Best of Articles, Airfare, South America
Updated on Wed, 04 Feb 2026
South America offers incredible travel value, but airfare is one area where points and miles often fall short. Award flights frequently come with high taxes that erase much of the savings, making cash the better option in many cases. Flexibility matters more than chasing low mileage prices, and while opportunities to use points do exist, they are inconsistent. The cards below give you the best options when points do make sense.
Our Rankings
1 | Capital One Venture X
We chose the Capital One Venture X for the flexibility it offers. Capital One partners with Avianca, which, along with LATAM, provides the most coverage around the continent. While Avianca often offers low points prices, taxes can be high enough that paying cash makes more sense, especially on shorter flights like Bogota to Quito or Lima. What pushes the Venture X to the top is the ability to erase any travel purchase you make. You’ll only get 1¢ per point, but if you have Capital One miles to burn and don’t want to pay cash, it’s a strong fallback option. This flexibility lets you compare booking with points plus taxes, paying cash outright, or erasing the purchase after the fact and choosing what works best for your situation.
Honorable Mentions
2 | Citi Strata Premier
The Citi Strata Premier makes this list because of its partnerships with Avianca and American. We’ve already covered the pros and cons of Avianca above. American can also be useful, but only in select situations. Award availability is very limited in the northern half of the continent, though you can sometimes find decent value in the southern half, such as flights between Santiago and Buenos Aires. We chose the Premier over the Elite here because availability is inconsistent, and we don’t recommend paying a higher annual fee solely to access these limited redemption opportunities.
Honorable Mentions
3 | Amex Blue Business Plus
Amex earns a spot on this list primarily because it partners with Avianca. It also transfers to Delta, which can sometimes be useful for booking LATAM-operated flights, though value is inconsistent and paying cash often makes more sense. We chose the Blue Business Plus because it’s the only no-annual-fee Amex card that earns transferable Membership Rewards points. You do need to qualify for a business card to get it. If you prefer a personal card, the Amex Green is the next best low-fee option for earning Membership Rewards.
Honorable Mentions
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