In late August FNBO stopped accepting applications for the Best Western credit cards. Best Western has now launched two new credit cards that are issued by First Bank & Trust and managed by Mercury Financial.
Contents
Best Western Rewards Visa Signature Card
- Earn up to 40,000 bonus points
- Card earns at the following rates:
- 4X points on Best Western stays and purchases
- 2X points on all other purchases
- 10,000 Anniversary Bonus Points
- Automatic Gold Elite Status
Best Western Rewards Premium Visa Signature Card
- Earn up to 80,000 bonus points
- $89 annual fee
- Card earns at the following rates:
- 10X points on Best Western stays and purchases
- 4X points on gas station and grocery store purchases
- 2X points on all other purchases
- Up to Two Free Night Awards Each Anniversary
- One free night on anniversary
- Second free night when you spend $10,000+
- Automatic Platinum Elite Status
Our Verdict
Sign up bonuses are a bit strange as it’s 10k to 40k and 20k to 80k points and you’ll see the bonus and minimum spend requirement before applying according to the fine print. According to the terms the free night can only be used in US, Canada and the Caribbean but is otherwise unrestricted. We did see higher bonuses on the previous FNBO versions of these cards, but the anniversary bonuses weren’t nearly as generous. I can see a play for keeping the Premium card long term for the free night certificate for $89 annually but that depends if there are any expensive properties where you like to travel and single night stays not affecting you as much.
Mercury is more of a sub prime lender from what I know, so getting approved shouldn’t be too difficult but share your experiences in the comments below if you decide to go for it.
View Comments (10)
The $89 cert is the only play for this card, unless you have a lot of BW spend that wouldn't make sense on something with a travel bonus category like a Sapphire card. BW points are otherwise kind of useless.
Platinum status is also kind of useless. I ended up status matching to it several years ago from Hyatt Globalist and they've never revoked the status - I've had it perpetually. We get a couple bottles of water, a small point bonus, and that's it.
In general, BW runs the gamut in terms of quality. In my experience, most are decent and comparable to a Hampton or Fairfield. Some are stinkers but you can suss that out on Tripadvisor. There are a handful that are amazing, especially in Europe. I stayed a couple times at the Hotel Harmonie in Vienna and that place is more comparable to a boutique hotel than a Best Western.
It's nice that this new BW no-AF card brings the BW earnings back up at least halfway. The Barclays Best Western no-AF card earned 5x, the FNBO Best Western no-AF card dropped that to 3x, and at least this new BW no-AF card is raising it up to 4x.
There is a decent Best Western in Carmel, CA that is a few blocks from Carmel by the Sea and Ocean Beach. Stayed there a few years ago and enjoyed it.
Imagine being so successful at churning that you apply for Best Western cards.
I have churned this card many times but now it appears I don’t qualify for the offer. I guess I have churned too much even for this card haha
Bro, best western is perfect road trip hotels to stop along the way.
I actualy churned this card like 20 times with Fnbo. Never paid annual fee
First, lol.
Second, this actually could be good for someone looking to stay at remote places that might only have a best Western. The grand canyon approaching from Phoenix comes to mind.
At least I've gotten superb redemptions with nat parks in summertime with Choice. I've yet to see any good BW redemption (that their points are worth it).
It depends on the national park. While lower-end hotels are much more likely in small towns near national parks, it's not guaranteed whether it will be Choice, Best Western, or Wyndham most likely, if there's only or two. While Choice may be more common near national parks, it's not always there at every national park.