HSBC Premier Travel World Mastercard: A Review
HSBC revamped their Premier banking offering last March, rolling out new products for their high net-worth clients, including the Premier Travel credit card.
The card comes with all the usual premium benefits: lounge access, airport transfers, low forex fees, and a waived annual fee if you’re a Premier client (PHP 5M total relationship balance).
But here’s the real question: Is this actually a good travel card or just a nice perk for being wealthy?
What’s the HSBC Premier Travel credit card?
Spend-to-Miles Ratio: PHP 25.00 to PHP 34.00 per mile on overseas spend, PHP 30.00 to PHP 40.00 per mile on local shopping and dining transactions (higher ratio is for the redemption on Mabuhay Miles)
Annual Fee: PHP 12,500 (waived for Premier clients), waived for supplementary card holders
Lounge Access: 10 visits every calendar year via Priority Pass
Airlines Partner: PAL Mabuhay Miles, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Miles
Other notes/features/benefits:
- 0.99% forex fee
- PHP 1,500.00 card replacement fee
- 6% rebate on your first Caltex transaction and 3% rebate on your Caltex fuel purchases year-round
- 2 complimentary airport transfers, 2 meet and greet services, and 2 golf games annually (booked via Life’s Premier app by Thriwe)
- Travel insurance of up to USD 100,000
These are the basic numbers but there’s a whole lot more to talk about when it comes to HSBC’s credit cards.
Receiving the card and what it looks like
Although the card doesn’t come in a box like UnionBank’s Reserve credit card, it does come in a different kind of envelop that still makes it stand out.
When you open up the envelop, you can find the card in the middle and a summary of the benefits on the right.
I decided to get the card mainly for the new-to-bank promo of earning either 32,000 Asia Miles or getting PHP32,000 cashback from a spend of just PHP 80,000.00. In order to acquire the card, I first opened an account with HSBC on April 16. The card was then delivered later on April 30.
Like UnionBank’s Reserve credit card, HSBC’s Premier Travel credit card is also metal although it’s not as thick. Because of this, it also weighs lighter at 13.7 grams compared to the latter’s 16.9 grams. This is also the first card I have with a vertical design so it still feels a bit out of place for me.
With the physical aspects of the card out of the way, let’s dive right back into the numbers.
Is the HSBC Premier Travel Card worth it in the Philippines?
Years ago, I actually had 3 credit cards with HSBC. The only one I applied for, their Red Mastercard, and then their Platinum and Cashback Mastercard, which they sent on their own right after. The reason why I cancelled all my cards with them? I hated their Accelerated Rewards program. Let me explain.
Despite the bank calling it accelerated, the rewards program is pretty mediocre. In fact, it’s not even as good as the other credit cards in the PHP 30.00/mile club.
And do you see that footnote? For a card that targets high net-worth individuals, the PHP 60,000.00 per month cap in earning bonus points is a bit ridiculous. Not only that, you have to consider the eligible merchant category codes (MCCs) too.
Lastly, did you know HSBC is the only Philippine bank whose points actually expire? Yup, you read that right. Points are valid only for 2 or 3 years depending on the type of card you have.
I’ll be honest here. I got this card for two reasons only. The first would be the new-to-bank promo. The second would be the travel benefits. As long as one maintains the PHP 5M TRB, these benefits are basically free. More so, pair this with UBP Reserve and you would have an airport to hotel and hotel to airport transfer for your trip abroad!
If you’re optimizing for miles, this card is easy to skip. If you’re already in Premier, it’s a nice free add-on. Nothing more.
