Since you want the rewards for travel, I suggest going for the new Axis Primus credit card. The fees for this card is steep (Rs. 2.12 lakhs), but you do get joining and renewal rewards. Joining rewards cover up the charges if Edge miles are converted to Accor. Renewal rewards fall short of covering up the charges by around 80k. But if you can cross spend of 30L in the year, you get 25000 Edge Miles which can be converted into 125000 Accor points which is equivalent to approx Rs. 2.2 lakhs. Also, for every spend without exclusion (yes, without any exclusion as of now, so you'll get points for fuel, rent, government spends, utility, etc.), you'll get base 5 airmiles / hotel points, which again translates to base reward of 8.75% if you are converting your miles into Accor. The only challenge is whether you can actually use up so many points year on year. That depends on your travels.
Hi Sid16: I would really appreciate it if you could suggest a card that better aligns with the spending pattern mentioned above.
1. This card is like a ghost. I can find traces of it on the Axis website; however, not much information is available. Even on partner websites, I'm unable to find the eDGE conversion ratio. Although one source mentioned a 1:5 ratio, I highly doubt it. For example, the Accor website, under the Axis Bank card section, provides no information on Primus, and the best ratio offered is 1:2 by Atlas.
2. Assuming a 1:5 eDGE to Partner points ratio, the Welcome Points (25,000) would be equivalent to 125,000 Accor points. Considering that 1 Accor point equals 1.75 INR, we would have 218,750 INR to redeem (note that this amount has been paid to Axis in advance). The issue is that if someone is traveling to Southeast Asia, Accor primarily offers economic/midscale properties, which means the rooms are basic, small, in crowded locations, and generally cheap, yet there are always properties offering a better experience. I checked other partners; Marriott is one of them, and it’s not promising either for Southeast Asia. Chances are, on a 14-day trip, you would end up spending 2 to 3 nights (on average) with the partner's accommodation offerings. I'm not really sure about Axis Primus's claim of 700+ hotels; it’s probably in EMEA, NA, or LATAM regions. Now, a twisted story with airline partners: fares for flights are much higher than the competition. Airline fares are at least 1.33 times higher (mostly 1.4). For example, let's think of a multi-country destination trip for four people planned 90 days in advance (e.g., planning in August for a November trip with the following route: DEL-SGN, SGN-MNL, inter-country travel, CEB-SGN, SGN-DEL). Try comparing your cheapest partner airlines with (VietJet + Cebu Pacific) and see the difference for yourself. We are not avid travelers, and our travel needs are listed in question.
3. An additional 25,000 eDGE miles on +30L is not annual but quarterly, so we can forget about it. I have listed all my spending in the question itself that can be transferred to a credit card. It’s important to note that eligibility (as of 07 Aug 2024) has not been announced.
4. The only benefits are zero cash withdrawal charges, rent transaction fee, forex charges, and currency markup, which is promising. Multiple lounge accesses, add-on cards, Priority Pass and golf are also available on other low-cost premium cards. I don't think these benefits make much of a difference for someone spending similar to myself.
5. This card falls into the uber-premium category and is only applicable to high-net-worth individuals. In my opinion, this card is a poor choice for those spending less than 30L annually. However, from another perspective, a high-net-worth individual with quarterly spending greater than 30L may not be concerned with a credit card, but then that's just my opinion.
Requesting other community members to help me find an alternative credit card(s) or build portfolio of cards.
