Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card Review: Excellent Choice for Flying Over the Pond

The Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card is your ticket to the Emerald Isle. With a fat welcome offer and a slew of travel perks, it's perfect for those who fly frequently to Ireland or the U.K. If you want to save money for your next flight across the pond, let's take a look at what the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card has to offer.

This credit card is a good fit for: High-income travelers who fly Aer Lingus frequently between the U.S. and Ireland or the U.K.

Top perks

The Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card has some really exciting travel perks, including multiple opportunities to fly you and a companion to Ireland and back. Let's take a look at this credit card's biggest features.

Huge sign-up bonus

By far this card's most impressive perk is the opportunity to earn 85,000 Avios when you spend $5,000 within the first three months of opening your account.

With 85,000 Avios, you could fly between Dublin and U.S. East Coast cities (like Boston, New York, and Philadelphia) almost three times with economy class and during off-peak season.

Annual companion economy ticket

Another exciting perk is the chance to earn a free companion economy ticket when you spend $30,000 within a calendar year. The ticket is good for 12 months and can be used to fly between the U.S. and Ireland or the U.K.

Decent cash back rates

The Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card earns:

• 3X Avios per $1 spent on purchases with Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, and LEVEL.
• 2X Avios per $1 spent on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel.
• 1X Avios per $1 spent on all other purchases.

Clearly, this travel credit card is designed for those who fly frequently with Aer Lingus and its partners (British Airways and Iberia). But earning 3 Avios per $1 is on-par with other credit cards we've reviewed. For example, the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card earns 3 miles per $1 on Delta purchases (terms apply), while the United Quest℠ Card earns 3 miles per $1 on United purchases.

Priority boarding

Primary cardholders and authorized users can board with priority flyers on Aer Lingus flights flying between the U.S. and Ireland or the U.K. All you have to do is show your Aer Lingus card at the gate and you can board early.

Low annual fee

For the rewards and annual economy ticket, the $95 annual fee is not too shabby. If you're a frequent flyer between the U.S. and Ireland or the U.K, this airline card can easily pay for itself in rewards and savings.

Card is jam-packed with insurance

In addition to its rewards potential, the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card is loaded with free insurance. Here's what you get when you use your card for travel and shopping.

• Lost luggage reimbursement: Get up to $3,000 of coverage per passenger when checked or carry-on luggage is damaged or lost.
• Baggage delay insurance: If your baggage is delayed by over six hours, this insurance reimburses you $100 per day for three days.
• Extended warranty protection: This extra shopping insurance extends a manufacturer's warranty by an extra year.
• Purchase protection: New purchases get 120 days of protection from theft or damages. Each claim has a maximum of $500 and each account can claim up to $50,000.

No foreign transaction fee

As even more icing on the cake, the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card charges no foreign transaction fees. So whether you're buying a Guinness in the U.S. or Ireland or, shoot, even Costa Rica or New Zealand, you won't pay an extra fee.

What could be improved

While this card has big earning potential for frequent Aer Lingus flyers, it's definitely not for everyone. Here are a few drawbacks you should consider.

Companion ticket requires big spending

To get the annual companion ticket, you need to charge at least $30,000 to this card per calendar year. That comes out to $2,500 per month. The payoff is pretty sweet -- a free ticket to Ireland or the U.K. -- but if you're not traveling frequently or spending that kind of money, other rewards cards could earn you potentially more for your spending.

Not great for U.S. domestic travel

Don't expect this card to give you much for flights between cities in the U.S. Its purpose is to reward you when you fly across the pond, whether that's to Ireland, the U.K., or Spain. If you're flying anywhere else, you're better off with another airline card.

To get the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card, you should aim to have a FICO® Score of 670 or higher. That said, the card is issued by Chase and will follow the Chase 5/24 rule. This rule states that if you've opened five or more credit cards within the last 24 months, Chase will deny your application.

• You fly frequently between the U.S. and Europe.
• You want to earn more points for flights booked with Aer Lingus and its partners.
• You can spend $5,000 within the card's first three months to get the bonus.
• You don't mind paying a $95 annual fee.

Our credit card methodology

At The Motley Fool Ascent, we rate credit cards on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). Our rating criteria includes rewards rates, welcome bonuses, fees, and perks like travel credits and 0% intro APR offers to evaluate our ratings.

We combine these factors with an evaluation of brand reputation and customer satisfaction to ensure you're getting the best card recommendations. Learn more about how The Ascent rates credit cards.