Standard Chartered EaseMyTrip Credit Card Review

Using the promocode ‘EMTSCB’, cardholders can avail discount on all travel bookings as per the rates shown in the table below:

*On a minimum transaction value of Rs. 500

How does it compare with other cards in the same category?

Compared to the existing cards in the category- ICICI MMT and Yatra SBI Card- this card offers better benefits both in terms of the type of benefit offered and the rate of discount.

The ICICI MakeMyTrip Cards offers benefits to their users in the form of reward points (My Cash) which can be redeemed on the MakeMyTrip platform to save on the travel booking. While the users can earn substantial rewards with regular usage and each My Cash is worth Rs. 1, the earning rate stands low and, as a result, the overall value-back is not that impressive.

On the other hand, Yatra SBI Card shares more similarity with the EaseMyTrip Card as it works on the discount plus reward points model. However, the discounts on this card are subject to a minimum transaction value. For example, users can get Rs. 1,000 off on domestic flight bookings but on a minimum transaction of Rs. 5,000.

Standard Chartered EaseMyTrip Credit Card offers direct discount to the users without any condition related to the minimum transaction value. Moreover, primary and supplementary cardholders both can avail the benefits individually. Users can avail one discount per month per card per category. This means if you use the card to avail discount on domestic flight booking, you cannot use the same benefit again in the same month. However, you can still avail the discount on international flights, domestic hotels and international hotel bookings.

In addition to the discount, cardholders can also earn reward points on their spends at the following rate:

• 2 reward points per Rs. 100 across all spend categories
• 10 reward points per Rs. 100 spent on airline tickets and hotel reservations on the standalone websites of airlines or hotels
• Extra reward points will not be offered on travel bookings made through travel portals or any aggregators

The rewards program is also focused on making it a true-blue travel card. Even if you do not make the bookings via EaseMyTrip and choose an airline or hotel website to make the booking, you will get accelerated rewards. However, the base rate of the card stands low at 2 points for every Rs. 100 spent.

On this card, you can avail 1 complimentary domestic lounge visit per calendar quarter and 2 international lounge visits per year. The annual fee of Rs. 350 is waived off on reaching annual spends of Rs. 50,000.

Also Read: Best Credit Cards for Airport Lounge Access

As it is a co-branded card, the first thing to consider is your loyalty to EaseMyTrip. If you have had a great experience on the site and prefer it over other travel portals, then you must consider getting this card. Since it comes with a fairly low annual fee of Rs. 350 and reverses the fee on total spends of Rs. 50,000, maintaining this card will also be easier on your pocket.

If you take a look at the benefits offered on this card, the value-back is higher in comparison to other similar cards. Moreover, there is no minimum transaction limit to be reached in order to avail the discounts, so cardholders can get the benefit on all travel bookings- big or small. As the discount can be applied over and above any other offer that is available on the platform, the actual savings can be substantial. The card also gives extra reward points on other travel spends like airline or hotel booking via the standalone website of the said airline/hotel (except those on travel portals), it holds great overall value for frequent travellers.

On the flip side, if flight tickets make a major part of your travel spends, you can also consider credit cards that give air miles or co-branded flight benefits, if you prefer a particular carrier.