US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Card: 30,000 Welcome Bonus, No Annual Fee

US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Card Review

Benefits

• Spend $10,000 to earn a free night certificate: For every $10,000 in spending, you earn 1 free night, up to 3 times total. In other words, if you spend up to $30,000, you can earn 3 Free Nights. This is a relatively low spending requirement for free night certificates. Keep in mind that although this certificate has no category restriction, it can actually only be used at Radisson hotels in the U.S. The redemption value is usually better in major cities closer to downtown areas. That said, most U.S. Radisson properties are still roadside hotels.

Cons

• It has a foreign transaction fee, so be careful if you use this card to book hotels outside the U.S. In that case, it’s better to use a different card.

About Radisson Rewards Points

Radisson points are worth about 0.4 cents/point. Generally speaking, most Radisson hotels in the U.S. are roadside properties, with relatively few high-end options. A better use of points is often at Radisson hotels in Europe, where the value can be quite strong. For the number of points required for each hotel category, see:

• Radisson award chart

My Take

There’s not much reason to apply for this card directly. If you have the Premier card, don’t want to keep it long term, but still want to preserve your credit history, you could downgrade to this card.

Application

• Approval difficulty: US Bank is fairly sensitive to hard pulls and new accounts. If you have a checking or savings account with them, approval is generally easier.
• Application status: Official application status check link
• Things to note: It’s recommended to freeze your reports with two less common bureaus, ID Analytics (IDA) and Advanced Resolution Services (ARS). Refer to this article. Doing so may help improve your US Bank credit card approval odds, and there’s no obvious downside.

Application Link