Best credit cards for international travel
For international travel, the forex markup matters more than the reward rate. A 3.5% forex fee costs you ₹3,500 on every ₹1 lakh spent abroad, wiping out all rewards. We ranked cards on a typical ₹33,000/month overseas spend profile, prioritising zero or low forex markup, international lounge access and travel insurance.
Last updated: · Based on current card termsThe AU Bank Zenith Credit Card offers a genuinely well-built rewards structure and a strong lounge benefit stack, but its value proposition is shifting meaningfully from October 2026: the forex markup nearly doubles to 3.49% and the fuel surcharge waiver shrinks 90%, both changes already disclosed on the bank's own page. If you're evaluating this card for its currently-advertised low forex rate, know that advantage is about to largely disappear - the reward structure and lounge access remain the more durable reasons to hold it.
The Axis Atlas earns 5 EDGE Miles per ₹100 on airlines and hotels and 2 on most other spends, at ₹1 a mile on Travel EDGE. Lounge access and bonus miles grow with your annual spend, so it suits travellers who put ₹7.5 lakh or more a year on the card.
The Scapia Axis Bank Credit Card brings the popular Scapia proposition (zero fees, zero forex, unlimited lounge access) to a much larger Axis Bank customer base, likely with easier approval than its Federal Bank or BOBCard versions. Its headline "10% Scapia Coins" figure sounds higher than it really is - once converted at Scapia's own 5-coins-to-₹1 rate, the real effective return is closer to 2%, still solid for a lifetime-free card, just not as dramatic as the marketing suggests. The long list of category exclusions and the newness of this specific launch mean it is worth watching for how terms hold up over time.
| # | Card | A year | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Scapia Federal Bank Travel rewards with zero forex and lounge access | ₹7,920 | Free |
| 5 | HSBC TravelOne Frequent international travellers wanting flexible airmiles across 20 airline and hotel partners | ₹7,721 | ₹4,999 |
| 6 | Kotak Air+ Travelers who will consistently book flights and hotels through the Kotak Unbox app and redeem miles there directly, rather than transferring to partner programs | ₹4,920 | ₹3,000 |
| 7 | Kotak Air Occasional travelers wanting a simple, low-fee entry point into Air Miles, more suited to light spenders than Kotak's own Air+ variant | ₹2,961 | ₹999 |
| 8 | Federal Celesta Lifetime free travel card with low forex markup, lounge access and 20+ transfer partners | ₹2,340 | Free |
| 9 | IndusInd Tiger High annual spenders able to reach the ₹5L+ slab for the strongest multiplier, wanting real lounge access with no minimum spend gate and low forex | ₹2,297 | Free |
| 10 | RBL IRCTC Frequent IRCTC train travellers who will use the railway lounges and want cancellation protection, not a general-purpose rewards card | ₹1,480 | ₹500 |
Get your personalised recommendation
Enter your exact monthly spend and we'll calculate your real annual faayda
We calculated the net annual benefit for every card in our database using verified reward rates on a typical travel spend profile, then ranked by net benefit after subtracting the annual fee. Cards with waivable fees were evaluated at zero cost if the spend threshold is realistic.
What to look for in a travel credit card
Beyond the headline reward rate, check whether the card has a monthly cap on cashback, whether the reward is actual cashback or redeemable points, and whether the annual fee is waivable at your spend level.
Should you get more than one card?
Many smart spenders hold 2 cards: one optimised for their top category and one flat-rate card for everything else. Use our personalised tool to find the best combination for your full spend profile.