GUIDESCREDIT CARDS
Best Credit Cards for Travel in India | 2025 Edition
5 MIN • 
LAST EDITED BY ANKANA GHOSHAL ON SEPTEMBER 15, 2025.
LAST EDITED BY ANKANA GHOSHAL ON SEPTEMBER 15, 2025.
GUIDES LAST EDITED BY ANKANA GHOSHAL ON SEPTEMBER 15, 2025.
If you're a frequent traveller looking to save on flights, hotels, and other travel expenses, a travel credit card is your best companion. These cards offer a wide range of benefits like free flight tickets, air miles, travel insurance, exclusive airport lounge access, and discounts on top travel brands. Whether it's a co-branded card with popular airlines or a reward-rich credit card that earns miles on every swipe, there’s an option for every kind of traveller. To help you choose wisely, we’ve curated the best travel credit cards in India for 2025 that truly match your lifestyle.
Joining Fee: ₹5,000 |Annual Fee: ₹5,000
Key Benefits:
Additionally, EDGE Miles can be exchanged for partner loyalty programs. For example, 1 EDGE Mile = 2 Partner Points for others, or 2 EDGE Miles = 1 Marriott Bonvoy Point.
Joining/Annual Fee: ₹10,000
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: On Request (Typically premium-tier)
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: ₹3,000 | Annual Fee: ₹3,000
Key Benefits:
Read: Best Credit Cards for Online Shopping (2025)
Joining Fee: ₹4,999 | Annual Fee: ₹4,999
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: ₹30,000| Annual Fee: ₹30,000
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: ₹10,000 | Annual Fee: ₹5,000
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: ₹2,500 | Annual Fee: ₹2,500
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: ₹3,000 | Annual Fee: ₹3,000
Key Benefits:
Joining Fee: ₹499 | Annual Fee: ₹499
Key Benefits:
The MagniFi Fi-Federal Credit Card is designed for weekend warriors who also love to travel. This lifetime free card gives 5% back on weekend spends across shopping, dining, movies, and even quick getaways. Customers earn Fi-Points that can be easily converted into air miles, used to pay card bills, or redeemed for 50% off vouchers from top brands. With exclusive offers on Amazon, Zomato, BookMyShow, and more, MagniFi makes weekends rewarding and travel smarter.
To know more about the MagniFi Fi-Federal Credit Card, read here: https://fi.money/guides/credit-cards/magnifi-fi-federal-credit-card
Here is a table with the reward points to airmiles or hotel loyalty points conversion ratios of some of the best travel credit cards to help you choose the one that best fits your needs. To gain a better understanding of how to make the most of the rewards conversion options and the ultimate value-back that can be obtained through the provided cards, you can peruse the list of cards and the associated points transfer ratios.
| Credit Card | Best Use For | Key Perks |
| Axis Atlas Credit Card | Airline-agnostic travel rewards | Up to 2,500 bonus EDGE Miles (welcome benefit); 5 EDGE Miles per ₹100 on travel spends up to ₹2 L |
| Axis Horizon Credit Card | High lounge access and travel value | 5,000 EDGE Miles on joining, 1,500 EDGE Miles on renewal; 5 EDGE Miles per ₹100 on Travel EDGE and airline spends |
| HSBC TravelOne Credit Card | Flexible travel rewards & discounts | 4 reward points per ₹100 on flights, aggregators, foreign currency; 2 reward points per ₹100 on other spends |
| Axis Magnus for Burgundy Credit Card | High-spenders with premium travel needs | Luxe Gift Card / Postcard Hotels / Yatra ₹5,000 voucher (welcome); 12 EDGE Points per ₹200 on spends up to ₹1.5 L |
| HDFC Diners Club Black Metal Edition | Premium international travel & lounges | Club Marriott, Swiggy & Amazon memberships (on ₹1.5 L spend first month); unlimited global lounge access |
| IndusInd Bank Avios Visa Infinite | Multi-airline frequent flyers | 6 Avios per ₹200 at select intl destinations; 5 Avios per ₹200 on Qatar & BA platforms |
| Kotak IndiGo 6E Rewards XL Credit Card | Frequent IndiGo flyers | ₹3,000 IndiGo ticket (welcome); ₹1,099 6E Prime add-on free on joining |
| Emirates Skywards ICICI Emeralde Credit Card | Emirates loyalists | 2.5 Skywards Miles per ₹100 spend; unlimited domestic & international lounge (Dreamfolks Pass) |
| Marriott Bonvoy HDFC Credit Card | Marriott hotel network stays | Free Night Award, Silver Elite status & 10 Elite night credits (welcome); 8 MB Points per ₹150 at partner hotels |
| MakeMyTrip ICICI Bank Credit Card | MMT loyal users & booking savings | MMT voucher ₹1,000 + MMTBLACK Gold (first year); 6% MyCash on MMT hotel bookings |
| Yatra SBI Credit Card | Budget-friendly Yatra booking users | Yatra vouchers worth ₹8,250 (welcome); ₹1,000 off domestic flight bookings (min ₹5,000 spend) |
| Standard Chartered EaseMyTrip Credit Card | Deals on EaseMyTrip portal | 20% off domestic hotel bookings (max ₹5,000); 20% off international hotel bookings (max ₹10,000) |
With countless credit cards available today, choosing the right one can feel overwhelming. To make it easier, let’s break down a few key factors that can guide you toward the best travel credit card.
