Best Adventure Credit Cards 2025
Karl says, “If you’re an adventurer at heart, you need a credit card that keeps up with your travels. My top pick is the Chase Sapphire Preferred card—it offers fantastic travel protections and lets you earn bonus points while transferring them to over 20 travel partners, making your journeys even more rewarding!”
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Key offer
– Comprehensive Travel Protections:
Enjoy peace of mind while traveling with trip cancellation/interruption coverage, primary rental car insurance, and reimbursement for lost or delayed luggage. These benefits safeguard you against unexpected travel issues.
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– Chase Travel Plus Points Are Transferable to 20+ Travel Partners:
Maximize your points’ value by redeeming them on Chase Travel for 25% more or by transferring them to airline and hotel loyalty programs.
– Annual Bonus Points:
Each year, you’ll earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases from the previous year.
Welcome offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual fee
$95
The Chase Sapphire Preferred offers the perfect blend of comprehensive travel protection, flexible rewards, and adventure-friendly benefits at a reasonable annual fee. It’s especially valuable for adventure travelers due to its extensive insurance coverage and lack of exclusions for many adventure activities.
Card Rewards
• 5X points on travel purchased through chase travel portal (excluding the $50 annual hotel credit).
• 5X points on Lyft rides until March 31, 2025.
• 5X points on Peloton gear over $150, up to 25,000 points until Mar. 31, 2025.
• 3X points on dining at restaurants, including eligible delivery services, takeout and dining out.
• 2X points on all other travel purchases.
• 1X point on all other purchases
Premium Benefits
– Valuable Points Redemptions:
100,000 points are worth $1,250 when redeemed for travel through the Chase Travel® portal. This value helps you maximize your rewards potential.
– Points Transfer Flexibility:
Transfer your Chase Ultimate Rewards® points to over 20 airline and hotel loyalty programs. This flexibility lets you get even more value by booking directly with travel partners.
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– Travel Protections:
– Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance: Get reimbursed up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip if your travel plans are disrupted by covered events.
– Primary Rental Car Insurance: Decline the rental company’s coverage and get primary coverage for theft or collision damage. (In New York, this coverage is secondary.)
– Lost Luggage Reimbursement: Receive up to $3,000 per person if your bags are lost or damaged.
– Baggage Delay Reimbursement: Get up to $100 per day for up to 5 days if your checked bags are delayed more than 6 hours.
– Trip Delay Reimbursement: Claim up to $500 for covered expenses if your trip is delayed by more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay.
Other Perks:
– $50 annual hotel credit for bookings made through Chase Travel.
– DashPass membership: Enjoy unlimited deliveries with $0 delivery fees and reduced service charges through DoorDash and Caviar.
– Complimentary Instacart+ membership and up to $15 in Instacart statement credits each quarter.
– Annual Bonus Points:
– Earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases from the previous year, allowing your points to grow even faster over time.
– Card Upgrade Opportunity:
After 12 months, you can upgrade to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, which offers 50% more points value on Chase Travel redemptions—making 100,000 points worth $1,500 in Chase Travel bookings.
Minimum Qualifications
Chase won’t approve you for this card if you have the Sapphire Reserve or if you have opened this card in the last 48 months. If you want to apply for this card and currently have the Sapphire Reserve, you can call Chase to downgrade it to a Freedom Unlimited. After three days, you can apply for this card.
Foreign Transaction Fee
- No foreign transaction fees
- Chip + PIN capability
- Wide acceptance globally
- 24/7 emergency assistance
While the card offers extensive protection, certain high-risk activities may not be covered. Always verify coverage for specific activities like mountaineering above 15,000 feet, skydiving, or professional sports.
Pro Tips for Adventure Travelers
Before Your Trip
- Document gear serial numbers
- Save insurance contact infooffline
- Register trip with card issuer
- Verify activity coverage limits
During Adventure
- Keep receipts for all equipment
- Document any incidents immediately
- Use card for all trip purchases
- Save local emergency numbers
Filing Claims
- Report incidents within 20 days
- Gather all documentation
- Keep copies of medical reports
- Take photos of damaged gear