2019 Citibank Prestige Deep Dive Review
Citibank Prestige Deep Dive Review 2019
Citibank Prestige Card
Key Benefits
5x Flights and Restaurants
3x Hotels and Cruise Lines
4th Night Free benefit
$250 Travel Credit every calendar year
To the Point
The Citi Prestige has taken on a sparkling new refresh for 2019. With the increased hype of travel rewards card's there has been an increase in anticipation around Citi's release of this revamped premium travel credit card. Citi has added huge 5x Flights and Dining categories to compete with the industry's top contenders, the Chase Sapphire Reserve and American Express Platinum and Gold cards. The Prestige was introduced with a sign up bonus of 50,000 Citi ThankYou points (TY) after spending $4,000 within 3 months of account opening, which Citi estimates is redeemable for $500 in travel when booked though the ThankYou Travel Center (www.thankyou.com). We believe you can squeeze even more value out of those 50k points and value them at $850 (approximately 0.017/TY when fully optimized with a transfer partner redemption). The Prestige has added several new and upgraded travel reward bonus categories including flights, restaurants, hotels, and even cruise lines with generous multipliers. Cardholders receive a $250 travel credit each calendar year. Perhaps, the main reason one would apply for this card is the very unique 4th night free benefit which is a massive selling point for anyone who wants a free night on a 4 night hotel stay! There is no limit on 4th night free stays until 09/01/2019, so there is absurd value presented by this card with this benefit alone. Another important benefit is the extensive trip insurance that Citi offers, giving you the peace of mind of reimbursement when you book a pricey trip and something unexpected occurs. Citi has come into 2019 looking quite unique and strong introducing the Prestige as their best new luxury premium credit card. Will the Prestige fit in your 2019 wallet? It does come with a $495 annual fee, but with all the benefits, the Points Passport can certainly assist you in getting much greater value out of it.
Deep Dive into the Citi Prestige Card's Benefits
5x ThankYou Points on purchases with airlines and travel agencies.
5x ThankYou Points on purchases at restaurants worldwide which include cafe's bars, lounges, and fast food restaurants. You will not earn 5x TY on purchases made at bakeries, caterers, restaurants/cafes inside other establishments such as grocery stores, hotels, department or convenience stores, or warehouse clubs. You will also not earn 5x TY making purchases through an online dining delivery service.
3x ThankYou Points on hotel purchases.
3x ThankYou Points on cruise line purchases.
1x ThankYou Points for all other purchases.
$250 Travel Credit. The travel credit is a statement credit which you are eligible to receive each calendar year for eligible travel purchases. Travel purchases are defined as purchases made within the travel category, including purchases from airlines, hotels, car rental agencies, travel agencies, travel aggregators, tours, commuter transportation, ferries, railways, subways, car services, taxis, cruise lines, bus lines, tolls and parking. Your travel credit should post within two billing cycles after the qualify purchase was charged to your card.
Priority Pass Membership which provides unlimited access to 1200+ airport lounges worldwide. Cardholders may bring two guests into a lounge and will be charges for any guest after.
4th Night Free Hotel Benefit:
Cardholders will enjoy a complimentary fourth night when booking at least four consecutive nights at any hotel. To be eligible for the free night, you must book the consecutive four night stay through thankyou.com, by phone with 1-800-THANKYOU, or by using the Citi Prestige Concierge. This benefit has no limit on free nights until 09/01/2019.
Beginning on 09/01/2019, the Citi Prestige Concierge will no longer be available to book fourth night free bookings and they must be made through thankyou.com or by calling 1-800-THANKYOU to be eligible for the free night. Also beginning 09/01/2019, card members will be eligible for no more than two fourth night free benefits per card account per calendar year. Bookings prior to 09/01/19 will not count toward the two free night limit in 2019.
Reservations must be made on the primary cardholder's card, not an authorized user, and reservations must be in the primary cardholder’s name. You can only receive one complimentary night per stay. Citi considers a "stay" as consecutive nights booked and stayed on one reservation. Back-to-back stays at the same hotel booked on two reservations would still only be eligible for one free night. When booking multiple rooms on the same reservation, only one room will qualify for the complementary night. Package rates, such as air, hotel, and rental car deals do not qualify for a free night.
After booking your eligible fourth night free stay, the amount due to you for the free night will be based on the average nightly rate of your stay, excluding taxes and fees. You should receive the statement credit within two billing cycles when booked through the Citi Prestige Concierge, but if you book through thankyou.com or 1-800-THANKYOU, the free night savings will be provided at the time of booking.
There have been multiple reports that booking hotel stays through this third party concierge or website will void your ability to utilize your hotel elite status or earn points or nights toward higher status. This is a massive deal breaker for most people in the points and miles community. If you gain huge value from executive lounges, free breakfast or upgraded rooms, the fourth night free might not be worth it depending on your stay.
$100 Global Entry or TSA Pre-Check Application Fee Credit. Receive a $100 statement credit for your Global Entry or TSA Pre-Check application. To receive this statement credit, the application fee must be charged on your Citi Prestige card to qualify.
No Foreign Transactions Fees. Use this card worldwide without being charged those sneaky extra fees!
Citi Price Rewind. An extremely valuable price protection where you are able to catalog purchases and the rewind website will search for the same product with a cheaper price and reimburse you with the difference. Citi allows you to earn up to $200 per item back, up to $1,000 per year. Just Visit: www.citipricerewind.com
Trip Cancellation and Interruption Protection. If a trip is canceled, interrupted, or extended for a covered reason, you may be reimbursed up to $5,000 per trip. To be eligible for coverage under this benefit, you must have used your Prestige or ThankYou points to purchase at least a portion of the trip. In the event of a partial payment you will only be reimbursed the actual paid amount on your card. This is by far one the most valuable benefits of any credit card in a worst case scenario. Click here to see what constitutes as a covered traveler or covered reason for cancellation or interruption.
