Credit card discounts making travel luxurious

Credit cards are now a part of urban life. Aside from shopping, such cards are now essential for overseas travellers, because the facility eliminates the hassle of carrying foreign currency in cash.

Customers are getting a number of benefits for using credit cards during their tours and travels.

Different banks and institutions are providing these facilities in different ways. Credit card users are getting discounts on airport lounges, food courts and discounts on airline tickets or hotel bookings of their choice. These discounts add extra convenience to their travels.

Mastercard, Visa and American Express are the most famous credit card issuer brands in Bangladesh.

Different airlines, hotels, motels and food courts have given discounts with the various banks. However the most popular banks in terms of credit card discounts are Standard Chartered, EBL, The City Bank, Brac, DBBL, IBBL, Prime, Premier, Mercantile and UCBL.

Standard Chartered offers several types of credit card. But only five card users get benefits while traveling abroad. These cards are Visa Signature Credit Card, Standard Chartered-Grameenphone Credit Card, Platinum Visa Credit Card, Super Value Titanium Credit Card and Visa Robi Elite.

All card holders get priority passes in more than 1,200 airport lounges worldwide. Such card holders relax, stretch out and enjoy a pre-flight flavour in the airport lounge at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka.

They have unlimited access to the airport lounge along with up to three companions travelling with a card holder. The cards also offered free Passenger Handling Service during departure and arrival at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka.

City Bank offers different types of credit cards that give various discounts to consumers traveling in and outside of the country. City Bank American Express Platinum Credit Card members can enjoy complimentary priority pass membership and unlimited access to over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide.

About the offer, the bank website mentions that, for Platinum Card members, Priority Pass membership will be provided to only one supplementary card holder. Each lounge visit by a Platinum Supplementary Card member will cost $32.

To be eligible for Priority Pass, a card holder needs to keep an available endorsed amount of $200 against their travel quota with Amex Credit Card.

For City Bank American Express Platinum Credit Card, a Primary Card member will be able to bring up to three companions (adult/child) and a Supplementary card member will be able to bring two companions (adult/child) when a primary card member is not present.

City Bank American Express Platinum Credit Card members will enjoy unlimited access in both International and Domestic lounges. Lounge access is applicable for departure time only.

Such card holders also enjoy travel emergencies and medical assistance abroad. They also enjoy 10 per cent savings on the base fare for both international and domestic routes when purchasing air tickets from different airlines in Bangladesh.

Meanwhile card holders enjoy flat 5 per cent savings when buying a ticket from Biman Bangladesh, this offer valid for 31 December 2023.

The City Bank has another two credit cards, American Express Gold Credit Card and City Alo American Express Credit Card. Both these types of card holders will also get almost the same benefits as the American Express Platinum Credit Card holders.

Apart from these cards, different types of credit cards have also started in Bangladesh with only travel in mind. Mastercard, Eastern Bank Limited (EBL) and ShareTrip recently announced the launch of Bangladesh’s first-ever full-suite co-branded travel credit card “SkyTrip.”

The exclusive travel card will provide end-to-end travel solutions to tourists along with a safer and more convenient payment option.

Syed Mohammad Kamal, Country Manager of Mastercard Bangladesh, said, “Mastercard is delighted to collaborate with EBL and ShareTrip to provide a cashless transaction solution that is not only safe and extremely convenient but also provides a bouquet of exciting discounts, deals and services to the cardholders, thereby ensuring that they enjoy a truly seamless travel experience.”