One Chase credit card that has often been overlooked is the Fairmont Visa. Compared to many other cards, the sign up bonus really isn’t that great. It has the makings for a really nice weekend getaway, but that is about it. The main perks of the card are:
- 2 free night certificates after $3,000 in spending in the first 3 months
- Automatic Premier status with Fairmont (which gives 1 suite upgrade, 1 room upgrade, and a $50 dining credit)
- Earns 5x at Fairmont properties, 2x for airlfare and car rentals
- No foreign transaction fees
- Redeem points for gift cards at $0.01 per point, or redeem for a night at a Fairmont starting at 25,000 points
The annual fee is waived the first year, but is then $95 annually thereafter. It is unclear what will happen to the card eventually (there is speculation at DoC that is will be converted to a Chase Freedom Unlimited). My Chase Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard was converted into a Chase Freedom some months ago. Getting a CFU through the Fairmont card (after getting the sign-up bonus) would be sweet!
My experience applying
I had never really considered applying for the Fairmont Visa card until the news broke that it is being discontinued, probably because Fairmont was purchased by Accor Hotels. There are two links still working for the Chase Farimont Visa (at least when I applied), sourced by Doctor of Credit. Yesterday I applied through the first one, and within seconds got a message.
It sounded positive. I hoped that all I’d have to do is shift some credit limits around, since that it why I figured I wasn’t approved outright. I’m at ~20/24, but I had read that the Fairmont card isn’t subject to the “5/24 rule.”
Today, Saturday, I finally got around to calling. The Chase rep picked up literally within seconds. I gave him my name and reference number, he asked some simple identity verification questions, paused, and then said, “Congratulations, you’ve been approved for the Chase Fairmont Visa card with a credit limit of $9,000.” So much for shifting credit limits. That was the easiest bank call I’ve had in ages!
My wife and I don’t have specific plans, but there are 4 Fairmont hotels within 5 hours of where we live, so this card bonus has the makings for a nice weekend in the Bay Area at a minimum. I would much rather use it at Lake Louise in Banff (to also take advantage of the free Canadian Parks in 2017), but I don’t see us getting there this year.
Act fast if you’re interested! The application link could easily die anytime.
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
I’d use it at Banff or Lake Louise Alberta. The Canadian Rockies is one of my favorite places in the world. I’m trying to plan a trip to Lake Louise, Banff and Jasper national parks in 2017…..But I plan on going in winter. I want to ride the Alaskan Marine Highway in winter too. So my trip will be a combination of plane, train and ferry.
How can you know for sure it wont count against the 5/24 rule?
i am at 5/24 now and in March I will drop to 4/24 and plan on getting the chase reserve. I would hate to jeopardize that.
It’s only my assumption from the data points reported by a number of people. I usually check Doctor of Credit to get a feel on whether a card is under “5/24”. My own data point: I’m at about 20/24, and I was approved just fine.
This has been our favorite CC for years. We’ve stayed at some of the most iconic hotels in the world, include the Chateau Lake Louise in Banff NP, the Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City, The Chateau Laurier in Ottawa, both Fairmont’s in Bermuda and an upcoming spring stay in Montreux, Switzerland. Some of our best vacations have been those planned around our annual free night certificates. I always thought this CC and I would grow old together.
It is certainly a bummer that it is going away. 🙁
The few Fairmont’s I’ve seen in person all definitely have exquisite exteriors. I love the castle-y look of many in Canada. The one in Quebec City is impressive, towering over the old part of town.
I *really* hope my wife and I can use the 2 free nights in Banff, but it is highly unlikely.
We just returned from Big Island Hawaii where we used our two free nights at the Fairmont Orchid Kona. It was wonderful, amazing, beautiful and a fun way to end our trip feeling like fancy rich people. I was hoping to keep this card for the free night for every 12K spent. Do you think that will go away as well? And if I am half way there do I suddenly lose that perk? That would be very upsetting.
You would if they discontinue the card. I had my Amtrak card converted into a Chase Freedom some months ago. My guess is that Chase will eventually discontinue the product completely, converting them to other cards, but it could still be a while. If you were *really* close to a free night if/when this happens, I would reach out to Chase to see if they could still get you a voucher.
I was approved for the Fairmont card two weeks ago. After I received the Chase credit card last Friday, I logged into my President’s Club account to confirm I had received the dining, room and suite upgrade certificates. I did, the only problem was they all expire on 2/28/17, not in one year as expected.
Would appreciate any feedback if anyone else had a similar experience.
I noticed that too on my account. Although I don’t remember reading anywhere saying you had a year to use them. Maybe they roll over the next year? This might be worth calling in to ask about. I already used my 2 free nights but they didn’t have any upgrades available so I didn’t get to use either of them:(