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In the previous couple of years, Capital One has made large strides in making its travel credit cards extra aggressive with different main gamers resembling Chase and American Categorical. On Thursday, the issuer took one other big step by saying its first-ever premium bank card, the Capital One Enterprise X.
The Enterprise X, which may have an annual price of $395, will open for functions beginning Nov. 9. Its perks embrace $300 in annual assertion credit for bookings made by means of the newly relaunched Capital One Travel portal, 10,000 bonus miles annually beginning with the second 12 months you may have the cardboard, as much as $100 in credit for a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership, complimentary cellphone insurance coverage, and maybe most significantly, a Precedence Cross Choose membership and complimentary entry to the issuer’s new airport lounge community, which opens its first location at the moment on the Dallas-Ft. Price airport.
The Enterprise X options fewer perks than different fashionable premium journey bank cards, but additionally a decrease annual price. “Many individuals don’t wish to pay $500 to $600 for a bank card,” mentioned Lauren Liss, Managing Vice President of Premium Merchandise, Rewards and Partnerships at Capital One. “Many don’t wish to take the time to maintain monitor of all the advantages. So we felt this was the proper time to launch a brand new bank card.”
Like its sister card, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card, the Enterprise X earns 2 miles for each greenback you spend on every part you purchase, together with a complete of 5 miles per greenback on flights booked by means of Capital One Travel, and 10 miles per greenback on resorts and rental automobiles booked by way of Capital One Journey.
When the Enterprise X launches, new card holders will have the ability to earn 100,000 bonus miles after spending $10,000 on purchases within the first six months after opening the account. And for a restricted time, as a part of the sign-up bonus, card holders will obtain as much as $200 in assertion credit for trip leases like Airbnb and VRBO.
Miles earned with the Capital One Enterprise X might be redeemed at a charge of 1 cent apiece for any journey buy made with the cardboard utilizing Capital One’s “Buy Eraser” device. At that charge, the 100,000 bonus miles from the Enterprise X are value a formidable $1,000 towards journey.
Card holders may use the miles to ebook flights and resorts at Capital One Journey on the identical redemption charge. Capital One Travel presents extra options resembling value safety and value prediction know-how, powered by Hopper’s prediction algorithm.
However Enterprise X miles will also be transferred to any of the issuer’s 16 airline and lodge switch companions for doubtlessly even better worth. Most of those companions switch at a 1-to-1 ratio, that means for each 1,000 miles you switch from the Enterprise X, you’ll get 1,000 factors or miles within the corresponding airline or lodge loyalty program.
It takes additional time and suppleness to ebook journey this fashion, nevertheless it can lead to considerably higher redemption charges, particularly for first or enterprise class flights. That’s why frequent flyer web site The Points Guy values Capital One miles at 1.85 cents apiece, which might make the 100,000-mile bonus value a whopping $1,850.
Indubitably, the 2 finest perks on the brand new Capital One Enterprise X card are the $300 annual credit score for bookings made by way of Capital One Travel and complimentary entry to Capital One’s new airport lounges.
If you should use the whole $300 credit score on journey bookings annually — which shouldn’t be troublesome on condition that Capital One Travel supplies entry to most flights and lodge rooms — it successfully reduces your out-of-pocket value for the cardboard to a particularly cheap $95, a wonderful worth if you happen to can make the most of even just a few of the cardboard’s extra perks.
A have a look at Capital One Journey’s flight value prediction know-how.
However there’s additionally the ten,000 bonus miles that each one card holders obtain beginning at first of the second 12 months you may have the Enterprise X, and yearly thereafter. These 10,000 bonus miles are value $100 when redeemed by means of Capital One Travel or by utilizing the cardboard’s “Buy Eraser,” which successfully covers the rest of the $395 annual price.
So far as the issuer’s new lounge community, CNN Underscored acquired a sneak peek of the first new lounge in Dallas final month, and got here away extraordinarily impressed with its wonderful pure mild, ingenious use of area, scrumptious cocktails and acute consideration to element. It’s a significant step up from the competing Amex Centurion Lounge, additionally positioned in DFW’s Terminal D.
Enterprise X card holders may have limitless entry to Capital One lounges beginning three hours earlier than their flight’s scheduled departure time. They will additionally herald two visitors per go to at no cost, whereas extra visitors will value $45 every. Kids underneath two can enter without spending a dime.
Whereas the Dallas location is the one new lounge open to this point, extra Capital One lounges are presently being in-built Denver and Washington, DC’s Dulles airports, with extra areas undoubtedly to observe. Within the meantime, the Enterprise X’s complimentary Precedence Cross Choose membership supplies free entry for you and two visitors to over 1,300 airport lounges and eating places world wide.
Additionally of curiosity is the Enterprise X’s complimentary cell phone insurance. While you pay your month-to-month cellphone invoice together with your Enterprise X card and your cellphone is stolen or broken, you’re eligible to be reimbursed for its restore or substitute, as much as $800 per declare with a most of two claims per 12-month interval. There’s a $50 deductible per declare.
One different neat characteristic of the Enterprise X is that, when you’ve got household or mates that you simply’d like so as to add to your account, main card holders can add licensed customers for free of charge, and people licensed customers can even get limitless entry to all Capital One lounges, together with a Precedence Cross membership and cellphone insurance coverage after they pay their month-to-month cellphone invoice with the cardboard.
At first blush, the Capital One Enterprise X, mixed with the brand new Capital One lounges, seem to make an excellent pairing.
With playing cards just like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and The Platinum Card® from American Express repeatedly including new options whereas growing their annual charges, it’s considerably refreshing that Capital One has chosen to create a premium card with a comparatively low value level and fundamental easy-to-use elite perks that many vacationers actually need. Whereas $395 might appear to be some huge cash for a bank card, it’s less expensive than the $550 annual price of the Chase Sapphire Reserve or the $695 annual price of the Amex Platinum, and it’s straightforward to basically offset the Enterprise X’s whole annual value with its $300 annual journey credit score and the ten,000 anniversary bonus miles that begin with the second 12 months you may have the cardboard.
If there’s one facet of the Enterprise X that’s maybe a bit disappointing, it’s the inaugural sign-up bonus. Whereas 100,000 miles is actually nothing to sneeze at, we’ve seen the identical 100,000-mile bonus on the $95 Capital One Enterprise bank card a minimum of twice prior to now few years, and the Enterprise X’s $10,000 minimal spending requirement received’t be straightforward to satisfy for many individuals who don’t usually spend over $1,600 every month on their bank card.
Nonetheless, our first impression of the Capital One Enterprise X is actually optimistic, and when accompanied by the spectacular new Capital One Lounge in Dallas, we’re very a lot trying ahead to the launch of this new bank card on Nov. 9, together with the opening of extra airport lounges within the Capital One community within the close to future.
On the lookout for a brand new bank card? Discover out which playing cards CNN Underscored selected as its best travel credit cards of 2021.
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