rewards. 

The following cards give you access to the portal:

• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
• Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
• Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card
• Capital One QuicksilverOne Credit Card
• Capital One Quicksilver Rewards for Students
• Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card
• Capital One Savor Rewards for Students
• Capital One Venture X Business
• Capital One Spark Miles for Business
• Capital One Spark Cash Plus

The rewards cards allow you to earn miles that can be redeemed for travel on the portal, while the cashback cards can be used as a statement credit to cover purchases (and can still be used to book travel through the portal). 

Depending on the card, you can earn 1.25x to 2x miles per dollar you spend on a qualifying purchase. Capital One miles are equivalent to 1 cent per point.

You can also earn miles while making travel arrangements through the portal. 

READ MORE: How To Earn Credit Card Points Fast for Travel

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Capital One Travel perks and pricing tools

The portal comes with a price prediction tool and a price alert option to help you find the best time to book travel. 

Capital One also offers price drop protection and a price-match guarantee if you find a better price elsewhere. 

For a few miles you can even freeze a price to prevent your flight from going up.

If you have miles you want to use but not enough to cover the full cost of a trip, you can use some and pay the difference with your Capital One card. 

Or, if you do find a better deal elsewhere and pay with your Capital One card, you can redeem your miles as a statement credit toward the travel purchase.

Capital One is known for offering travel bookings without blackout dates. It also offers the option to add additional coverage to your flights so you can receive a refund up to 24 hours before departure.

For frequent flyers, you can enter your frequent flyer number when you make a reservation through the Capital One Travel portal. This allows you to earn miles with Capital One, plus miles and status with your preferred airline carrier.

READ MORE: How To Use Credit Card Points for Travel

How To Book Flights Through Capital One Travel

To book a flight through Capital One Travel, click the reward tile when you log into your Capital One account online or through the mobile app.

When you enter the portal, you’ll have several different options to redeem your miles. To book a flight directly through the portal, click “Book a Trip.”

Select the flight option and enter your search parameters. You can search for one-way or round-trip tickets as well as select which airport you’d like to depart from and arrive at.

A calendar will pop up when you’re ready to select your travel dates. The calendar is color-coded based on cost so you can easily see which days are cheaper.

Once you get the results, Capital One will let you know how the price compares and whether it’s likely to change. 

If you find a good deal and want to lock in the price, you can do so and come back to the portal to book it later.

From here you can refine your search results even further. You can filter by airline, number of layovers, and specific airports if you’re flying into a major city. 

Once you’ve selected your itinerary, you’ll have the option to choose the type of fare you want and add the option to get a refund in case you need to cancel.

The last thing you’ll be prompted to do is provide your traveler information and complete the checkout process. If you have enough miles, you’ll be able to pay with them. If you don’t, you can apply your miles first, then pay the rest out of pocket.

The Capital One Travel portal makes it easy to book flights with Capital One miles, but it isn’t necessarily the easiest tool for searching for flights. You might find better options using a general search tool like Google.

How To Book Hotels Through Capital One Travel

To book a hotel through Capital One Travel, toggle the hotel option. Provide where you want to go, the dates of your trip, and how many people will be traveling with you.

Similar to booking a flight, a calendar will pop up when you select your check-in and check-out dates. The calendar is color-coded based on the expected cost per night.

After you’ve selected your dates, you’ll get a list of options and a map. The map comes with a search bar that allows you to look for hotels near a certain area. 

From the results you can filter based on price, rating, or amenities like free wifi and parking.

One thing to keep in mind: Unlike a travel search tool, the Capital One portal won’t show you all hotels in a specific area. If your preferred hotel isn’t on the list, you might be better off applying your miles as a statement credit rather than making a reservation through the portal.

However, Capital One does offer access to exclusive properties through its Premier Collection and Lifestyle Collection. Eligible cardholders get access to luxury stays at participating resorts and vacation rentals, as well as a $100 experience credit during your stay.

After you’ve made a choice, follow the prompts to select your room and opt into travel refund protection if you want. Pay with miles at checkout or split the difference with your Capital One card. 

Unlike booking a flight, when you book a hotel stay you won’t earn rewards or status with programs like Marriott.

RELATED: Best Hotel Credit Cards

Using Miles vs. Cash With Capital One Travel

To get the highest return for your miles, book travel arrangements that you can’t get elsewhere. This includes stays at a Premium Collection hotel or upgrading a flight to business class. Otherwise, Capital One miles are best used to reduce costs.

Capital One makes it easy to use cash and miles interchangeably. If you don’t have enough miles to book a trip, you can offset the cost with a credit card. 

Alternatively, if you find a better deal elsewhere, you can apply your miles as a statement credit towards a qualifying travel purchase.

READ MORE: When To Use Points vs. Cash for Booking Travel

Redeeming Outside Capital One Travel

You can also redeem miles outside of the Capital One Travel portal. 

To transfer miles, select “Convert Rewards” on the redemption page in the portal. Choose the partner you’d like to transfer to from the list provided.

You will need at least 1,000 miles to complete a transfer. Many partners offer 1:1 exchanges but that isn’t always the case. 

Keep the transfer confirmation number in case you need to verify with the travel partner that your transfer went through.

FAQs

Is Capital One Travel more expensive?

Capital One Travel isn’t necessarily more expensive but it might have slightly higher prices than if you booked directly with an airline. It’s best to check prices first before booking.

What airline does Capital One Travel use?

Travelers can book flights with major airlines like United, Delta, and American Airlines as well as budget airlines like Frontier, Spirit, and JetBlue. 

How do I register my Capital One card for travel?

You don’t need to register your Capital One card for travel. If you plan to travel outside the U.S., keep your contact info up to date in case Capital One needs to contact you.

TL;DR: Is Capital One Travel Worth It?

Capital One Travel is worth it for casual travelers. There are several no-annual-fee cards that make it easy to earn miles to redeem on travel. I used my miles to book a flight over the summer and the process was simple and straightforward.

That being said, it isn’t the best option for all travelers, especially business travelers. There are other travel reward programs that offer better perks, including access to lounges.

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Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.