The Season Begins for Reward Travel

Vacation season is fast approaching and that means credit card holders are cashing in their rewards to book trips.

According to a recent survey by Capital One, rewards card holders are two times more likely to be taking a trip this spring (42 percent) and three times more likely this summer (64 percent) than during the 2012 winter holidays. Twenty percent of those planning a family vacation this spring have redeemed or plan to redeem rewards for their travel.

Nearly two-thirds will take their big vacation of the year this summer, with 28 percent using frequent flyer miles to purchase domestic airfare. Domestic airline tickets are the third most popular rewards redemption option, after cash (45 percent) and gift cards (32 percent). Most people use gift cards for shopping and dining, while only 6 percent use them to pay for gas, even with gas approaching $5 per gallon.

Fodors.com contributor Cathleen McCarthy is the rewards expert for CreditCards.com and covers hotel and travel deals in Northeast cities on her own network, Save on Cities. Her stories have appeared in The Washington Post, WSJ, Amtrak ARRIVE, Town & Country, and inflight magazines.

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