The Best Travel Cards for Expat and Travelers in Chile
Moving abroad comes with all sorts of surprises, some good, some frustrating, and some that make you question your entire relationship with your bank. As avid travelers, we learned pretty quickly that your choice of travel card will completely shape your financial life: how you book flights, how you avoid international fees, how you move money, and how you still collect valuable points even while living thousands of miles from the U.S.
We’ve tested multiple cards over the years, and three consistently stand out as the most useful, reliable, and rewarding.
- $300 annual travel credit + 10k bonus miles yearly
- Priority Pass and Capital One lounge access
- No foreign transaction fees
- Strong travel and dining rewards
- Flexible point transfers
- Lower annual fee
- Hold and spend multiple currencies
- Real exchange rates with low fees
- Ideal for expats and travelers
And the best part? Using these cards correctly has helped us subsidize a massive portion of our travel across Latin America, from a free resort stay in Patagonia, to LATAM lounge access, to flights to Rapa Nui, to boutique hotels in Brazil we never imagined we could book with points.
This guide covers exactly how we use each card, the perks that actually matter, and why these three should be in every traveler’s wallet.
Why Travel Cards Matter So Much
- International fees add up fast.
- Many Chilean websites reject foreign cards, so you need cards that still let you earn points elsewhere.
- You want rewards that transfer well to LATAM Airlines, because it dominates this region.
- And if you’re planning on exploring South America (we assume you are!), having flexible points can save you literal thousands.
Our card setup lets us earn points on almost everything from flights, hotels, groceries, rideshare, and even some online Chilean purchases, and then use those points for trips we’d otherwise never splurge on.
Unfortunately, you will be seeing this more often than you’d like when ordering online
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1. Capital One Venture X — Our MVP
If there was one card we’d tell every one who loves to travel to get, it’s the Venture X.
🎯 Flat 2X on every purchase
Living and traveling abroad means tons of your expenses won’t fall into “bonus categories” like U.S. grocery stores or U.S. dining. With Venture X, it doesn’t matter, you earn the same 2X whether you’re buying lunch in Lastarria, booking a Sky Airline flight, or paying for your Airbnb in Frutillar.
✈️ We use the points constantly for LATAM flights
Depending on the best deal, we will either use our points directly on the Capital One Portal, transfer partners, or reimburse the travel expenses on our credit card statement.
That’s how we booked:
- Our flights to Rapa Nui
- Round-trip flights to Brazil
- Domestic trips to Isla Chiloe & Patagonia
All with points.
🍸 Lounge access at SCL (including the LATAM Lounge!)
We use the Venture X Priority Pass to access lounges at Santiago Airport, including the LATAM Lounge in the international terminal. This lounge is genuinely nice, it has showers, quiet rooms, food, wine, the works.
💵 $300 travel credit + 10,000 anniversary miles
These two perks almost wipe out the annual fee, making the card a free if you know how to use it.
🏔️ How Venture X subsidized our Patagonia trip
This card alone helped us get:
- Free stay at Río Serrano Hotel + Spa, right at the entrance of Torres del Paine
- Points-booked flights to Puerto Natales
- Rental car ready for us when we arrived
- Lounge access before our flight
That trip would’ve cost thousands. We paid: $0 + taxes.
2. Chase Sapphire Preferred — Best for Travel Transfers & Dining
The Chase Sapphire Preferred is the other half of our travel strategy. The Venture X earns our day-to-day points; the Sapphire Preferred is where we get huge value through point multipliers and transfer partners.
✅ Better bonus categories than Venture X
- 3X on dining
- 2X on travel
- Extra bonuses on streaming & online groceries
If we’re eating out or traveling, we often use Sapphire instead of Venture.
✈️ The real power: Chase transfer partners
Chase points transfer to:
- United (great for booking Star Alliance flights across LATAM)
- British Airways Avios (helpful for LATAM flights)
- Iberia
- Air France/KLM Flying Blue (connections from Santiago)
We used Chase points to book:
- Abracadabra Boutique Hotel in Armação dos Búzios, Brazil
- Flights to Buenos Aires
- Hotel in Lima
This card makes exploring South America so much more affordable.
🌎 Perfect for expats who travel frequently
Even though many Chilean websites reject U.S. cards, we still earn points on:
- Restaurants
- Hotels
- Rideshare (Uber, Cabify)
- Tours booked online (Get Your Guide)
- International flights
Every point eventually becomes a flight, hotel, or upgrade.
3. Wise — The Expat Essential
The Wise account + debit card isn’t technically a “travel card,” but it is mandatory for stress-free expat life in Chile.
🪙 Low-fee transfers to Chile
If you’re transferring money into Chilean pesos, Wise is the cheapest and fastest reliable option we’ve used. It beats bank transfers and eliminates nasty exchange rate surprises.
💳 Debit card that works almost everywhere
Wise has been our most consistent card for:
- Transportation
- Local stores
- Online shopping
When our U.S. cards get rejected (and they will get rejected), Wise fills the gap.
🏦 Better than a traditional bank
Wise makes it easy to pay locals, roommates, landlords, and small businesses because online payments in Chile often require:
- RUT (Chilean ID number)
- Chilean bank account details
- Local transfer methods
Wise gives you that flexibility without needing a Chilean bank account right away.
How These Cards Work Together for Maximum Points & Travel
Here’s our simple expat points strategy:
✔️ Use Venture X for everything (2X baseline).
✔️ Use Sapphire Preferred for dining + travel bookings to earn more.
✔️ Transfer points strategically to airline partners
✔️ Redeem miles for big-value trips
This is how we’ve booked:
- Río Serrano Hotel in Patagonia
- LATAM flights to Rapa Nui
- Búzios Abracadabra beachfront hotel
- Lounge access at SCL
- Weekend trips around Chile
We travel more now as expats than we ever did living in the U.S., and we pay a fraction of the cost.
