Traverse Credit Card

A month abroad on Traverse

Say you spend ₹40,000 overseas in a month and ₹20,000 at home. At a 0.99% forex markup, the foreign part costs you about ₹396 in markup. A typical card at 3.5% would charge about ₹1,400 on the same spend, so you keep roughly ₹1,000 before GST on the markup.

On points, the ₹40,000 abroad earns 4 Reward Points per ₹100, or 1,600 points. The ₹20,000 at home earns 2 per ₹100, or 400 points. That is 2,000 points for the month. We do not hold AU's point value for this card, so we cannot turn that into a rupee figure. Ask AU before you count on it.

The forex saving is the part you can bank on. The points are a bonus of unknown size.

What you pay, and what comes back

Traverse costs ₹4,999 + GST to join and the same each year, about ₹5,899 with tax. AU waives the renewal fee if you spend ₹6 lakh in a card-anniversary year, which is ₹50,000 a month. Some older data says ₹8 lakh; the current figure on the AU side is ₹6 lakh.

In return you get:

• A ₹5,000 MakeMyTrip voucher when you activate the card, which roughly covers the first fee before GST.
• 2 domestic lounge visits a quarter, 8 a year.
• International lounge access. Our older data shows 4 visits a year, but AU's page does not give a count, so confirm it.
• 4 airport spa visits a year, capped at 1 a quarter.
• Airport meet-and-assist with VIP check-in.
• ₹500 cashback on a duty-free spend of ₹10,000 or more (check the terms).

Insurance, utility and telecom payments earn just 1 point per ₹100, with a monthly cap.

Will AU ask you for a fixed deposit?

This is the biggest complaint in the user threads. Users say that unless you already have a large relationship with AU, the bank often issues Traverse against a fixed deposit of about ₹1 lakh to ₹8 lakh. That is user-reported, not a stated AU rule, but it came up in 4 threads.

Before you apply, ask whether your profile gets the card unsecured, how much deposit is needed if not, and what credit limit that deposit buys. Money in an FD still earns interest, but it is held as security for the card, so ask how and when you can release it.

Users also report a ₹99 + GST fee each time you redeem points. Redeem in larger batches.

Why NRIs keep naming it

Most people discussing Traverse online are NRIs who fly home to India often. The perk they mention most is meet-and-assist with no spend condition, which they say makes trips with elderly parents or small children much easier. The low forex markup comes a close second. The sample is small, and many of the threads are general NRI card discussions rather than Traverse reviews.

AU also sells the Zenith+ Credit Card at the same ₹4,999 fee with 0.99% forex and meet-and-assist. Its fee waiver needs ₹8 lakh of spend, against ₹6 lakh here. If AU offers you both, ask for each reward grid and compare on your own spends.

Is Traverse worth ₹4,999?

Yes, if you spend abroad every month, fly through Indian airports with family a few times a year and will actually use the lounges, spa visits and meet-and-assist. The forex saving alone can cover a good part of the fee on ₹1 lakh or more of foreign spend a year.

No, if you would have to lock up several lakh in an FD you might need, or if you mainly want rewards at home. A zero-fee card like IDFC FIRST WOW also has a low forex markup without the ₹5,899 yearly cost.

Credit Card Information Compiled by: Abhijeet Kumar | Reviewed by: Anmol Ratan Sachdeva