CITI THANK YOU POINTS ARE NOW TRANSFERABLE TO AIRLINE PARTNERS
This post is for those of you who like me earn thousands of miles through your rewards credit card bonuses and spending earnings. We then use these miles to fly all over the world. If you aren’t using these tools to travel yet then you should consider doing so if you love travel. If you spend any money every month you could be maximizing every dollar you spend to earn free travel if using the appropriate rewards credit cards.
So just recently news broke that Citibank’s ThankYou Point program will now have airline partners. This is a great step in the right direction for a program which is considered very weak by many frequent mile collectors. Most collectors would agree that the top programs are offered by Chase Bank and American Express. This is because their programs offer virtually anyway to use your points and great flexibility when redeeming them. That being said, Citibank has recognized this and is trying to move more into this direction with the adding of airline partners.
New partners include:
- Cathay Pacific
- EVA Air
- Etihad
- Garuda Indonesia
- Malaysia Airlines
- Qatar Airways
- Singapore Airlines
- Thai Airways
- Air France
In my option, the best partners are Cathy Pacific and Singapore Airlines but all could be useful depending upon where you are flying in the world. There are partners from all three star alliances (Star Alliance, OneWorld, and SkyTeam). Points transfer at a 1:1 ratio. Note though that Hilton Honors points can be transferred at 1,500 HHonors points : 1,000 ThankYou points. So this could be valuable if you have a stash of Hilton Honors points and want to transfer to an airline partner for a flight.
Only cardholders of the following credit cards can transfer their points: Citi ThankYou® Premier Card, the Citi Prestige® Card, and the Citi Chairman® American Express® Card..
- The Citi Chairman® American Express® Card – This card has a high annual fee and only offers 1x point per dollar.
- The Citi Prestige® Card also has a high annual fee of $450. Benefits include: Complimentary access to American Airlines Admirals Club® lounges, a $200 annual airline fee credit, along with a $100 Global Entry application fee credit.
This card also offers 2x points on dining.
Sign up bonus: 30,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after $2,000 in purchases within the first 3 months.
RECOMMENDED CARD
The Citi ThankYou® Premier Card
- 20,000 points after $2,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening
- 30,000 points after another $3000 in purchases within the first 3 months of your second year of being a cardmember
- 3x points on dining and entertainment, 2x points on airfare and hotel, and 1x point per dollar spent on everything else
- The annual fee is waived the first year, and $125 per year thereafter
If you’re new to miles & points, there are definitely more lucrative sign-up bonuses out there. Get the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Ink Plus® Business Card, and/or Ink Bold® Business Card before considering this card.
But if you are like me and have all these cards, this might be something to consider to assist in meeting your travel needs. You can also check out all the other great credit card bonuses available right now on this page here. I update this page regularly and try to list some of the best rewards credit cards and the highest bonuses I know are available online even though they may not be publicly advertised.
