Coveting Club Carlson Credit Cards

I’m on a roll with the Club Carlson posts, so I decided to keep it going with a review of the Club Carlson co-branded credit cards.  These cards are relatively new to the scene, so neither Josh or I have one yet, but I will definitely be adding one to my next App-O-Rama.  There are several reasons that the Club Carlson cards are attractive to me.

As you may know, I am a fan of luxury travel.  Don’t get me wrong: I can rock a backpack and a pair of hiking boots in an insane way.  But I do love a good five-star hotel.  While Club Carlson has a good mix of hotels all over the world, their properties in the US aren’t super compelling to me.  However, their properties in other countries are a different story: Club Carlson has luxury properties sprinkled throughout the rest of the world.  I’ve got my eye on the Radisson Blu Resort in St. Martin:

Rooms go for around $500/night.  Of course, I am planning to redeem 50,000 Club Carlson points (or less!) per night, but I will get to that shortly.

At first glance, the four Club Carlson credit cards seem pretty basic.  Here is a rundown of the different perks you get with each card:

Club Carlson Premier Rewards Visa Signature

• 5 Club Carlson points per dollar on daily spending
• 10 points per dollar on Club Carlson hotel spending
• 85,000 point sign-up bonus — 50,000 after first purchase and 35,000 more after $2500 spend within 90 days
• “Bonus Award Night” – when you cash in points for an award redemption, your last night is free
• Club Carlson Gold status
• 40,000 points a year on your “card anniversary”
• $75 annual fee

Club Carlson Rewards Visa Signature

• 3 points per dollar on daily spending
• 6 points on Club Carlson hotel spending
• 60,000 point sign-up bonus — 50,000 after first purchase and 10,000 more after $1500 spend within 90 days
• “Bonus Award Night” – when you cash in points for an award redemption, your last night is free
• Club Carlson Silver status
• 25,000 points a year on your “card anniversary”
• $50 annual fee

Club Carlson Rewards Visa Card

• 1 points per dollar on daily spending
• 3 points on Club Carlson hotel spending
• 30,000 point sign-up bonus after spending $1,000 on the card within 90 days
• “Bonus Award Night” – when you cash in points for an award redemption, your last night is free
• No annual fee

Club Carlson Business Rewards Visa

• 5 Club Carlson points per dollar on daily spending
• 10 points per dollar on Club Carlson hotel spending
• 85,000 point sign-up bonus — 50,000 after first purchase and 35,000 more after $2500 spend within 90 days
• “Bonus Award Night” – when you cash in points for an award redemption, your last night is free
• Club Carlson Gold status
• 40,000 points a year on your “card anniversary”
• $60 annual fee

The very best part about these cards is that they all feature a “bonus reward night.”  This is huge, because it is a benefit that can effectively double your points; if you redeem points for a 2-night stay, your second night is free.  So if you are traveling as a family and both adults have a Club Carlson card, you could stay 2 nights under one reservation, then swap to the second reservation and stay 2 nights, and so on.  In other words, if Josh and I both get the Premier or Business version of this card, we could enjoy a 6-night stay at the Radisson Blu in St. Martin for only 150,000 points…which would be less than the combined sign-up bonus of 170,000 points.  So just by applying for these cards and meeting minimum spend, we would be able to “splurge” on a luxury hotel stay worth $3,000…for free.

Food for thought.

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