Dream Weekend Trip: Holidays in NYC With 75K Capital One Miles

From “Home Alone 2” to “Elf,” New York City and the holiday season are linked through Hollywood movies. And what better way to experience the magic of the Big Apple in the winter months than with a trip of your own?

Of course, New York is expensive any time of year, but the holidays are exceptionally pricey — making it the perfect time to redeem your hard-earned points and miles for flights and hotels. Let’s take a look at how to make a holiday trip to New York possible with Capital One miles, including your flights and hotel stays.

How To Earn 75,000 (Or More) Capital One Miles Quickly

Earning Capital One miles is easier than you think. My wife opened a Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card earlier this year when it offered a higher-than-usual welcome bonus offer, but you can still open it with the following bonus offer:

• Earn 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

We value this welcome bonus offer at $1,350 when transferred to an airline or hotel partner.

Plus, the card earns 2 Capital One miles per $1 on all purchases — sans flights and hotels booked through Capital One Travel, which earn 5 miles per $1 — making it easy to boost your balance to book a trip to New York. We use our Capital One Venture cards to pay bills and other purchases that don’t earn bonus rewards with another credit card.

The card also has a handful of other benefits, like a TSA PreCheck or Global Entry application fee credit, no foreign transaction fees, and various travel protections. However, it has a $95 annual fee, which is not waived the first year.

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

Get 2x miles plus some of the most flexible redemptions offered by a travel credit card!

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Get 2x miles plus some of the most flexible redemptions offered by a travel credit card!

Welcome Offer

Earn 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

75,000 miles

UP's Offer Valuation*:

$1,350

Annual Fee

$95

APR

Purchases: 19.99% - 29.24% (Variable)

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^®Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit cardapplication.

Good to Excellent Credit (670-850)

Why We Like This Card

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is one of the most popular rewards cards on the market. It’s perfect for anyone in search of a great welcome offer, high rewards rates, and flexible redemption options.

Frequent travelers with excellent credit may benefit from this credit card that offers a lot of bells and whistles. And it offers easy-to-understand rewards earning and redemption.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 5x miles per $1 on hotels, vacation rentals, and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• 2x miles per $1 on all other purchases
• Up to a $120 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit

Cons

• $95 annual fee
• Limited elite benefits

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Card Highlights

• Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel
• Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day
• Earn 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• Miles won't expire for the life of the account and there's no limit to how many you can earn
• Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck^®
• Use your miles to get reimbursed for any travel purchase—or redeem by booking a trip through Capital One Travel
• Enjoy a $50 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Lifestyle Collection
• Transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs

Financial Snapshot

• APR: Purchases: 19.99% - 29.24% (Variable)
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Rewards Center

Capital One Miles

If you’re in the market for a card with higher-end benefits, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is a good bet. It has a similar welcome bonus offer and earn rates, but includes access to Capital One Lounges, Capital One Landings, and Priority Pass airport lounges.

Other benefits include a $300 Capital One Travel credit and 10,000 bonus miles on your account anniversary. These help offset the $395 annual fee.

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

The Capital One Venture X card is an excellent option for travelers looking for an all-in-one premium credit card.

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

The Capital One Venture X card is an excellent option for travelers looking for an all-in-one premium credit card.

Welcome Offer

Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

75,000 miles

UP's Offer Valuation*:

$1,350

Annual Fee

$395

APR

Purchases: 19.99% - 29.24% (Variable)

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^®Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit cardapplication.

Excellent (740-840)

Why We Like This Card

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is the premium Capital One travel rewards card on the block.

Points and miles fans will be surprised to see that the Capital One Venture X card packs quite the punch when it comes to bookings made through Capital One, all while offering the lowest annual fee among premium credit cards.

Depending on your travel goals and preferences, the Capital One Venture X card could very well end up being your go-to card in your wallet.

 

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 10x miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars purchased through Capital One Travel
• 5x miles per $1 on flights and vacation rentals purchased through Capital One Travel
• 2x miles per $1 on all other purchases

Cons

• $395 annual fee
• Does not offer bonus categories for flights or hotel purchases made directly with the airline or hotel group, the preferred booking method for those looking to earn elite status

Read Full Review

Card Highlights

• Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel
• Receive a $300 annual credit for bookings through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options
• Get 10,000 bonus miles (equal to $100 towards travel) every year, starting on your first anniversary
• Earn unlimited 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel
• Earn unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases
• Enjoy access to 1,300+ lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
• Use your Venture X miles to easily cover travel expenses, including flights, hotels, rental cars and more—you can even transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs
• Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
• Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck^®

Financial Snapshot

• APR: Purchases: 19.99% - 29.24% (Variable)
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Rewards Center

Capital One Miles

 

If you’re traveling with a partner, you can both open a Capital One card and double up on the welcome offers. Considering the high cost of hotels in New York City, you might need to do this if you’re starting from scratch.

Booking Flights to New York City With Capital One Miles

You can transfer Capital One miles to 15 airline and hotel transfer partners, which you can use to book flights to New York City anywhere in the country.

I’ll use my hometown of Chicago as an example for this article. The best deal I could find for flights from Chicago to New York in mid-December was 19,000 Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles round-trip, plus $36.59 in taxes and fees, per person. The flight is operated by Delta Air Lines.

This same deal is available on multiple dates throughout December. Further, you pay the same or fewer miles to and from other East Coast and Midwest U.S. cities as well — for example, a round-trip itinerary from Washington, D.C. (DCA) to New York costs just 10,000 miles and $33.42 round-trip.

Capital One miles transfer to Flying Blue at a 1:1 transfer ratio, and transfers are usually processed instantly. Don’t transfer your miles until you find the flight you’d like to book. Otherwise, you could be stuck with airline miles you can’t use.

Booking Hotels in New York City With Capital One Miles

Capital One has 3 hotel transfer partners: Accor ALL Live Limitless (2:1), Choice Privileges, and Wyndham Rewards. While these don’t provide as much value as World of Hyatt or Marriott Bonvoy, they open up a handful of hotel redemptions in New York City.

Wyndham Hotels has a wide range of options in Manhattan and the outer boroughs, with my pick being the Wyndham Garden Chinatown. It’s in the buzzing Chinatown neighborhood and within walking distance of SoHo and Little Italy. Plus, it’s well-connected to the subway for easy transit around the city.

Over weekends in December, you pay 30,000 Wyndham Rewards points per night. Meanwhile, the hotel costs $400 or more per night after tax on the same dates.

Choice Hotels also has a handful of interesting properties around New York City. If you’d like to stay in Midtown Manhattan — near Times Square, Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, and other iconic New York attractions — the Westgate New York Grand Central is a good choice.

It was remodeled in 2021 and joined Choice earlier this year. It’s on 38th Street near the East River. Rooms are well-appointed, and there’s an on-site restaurant and cocktail bar, the Tudor City Tavern, if you want a night in.

Rates are between $400 and $650 per night in December, but you can book the hotel for 45,000 Choice points.

If none of these options work for you, you can also charge a hotel stay to your eligible Venture-branded card and cover the travel purchase made within 90 days with Capital One miles. You can do this for any travel purchase and get 1 cent per mile in value. This means a $750 hotel stay would cost 75,000 Capital One miles.

Final Thoughts

There’s never a bad time to visit New York City, but the winter holidays are exceptionally special. From the Bryant Park Christmas market to the Christmas lights in Dyker Heights, you’ll feel like you’re living your favorite Christmas movie. But it isn’t a cheap time to visit, so consider using your points and miles to offset the cost.