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5 Things to Know About the Fairwinds Credit Card
It’s highly valuable for credit union members who don’t mind booking travel through the Fairwinds portal. But most people will find a general travel card more useful.
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Updated Sep 29, 2025 6:29 a.m. PDT · 2 min read
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The Fairwinds Visa Signature Credit Card can be a good travel option for Fairwinds members. The $95-annual-fee card, offered by the Florida-based credit union, earns high rewards for travel, dining and, uniquely, theme park tickets. Cardholders can also get a higher value for their points when they redeem them through the Fairwinds travel portal.
However, the card does come with a few snags. For one, you must be a member of Fairwinds credit union to get the card, which requires a small deposit. Additionally, the most lucrative redemption options are limited to the Fairwinds portal, and the card lacks the kind of travel-specific perks that similarly priced general travel cards tend to feature.
Here are five things to know about the Fairwinds Visa Signature Credit Card.
🤓Nerdy Tip
Fairwinds also offers a cash-back option — the Preferred Cash Back Visa Signature — which earns an unlimited 1.5% back on all purchases. This $0-annual-fee card also comes with an introductory APR offer.
» MORE: NerdWallet’s best credit union credit cards
1. Fairwinds membership is required
Card applicants must establish Fairwinds credit union membership when applying. Membership is available nationwide, and you can apply for the card regardless of where you live in the U.S.
However, once you’re approved for the card, you must pay a $5 deposit to become a member of the credit union.
2. It earns high rewards for niche and common spending
One of the card’s unique features is its 5x rewards rate on theme park tickets — a rare and niche bonus category. It also earns rewards on more common everyday categories like travel and dining. Here’s what cardholders get:
5 points per $1 spent on theme park tickets. (Note that the 5x rate only applies to theme park tickets, including annual theme park ticket holder memberships. Purchases made at theme parks will not qualify.)
5 points per $1 spent on travel, including airlines, vehicle rentals, hotels, cruises and rideshare services like Uber.
3 points per $1 spent on dining.
2 points per $1 spent on all other purchases.
In addition to the elevated rates on travel, theme parks and dining, cardholders get a higher-than-normal flat rate of 2 points back on everything else they buy. Most tiered rewards cards typically offer 1 point back — or at most 1.5X back — for non-bonus category spending.
3. Travel redemption is valuable
When redeemed for travel, points are worth 1.5 cent each, which is an exceptional value — more than what points and miles from some of the best travel credit cards on the market are worth. The caveat here is that you must book directly through the Fairwinds portal to receive the 1.5 cent redemption rate, and the credit union doesn’t offer any transfer partners.
Through the portal, cardholders can redeem points for flights, hotels and experiences from a number of popular airlines, properties and brands. They include American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue, United, Southwest, JW Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Hilton, Avis, Budget, Enterprise, and more. Those popular, mass-market merchants make the portal highly accommodating for a variety of travelers.
Still, being tied to the portal for a points boost is limiting. Points can also be redeemed for dining, entertainment, gift cards and more, but they’re worth a lower, albeit still competitive, 1 cent each for those non-travel options. And, notably, you cannot redeem points for cash back.
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For a card with more flexibility, consider the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. It charges an annual fee of $95 (see rates and fees) and earns high travel rewards: 5 miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and car rentals booked through Capital One Travel, and 2 miles per dollar spent on purchases. Miles can be redeemed for statement credit against travel purchases, used to book travel through Capital One, or transferred to multiple partner airline and hotel programs. Per-mile value varies depending on which redemption option you choose. For example, they’re worth as high as 1.6 cents each when transferred to and redeemed through certain partner programs.
» MORE: NerdWallet’s best travel credit cards
4. New applicants can earn a big bonus
As of September 2025, new applicants can earn 60,000 points when they spend $5,000 in the first three months from account opening. When redeemed for travel through Fairwinds, the bonus is worth a substantial $900 in value.
» MORE: NerdWallet’s best credit card bonuses
5. There are few travel perks
The Fairwinds Visa Signature Credit Card doesn’t charge a foreign transaction fee, which means it’s a good card to take abroad. But beyond that and its ongoing travel rewards, the card doesn’t come with some travel-specific perks that similarly-priced cards do.
For instance, the aforementioned Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offers additional benefits like a credit toward the application fee for Global Entry or TSA Precheck when you pay with the card; travel protections, including trip cancellation/interruption coverage and rental car coverage; and more. Terms apply.
» MORE: A beginner’s guide to traveling on points and miles
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