Trip Delay Protection. Citi has a very generous trip delay coverage of a maximum of $500 that covers such expenses as lodging, ground transportation, meals, and personal necessities, which are incurred after a trip is delayed at least 6 hours. Citi defines a trip as any transportation that a passenger purchases a ticket for such as planes, trains, ferries, and cruise ships. The trip must to be purchased, at least partially, using your Citi Prestige or ThankYou points. All of your family members and even your fiancé or domestic partner are includes in this protection as long as their fares were also purchased with the Prestige. The trip coverage benefit allows reimbursement for up to $500 per eligible traveler and up to $5,000 per trip.
Missed Event Ticket Protection. If something unexpected keeps you from using your event, tickets including sporting events, concerts, and lectures, may be reimbursed for up to $500 per ticket as long as it was purchased with your Prestige card. There is a maximum coverage of $5,000 per calendar year. Taxes and nonrefundable ticket fees including convenience and shipping fees will also be covered.
Lost Baggage Protection. If your baggage is stolen, lost or damaged, you are covered for up to $3,000 per traveler ($200 for New York Residents) and $10,000 per trip. Again you must make the travel purchase with the Prestige for you or your companion's to be eligible for this benefit.
Purchase Protection. If an item is purchased on your Prestige card and it is damaged, or stolen within 90 days of purchase or delivery (whichever is first), Citi may reimburse cardholders for the amount they paid on the Prestige card. Cardholders are covered for up to $10,000 per incident and up to $50,000 per year.
Extended Warranty. If you make a purchase with your Prestige card you will receive an additional 24 months of warranty which begins on the expiration date of the original manufacturer's warranty. There is a maximum coverage of $10,000 per item and a maximum of 7 years of coverage from the purchase date.
Value Proposition
At the Points Passport, we like to make the value proposition of the cards we review easy to understand. In order to do that, we break down the value into two parts: the initial sign up and the sustaining cost that occur every year after.
Phase 1 - the Sign-Up Offer
With the current sign up offer for the Citi Prestige being 50,000 ThankYou points and based on a Citi ThankYou point value of $0.017/point, the value is as follows:
50,000 Citi ThankYou Sign Up Offer x $0.017 = $850
First Year Benefits:
$250 Travel Credit
4th Night Free benefit has no limit on free nights until 09/01/2019. Due to the unlimited use case of the fourth night free until 09/01/2019 there can be huge value if you are a power hotel user, but to keep it relatable for the average traveler we will assign a 2x free night at an average hotel rate of $250 a night since beginning on 09/01/2019, you will have a limit for 2x nights per calendar year. Fortunately, the bookings prior to 09/01/2019 will not count against your 2x night limit in 2019 so you can still book 2x more fourth night free after 09/01/2019. For this value example we will assign 2x free nights at a $250/night value equaling: $500 value.
Sign Up Bonus + First Year Benefits - Annual Fee = Net Value
50,000 Citi TY: $850 + $250 Travel Credit + $500 in 4th Night Free nights - $495 annual fee = $1105 net value
Phase 2 - After the Sign Up Offer and Unlimited 4th Night Free Nights (Year 2+)
Second Year and Beyond Benefits:
$250 Travel Credit
4th Night Free. To stay consistent we will maintain the same free night value of $250/night from our prior valuation equating to $500 value.
Annual Benefits - Annual Fee = Net Value
$250 Travel Credit + $500 in 4th Night Free nights - $495 annual fee = $255 net value
As you can see it is pretty easy to gain value from the Citi Prestige even staying at the most average of hotels at $250 a night. The real value of this card lies within the 2x free nights per year. A basic overwater villa at Hilton's Conrad in the Maldives starts at about $800/night, but the "Sunset Water Villa" is in the $3600 range. If you have an aspirational stays in mind, we don't think there is a better card to use to potentially save thousands of dollars. Plus, you'll get an extra $250 off your first travel expense and we haven't even accounted for the amplified rewards earnings!
A very basic example of some general annual spending on this card shows even more value
$4000 in Food @ 5x TY = 20,000 TY
$1000 in Flights @ 5x TY = 5,000 TY
$1000 in Hotels/Cruises @ 3x TY = 3,000 TY
$1000 in other expenses @ 1x TY = 1,000 TY
$7000 in spending = 29,000 YT valued at $0.017/point = $493
This example shows that with average travel/dining expenses you can easily gain back the annual fee with the spending alone not even including the other benefits.
The Final Point
The Citi Prestige is packed full of some very high rewards categories multipliers. With 5x flights and dining as well as 3x hotels and cruises you could basically keep this at the top of your wallet while booking any type of travel worldwide. The broad $250 travel credit is versatile and will cut the cost of the hefty $495 annual fee. However, the most valuable perk is by far the 4th night free benefit which has no limit until 09/01/2019. If you travel for work and or when your kids are off school for spring break or winter break and stay for 4 nights at a time, there isn't a reason you shouldn't be using this card. Also, Citi's travel delay, cancelation and interruption policies are rather robust, covering almost anyone on your itinerary for up to $5,000 per trip. That makes this card ideal for families and advanced age travelers who may have to cancel for unforeseen circumstances. Lastly, if you frequent concerts or sporting events, the little known missed event protection could be a lifesaver on your event budget if anything hinders you from making it to the show. Just make sure you have not received a Citi sign up bonus or closed a Citi card in the past 24 months so you are still eligible for the 50,000 ThankYou point sign up bonus after your application is approved!