There are no hotel-branded credit cards in Australia. But you can get rewards credit cards and frequent flyer cards that offer:
We've rounded up the hotel-specific benefits and offers from the most popular credit card rewards programs in Australia. This includes bank rewards programs, as well as Qantas and Velocity Frequent Flyer.
| Rewards program | Hotel benefits |
|---|---|
| American Express Membership Rewards |
|
| Amplify Rewards (St.George/Bank of Melbourne/BankSA) |
|
| CommBank Awards |
|
| Citi Rewards |
|
| NAB Rewards |
|
| Velocity Frequent Flyer |
|
| Qantas Frequent Flyer |
|
If you’re interested in getting a credit card that offers hotel rewards, here are some of the other benefits you could enjoy:
The best hotel credit card differs for every person. It really comes down to your travel needs and whether or not the benefits of the card are worth paying the card and points program fees.
To help you make a good decision when comparing cards with hotel benefits, focus on the following:
Let's take a look at 2 different credit cards that offer rewards and hotel perks.
| Card | Annual fee | Interest rate for purchases | Points per $1 | Hotel benefits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Citi Prestige | $700 p.a. | 21.49% p.a. |
|
|
| American Express Explorer | $395 p.a. | 23.99% p.a. |
|
|
In this case, both cards have relatively high annual fees and interest rates for purchases. The key is to think about whether the points and hotel benefits will balance out the card costs.
With the Citi Prestige, the value of the hotel benefits depend on where you use them and how often you use them. For example, if you used the fourth night free benefit up to 4 times a year at hotels with an average night cost of $200, you'd get around $800 value from it.
In comparison, the American Express Explorer offers a $400 yearly travel credit, which you could use to completely offset the annual fee. So it's worth thinking about how often you travel and how much you'll be able to use the benefits to get value from a credit card with hotel perks.
Most hotels do ask for a card (along with your ID) when you check-in, but you can usually give them either a credit card or a debit card that's issued in your name.
As well as helping to verify your identity, the card details are used as a security deposit for any additional charges, such as room service or minibar drinks/snacks.
In most cases, the hotel will put an authorisation hold on the card, which could be anything from $1 up to $100 or more per stay. This usually shows up as a "pending" transaction on your account (so that you can't spend it). When you check out, the money is released and goes back into your account – assuming you haven't used any extras.
Pictures: Shutterstock
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