The first step is to understand your spending patterns. When you know where your money goes, it becomes simpler to identify a card that fits your lifestyle. Ask yourself:
Do I need a co-branded card tied to a specific airline/portal, or one with broader travel benefits?
Am I looking to earn Air Miles?
Which category, flights, hotels, dining, or shopping, do I spend the most on?
Will complimentary lounge access add value to my trips?
Do I need extras like travel insurance or milestone vouchers?
Once you answer these, shortlisting cards becomes easier.
Free lounge visits can improve your trip if you travel frequently for business or pleasure. Depending on your needs, pick a card that provides access to domestic or international lounges. Remember that the number of free visits is limited, and that extra visits are paid for. Priority Pass and other global lounge programs are offered by certain issuers and go beyond free limits.
Select a card that offers accelerated reward points on travel expenditures if you want to optimise the benefits of travel. These cards provide you with overall value because they frequently include dining, shopping, and lifestyle benefits. You can take advantage of other benefits even when you're not travelling, and your benefits increase more quickly when you do.
A co-branded travel card might be perfect if you frequently book through a particular travel portal or fly with a single airline. Brand-specific incentives like free tickets upon joining or reaching spending goals, flat discounts, bonus points, or free travel vouchers are frequently offered by cards linked to airlines like Air India or travel portals like MakeMyTrip and Yatra. When you use the same brand consistently, these offer the best value.
You should compare credit cards once you’ve shortlisted two or more options, based on the following parameters. This will help you narrow down your choices and pick the best travel card.
Annual Fee
Examine the annual fee first. Even though a travel card has many benefits, you should consider whether they outweigh the upkeep costs. For instance, it might not be worth paying a high price for standard perks like domestic lounge access or air miles. Selecting a card that offers benefits you'll truly use at a fair annual fee is the better course of action.
Rewards / Air Miles
When assessing credit cards, a lot of consumers ignore the rewards program. However, one of the best benefits of a travel credit card is the rewards or Air Miles program. Examine the redemption options and, more crucially, compare the earn rates on Air Miles or reward points. Getting the most out of your purchases is guaranteed when you use a card with a higher earn rate and better redemption value.
Sign-up Bonus
The majority of issuers provide a welcome gift, sometimes referred to as a sign-up bonus. This can include free airline tickets, bonus Air Miles, or travel vouchers for travel credit cards. Examine the sign-up bonus after weighing the annual fees and benefits. The welcome benefit should ideally balance the joining fee. In many instances, reaching particular spending goals or renewing a card can also unlock these bonuses.
Lounge Access
Access to airport lounges is another important consideration when comparing travel credit cards. Access to both domestic and international lounges is a standard perk, though the quantity of complimentary visits varies. Lounge perks make sense if you travel frequently, but they won't be very useful if you only go once or twice a year. When choosing a card, always compare the number of lounge visits each one offers.
The credit card that best suits your travel requirements is the best one for you. A card co-branded with your preferred airline, for instance, might enable you to save a significant sum of money over time if you have a preference for flying with that airline. However, it would be better to get a card that covers all travel expenses if you don't want to limit the benefits to just one or a few brands. Examine the extra benefits, such as hotel benefits, forex markup fees, lounge access, etc., and pick a card that lets you easily get the most out of it.
Although the number of free visits varies from card to card, the majority of travel credit cards provide free access to airport lounges. Additionally, some cards might only allow domestic lounge visits, while others might allow both domestic and foreign lounge visits.
Yes. Daily expenses outside of the travel category can be paid with a travel credit card. In actuality, charging additional expenses to the card will enable you to accrue more miles and rewards, which can then be used to obtain free or heavily discounted airline tickets or hotel stays.
No. Additionally, domestic travellers can obtain travel credit cards and receive air miles, free lounge access, hotel memberships, and other benefits to save money on domestic travel.
