Capital One just rolled out a big, limited-time sign-up bonus on its popular *capital one venture card*: Earn 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months, plus get a one-time $300 Capital One Travel credit to use on hotels and vacation rentals in the first year of account opening.
With an easy-to-use “stays” credit of $300 on top of the standard bonus of 75,000 Capital One miles, this is one of the best offers we’ve seen on the Venture Card. We don’t know exactly how long this bigger bonus will last, but the bank has made it clear: This is a limited-time offer. If you’ve been waiting for the perfect time to apply, this is it.
Beyond the big bonus, you’ll earn 2x miles on all purchases and get added travel perks, like a credit of up to $120 for TSA PreCheck® or Global Entry, not often seen on other cards with a similar $95 annual fee.
Just remember: Credit cards are serious business. You should never apply for a credit card if you’re already in debt, and never charge more than you can afford to pay off immediately. However many points and miles you can earn, they’re not worth it.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Capital One Venture Card and this exciting new offer.
Read more: A Full Review of the Capital One Venture Rewards Card
Capital One Venture Card Overview
- Welcome offer: bonus_miles_full
- Earn unlimited 2x miles on every purchase
- Earn 5x miles on hotels, vacation rentals, and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
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Access to Capital One’s Lifestyle Collection, a curated selection of hotels and vacation rentals that come with a suite of benefits – including a $50 experience credit, room upgrades and early check-in, when available – on every stay
- Up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
- Fly on any airline or stay in any hotel, with no blackout dates
- Capital One miles don’t expire for as long as you have the card
- No foreign transaction fees
- Annual Fee: $95
Learn more about the *capital one venture card*
How to Use Capital One Miles
If you don’t want to deal with the hassle of transferring miles and jumping through hoops to book a free flight or hotel, this is the right option for you. You won’t find an easier way to use miles on travel. Just book your flight, hotel, rental car, or other travel expense with your Capital One card, then go back and cover the purchase using miles.
Thrifty Tip: Use Capital One Miles to make a cheap flight – like the ones we send out as part of our Thrifty Traveler Premium flight deal alert service – free by covering the travel charge after the fact.
When redeemed this way, every mile is worth one cent each, which means this 75,000-mile bonus gets you at least $750 worth of travel.
You can also book flights, hotels, and rental cars with miles through the Capital One Travel portal (but you shouldn’t) or send your miles to an impressive array of Capital One transfer partners to get even more value out of these miles.
Some of our favorite Capital One travel partners include JAL Mileage Bank, Air France/KLM, Air Canada Aeroplan, British Airways, and Turkish Airlines.
Here’s the full list of transfer partners:
| Program | Type | Ratio | Transfer Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aeromexico | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Air France/KLM | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Avianca LifeMiles | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| British Airways | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Cathay Pacific AsiaMiles | Airline | 1:1 | 1-5 Days (sometimes instant) |
| Emirates | Airline | 2:1.5 | Instant |
| Etihad | Airline | 1:1 | Instant (sometimes 12-24 hours) |
| EVA Air | Airline | 2:1.5 | 24-48 Hours |
| Finnair | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Japan Airlines | Airline | 2:1.5 | Instant |
| JetBlue | Airline | 2:1.2 | Instant |
| Qantas | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Qatar Airways | Airline | 1:1 | TBD |
| Singapore | Airline | 1:1 | Up to 24 Hours |
| TAP Air Portugal | Airline | 1:1 | Same day |
| Turkish Airlines | Airline | 1:1 | Same day |
| Virgin Red | Other | 1:1 | Same day |
| Accor | Hotel | 2:1 | 1 Hour (Same Day) |
| Choice Hotels | Hotel | 1:1 | Same day |
| Preferred Hotels & Resorts | Hotel | 1:2 | TBD |
| Wyndham Rewards | Hotel | 1:1 | Same day |
Having the option to go the easy route or take things to the next level through transfer partners is what makes Capital One miles – and the Venture Card – such a great place to get started.
Read more: The Best Ways to Use Capital One Miles
How the $300 Capital One Travel ‘Stays’ Credit Works
The sweetener with this limited-time offer is the one-time $300 credit for hotels and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel.
