Travel Cards Lost 40% Value: Is Yours Worth It?

Banks have quietly cut the value of travel credit card rewards over the past two years. Your points now buy fewer air miles and hotel nights than before. Here's how to figure out if your card still makes financial sense — and what to do if it doesn't.

Here's what happened: Multiple Indian banks have reduced reward earn rates, capped monthly point accruals, and increased redemption thresholds on travel credit cards since 2022–2023.. Lounge access benefits — once unlimited on premium cards — now come with quarterly spend triggers and annual visit caps of 4 to 8 visits on most cards.. Co-branded airline cards tied to IndiGo and Air India have held up better for frequent flyers on those specific carriers, while generic travel cards show the steepest value erosion..

What you should do: Calculate your card's effective reward rate: divide the rupee value of points redeemed last year by your total annual spend — anything below 1% after annual fee is a red flag.. Check your card's latest terms and conditions (usually updated in a PDF on the bank's website) for any reward cap or conversion rate change in the past 12 months.. Compare one flat-cashback card alongside your current travel card — if you fly fewer than 4 times a year, a 1.5% cashback card with zero annual fee likely beats a devalued miles card..

Pro tip: Always redeem travel card points for flight bookings or hotel transfers — redeeming for cashback or merchandise returns as little as 25% of the point's stated value on most Indian cards.

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