Harlan: “How I’d Use the Capital One Venture 40,000 Mile Bonus”

Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

Update: One or more card offers in this post are no longer available. Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers.

With the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card, you can earn 40,000 Venture miles (worth $400 in travel) after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first 3 months.

$400 in travel is a good deal, so I’ve asked the Million Mile Secrets team how they’d use the card’s sign-up bonus.  Here’s team member Harlan! Harlan:   Folks like earning Capital One Venture miles because Capital One’s rewards program is so straightforward.  I’m well over 5/24, and tapped out with many other issuers, including AMEX and Citi.  So at this point, I’ll take what I can get – especially when there’s a sign-up bonus worth $400 in travel!

Here are 3 ways I’d consider using the sign-up bonus from the Capital One Venture Rewards card.

How WE Would Use the Capital One Venture 40,000 Mile Bonus

• Keith
• Meghan
• Joseph
• Harlan
• Jasmin

Capital One Venture Miles Card

Capital One Venture miles are worth 1 cent each.  So the 40,000 Venture mile sign-up bonus on the Capital One Venture card is worth $400 in travel.

Lots of people like earning and using Capital One Venture miles because the rewards program is simple.

You don’t have to worry with transfer partners or ratios, blackout dates, or search for open award seats or hotel nights.  And you can use the miles as a credit towards most travel purchases you make – with no minimum.  That includes airfare, hotels, campsites, cruises, rental cars, Uber, and more.

The Capital One Venture card might be in my future, because I will always be well over Chase’s “5/24” card limit.  I’d likely use the sign-up bonus worth $400 in travel on expenses that are NOT easily covered by other types of miles & points, like flights to far-flung destinations.

1.   Drive the Faroe Islands

I love using points for award flights.  But there are few award seats to the farthest corners of the world, like the Faroe Islands (which are technically a part of Denmark).

This is when Capital One Venture miles would come in handy.  They’re great for traveling to remote destinations or smaller towns.

I could use points for an award flight to Copenhagen.  And then book a flight on Atlantic Airways, which is inaccessible with points, to make my dream of visiting the Faroe Islands a reality.  These flights can be pricey, so offsetting the cost would be a huge help!

If I have anything left over, I could use the sign-up bonus from the Capital One Venture card for a few nights at a local Airbnb.  Or to pay for a rental car to drive around the island(s).

2.   Explore Whitehorse or Yellowknife, Canada

If you can’t tell, I have a thing for cold, isolated places! 😉

I’d love to hike along Great Slave Lake, the deepest lake in North America, while visiting Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories.  Watching for the Northern Lights would be fun too, depending on the time of year.

Again, most flights to these remote places are expensive paid flights, although Air Canada and WestJet fly there.  Even if I found an award flight,  I could use the miles I’d earn from the Capital One Venture card to offset the cost of taxes and fees.  Or buy a flight outright and “erase” the charge later!

I could also use the miles from the sign-up bonus for lodging, camping, or a guided tour around the area.  I’d love to learn more about the history here!

3.   Hike in Patagonia

I adore Argentina and Chile, and haven’t spent nearly enough time in either.  I’d like to visit the Patagonia region, and particularly Tierra del Fuego, which is split across the island borders of both countries at the southern tip of South America – literally the end of the world.

Getting there requires considerable time and cost.  So having an extra $400 to put toward flights, a car rental, and park entrance fees would be amazing!

I typically use my miles & points to visit popular places, like New York, Amsterdam, or Tokyo.  But as I found out on a recent trip to Montana, out-of-the-way places can be surprisingly expensive, even with points in the mix.  I’d gladly welcome a quick and easy $400 to take the sting out of travel costs and splurge on amazing trips like these!

Capital One Venture Card Offer

Link:   Capital One® Venture® Card 

Link:   My Review of the Capital One Venture Card

With the Capital One Venture card, you can earn 40,000 Venture miles (worth $400 in travel) after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first 3 months.

You’ll also get:

• 2 Venture miles per $1 you spend on all purchases
• NO foreign transaction fees
• $59 annual fee, waived the first year

The card also comes with Visa Signature Benefits, which include:

• Rental car insurance – Secondary protection against collision or theft
• Travel accident insurance – Up to $250,000 insurance for accidental loss of life, limb, sight, speech or hearing
• Lost luggage insurance – Up to $3,000 per trip, provided the luggage was lost from theft or misdirection by the airline, cruise, etc.

And for folks who live near a Capital One Cafe, you can get 50% off coffee purchases when you pay with your Capital One debit or credit card.

Bottom Line

The 40,000 Venture mile sign-up bonus on the Capital One Venture card is worth $400 in travel purchases.

Team member Harlan would use the bonus to visit faraway places like the Faroe Islands, northern Canada, or Patagonia in South America.  And he’d offset the cost of expensive paid flights, rental cars, lodging, and other travel-related expenses.

Folks like Venture miles for their convenience.  Because after making a travel purchase with your card, you can simply “erase” the purchase with your miles!

How would you use the 40,000 Venture mile sign-up bonus from the Capital One Venture card?