For starters, new cardmembers will get this credit right away. Unlike the big bonus, this travel credit does not require you to meet a minimum spending requirement in order to earn it. That’s pretty much unheard of in the world of credit card sign-up bonuses, making this card the perfect option for anyone who’s already planning a trip.
The next thing to note is that the credit is valid for only one year and expires on the first anniversary of your account’s open date. But that doesn’t mean that you’ll need to complete your travel by that date.
So long as you use it to book a hotel or vacation rental before it expires, you can actually travel well beyond that date. Just be warned: If your plans change and you have to cancel after the expiration date, you won’t get that credit back. If you need to make any changes while the credit is still valid, it will be restored, and you can use it for something else.
Unlike the annual $300 Capital One Travel credit that comes with the souped-up Capital One Venture X card, this is a one-time $300 “stays” credit you can only get as part of this limited-time offer. You won’t get another one each year.
Now that we’ve got some of the finer details out of the way, let’s discuss how to actually use the credit.
For those unfamiliar, Capital One Travel operates much like other online travel agencies (OTAs) such as Expedia and Priceline. You can book flights with most airlines, as well as chain and boutique hotels, rental cars, and even vacation rentals, all through Capital One Travel. Just know, this credit will only work for hotels and vacation rentals.
To use your new credit, simply log in to your Capital One account online and click the “travel” button under “rewards.” Then enter your desired destination, dates, number of travelers, and run a search for “stays.”
Once you find a hotel or vacation rental you want to book, the credit will be automatically applied at checkout. You can use it across multiple purchases or all at once.
Unfortunately, because the credit is applied as a discount to the purchase price rather than as a statement credit, you won’t earn any additional rewards on that $300 credit. That’s a small bummer, but not the end of the world, since you’re still getting $300 in travel for free.
Are You Eligible For This Offer?
Just like all banks, Capital One has rules for determining who is and isn’t eligible for a new card that go far beyond the usual credit check. Unfortunately, Capital One added a new restriction late last year, making anyone who’s earned a bonus on the Venture or Venture X in the past 48 months ineligible!
Beyond that, most of Capital One’s rules are unwritten – which means it’s anyone’s guess whether or not they’ll be applied to you and your application. Still, enough data points and trends have emerged over the years to give us some information that can help you get approved for a Capital One card.
Here’s what we know:
- This one is pretty clear as it’s right in the terms: You’re not eligible if you’ve received a bonus on the Venture or Venture X within the last 48 months. This means if you’ve had either Venture card before, it needs to be at least four years since you last earned a bonus in order to qualify for this new offer.
- Many data points suggest that Capital One will only allow you to hold two personal credit cards at any given time. That said, this rule seems to be applied inconsistently at best – so even if you already have a pair of Capital One cards, it could be worth applying anyway.
- If you have applied for and been approved for any other Capital One credit card within the past six months, it’s likely that any new credit card application will not be approved. Again, there are exceptions to this rule, but in general, you can add only one new Capital One card (personal or business) every 6 months.
Not sure which Venture Card is right for you? See our full comparison of the Capital One Venture and Venture X Card!
Bottom Line
Capital One is out with an awesome new bonus offer on the *capital one venture card*, giving travelers a one-time, $300 Capital One Travel “stays” credit and 75,000-mile bonus after spending $4,000 on the card in the first three months.
Add in an up to $120 credit for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry, the ability to earn unlimited 2x miles on everyday purchases, and the fact that these are some of the easiest-to-use miles on the planet, and there’s a whole lot to love about this card.
We don’t know exactly how long this elevated offer will last, but Capital One has made clear that it’s a limited-time offer. If you’ve been on the fence about applying, now is the time!
Learn more about the *capital one venture card*
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I’ll never get another Capital One card. I opened a travel card, travelled, and they restricted the card. Fine, maybe they think it’s fraud. Chase and Citi hmand other banks will also sometimes suspend a card until you call or text back that purchases are authorized. I call and to unrestrict the card, they want a copy of my driver’s license (dumb but fine), social security card (dumb- how am I supposed to get this while overseas), and a utility bill showing my address (really dumb). I just stopped using it and plan to never use it again. Totally unreliable card and I’ll never get another Capital One card.