Citi’s selection of airline and hotel transfer partners provides excellent travel redemption value with its programs. In addition to airlines, Citi also has some attractive partners like Choice Privileges and Wyndham Rewards which add even greater travel redemption value for travel using Citi programs.
This guide aims to show how Citi ThankYou points can be earned and redeemed with these travel partners, including how long it typically takes for points to transfer based on data from miles and points communities.
Airline Partners
Citi ThankYou points are one of the best ways to maximize their value, and Citi card issuer partners with over two dozen airlines and hotel loyalty programs, providing one-off promotions that improve transfer ratios.
Emirates provides one of the most generous redemptions for ThankYou points — New York to Singapore in first class can be reached for just 85,000 miles – which equates to savings of more than $6,000 from purchasing it on cash! Other Citi ThankYou Rewards airline partners provide exceptional value, such as Qatar Airlines with their highly regarded premium classes or Cathay Pacific with their Asia Miles program which can save a considerable amount when booking award flights throughout Southeast Asia.
Citi’s offers of airline and hotel transfer ratios among major U.S. credit cards are the most secure, making planning travel using Citi points much simpler. With bonuses for airline transfers available only occasionally, using your points to book travel can become much simpler!
Choice Privileges and Wyndham Rewards both provide exceptional luxury traveler value through their high-end brands, such as Ascend Hotel Collection, Cambria Hotels and Nordic Choice Hotels. You can even earn more through Citi Premier or Prestige card transfers to Wyndham Rewards; for example 50,000 ThankYou points transferred at 1 to 2 ratio can be redeemed against booking these hotels via Ascend Hotel Collection, Cambria Hotels or Nordic Choice Hotels! You could also cash out your ThankYou points for stays at Vacasa vacation rentals via Wyndham Rewards transfers using Citi Premier or Prestige card transfer ratios!
Citi cardholders will find many airline and hotel partners suitable, from airline seats to hotel stays – with Citi points not expiring as long as your account remains open and in good standing!
Citi does not currently offer co-branded airline or hotel credit cards that allow users to earn points directly with specific programs; however, you may still earn valuable points with Citi cards such as the Premier and Prestige Cards; however, to access all transfer partners provided by Citi, additional cards may be needed that earn these points.
Hotel Partners
Citi’s hotel program partnerships offer great value when used for high-end redemptions, and are now expanded with the inclusion of Accor Live Limitless. But most redemptions will find greater savings by switching over to airline partners instead.
Citi ThankYou points can be redeemed through the Citi Travel Center for airfares, hotels and cruises. When redeeming for flights, their value varies based on destination and redemption level – though Citi has relationships with airlines from all three airline alliances, allowing cardholders to book premium cabins on international routes that otherwise might not be possible through other programs.
Airline partners tend to offer the best value when redeeming airfare, but there are other options available as well. Citi ThankYou points can be transferred at a 1:1 ratio into Choice Privileges and used at Ascend Hotels Collection, Cambria Hotels or Nordic Choice Hotels for great values; or converted into Avianca LifeMiles to fly domestic or international with Colombian carrier Avianca which is part of Star Alliance; or converted into Accor Live Limitless loyalty program which encompasses multiple hotel brands including Raffles or Sofitel loyalty programs for hotels including Raffles or Sofitel hotels.
Citi’s Reward Program includes various redemption options, such as gift cards, merchandise and bill payments. Cardholders can also take advantage of its “Points Sharing” feature to share rewards among multiple members and increase rewards further.
Citi offers several credit cards that earn Citi ThankYou points, including Citi Premier, Prestige and Rewards+ cards. In addition, it partners with several shopping loyalty programs that can help cardholders earn points and miles – rivalling Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards and Capital One Miles as transferable point programs – but boasts more airline/hotel partners as well as higher gift card values than many of them.
Consider that Citi ThankYou points take between one and three days to be transferred into an airline’s frequent flyer program account, with some partners such as EVA Air, Qantas and Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus not suitable for U.S. travelers due to limited flight availability or high award prices.
Loyalty Programs
Citi offers many redemption options for its points, such as gift cards and cash back, but the highest value lies with airline and hotel partners. Most partners allow transfers in increments of 1,000 points; transfering to airline partners offers you more value on flights and hotels; plus Citi offers transfer bonuses to certain partners!
NerdWallet estimates the average value of a Citi ThankYou point is approximately 0.8 cents; however, cardholders can earn much more using Citi’s travel portal or by transferring their points to specific partner airlines and hotel chains such as Air France / KLM Flying Blue, JetBlue TrueBlue, Choice Privileges, Emirates Skywards or Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Each program offers its own rewards structure and offerings, such as redeeming Citi ThankYou points for free or discounted flights and hotel stays; each also comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
Flying Blue can be an excellent transfer partner but may prove challenging when booking award flights due to the way it prices awards – using distance-based award charts that pass along fuel surcharges to partners, making booking a flight using miles more costly than paying cash upfront for the ticket.
JetBlue’s revenue-based award system can offer exceptional value and is easy to navigate when using either Citi ThankYou Preferred or Citi Rewards+ cards. Plus, its extensive network provides access to premium cabins on every route – making JetBlue an excellent option for travelers wanting more time in the air!
Choice Privileges is an excellent hotel transfer partner, providing great savings at mid-tier and higher hotels such as Ascend Hotel Collection, Cambria Hotels and Nordic Choice hotels. However, the brand may not be known for luxury properties; even their most premium properties in the U.S. typically only provide modest value. NerdWallet recommends making small transfers over time to take advantage of any bonus offers that may arise with this partner.
Other Partners
Citi’s extensive airline and hotel transfer partners deliver tremendous value when redeeming points for travel, according to NerdWallet estimates. Transferring points yields a redemption rate of 1 cent or more per point transferred, plus its hotel partners typically offer more valuable gift card redemption options than those provided by other major credit cards.
Airline transfer partners include Turkish Airlines and EVA Air, which are often not supported by other programs. Citi’s airline partner list also features first class suites on Singapore Airlines as well as Qatar’s Qsuites business class seats; overall, Citi represents all three major airline alliances.
Citi’s hotel transfer partners include Choice Privileges and Wyndham Rewards – two high-end hotel brands where Citi offers great value in exchanging ThankYou points. Choice, for example, provides a 1:2 ratio (1 ThankYou point equals 2 Choice points), while Wyndham provides unbeatable deals when booking hotels under Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Cambria Hotels or Nordic Choice Hotels brands.
One partner that stands out among others is Shop Your Way. This loyalty program lets you accumulate ThankYou points for purchases made at Sears and Kmart stores as well as online. Each ThankYou point converts into 10 Shop Your Way points.
Non-travel redemptions include gift cards, merchandise and restaurant purchases – some may not offer good value but still provide useful flexibility when planning limited travel plans. Citi ThankYou Travel Center allows users to book flights and hotels using points as well – however this center generally provides poor redemption values on most redemptions.
Other Citi points redemption methods, like cash back and statement credits, may not be worth it for most travelers. While cash back and statement credits might seem attractive due to their ease of use, you typically only end up getting between 0.5 cents to 0.83 cents per point through these redemption methods. When possible, transfer your Citi points directly to airline and hotel partners; if that is not an option then redeem through the Citi Travel Center instead for flights, hotels, cruises and rental cars.
