Citi ThankYou® Points Sweet Spots
ThankYou® Points, the rewards program from Citi, a partner of Travel Freely, is a solid option among the major rewards programs you can maximize for great free travel. The perks you get differ depending on what card you have, but overall, the rewards program itself offers a lot of value to members.
Here are some of the easy ways to get great value out of your Citi ThankYou Points. Note that this post does not cover all of Citi’s transfer partners, but rather the ones where you’ll find consistently strong value.
Also check out: Chase Ultimate Rewards® Sweet Spots, Capital One Miles® Sweet Spots, Citi ThankYou® Points Complete Guide
Transferring Citi ThankYou Points to American Airlines
In June 2025, Citi updated its program where you can now transfer ThankYou Points directly to the American Airlines AAdvantage® program. This was a huge upgrade because it unlocks American’s own award flights plus all of its airline partners (the group of airlines American teams up with, known as oneworld).
Transfer ratio: 1:1 when you hold a premium Citi card such as the Citi Strata Premier® Card, Citi Strata Elite℠ Card, Citi Prestige® (no longer available) or Citi AT&T Access More (no longer available). 1:0.7 for all other no annual fee cards.
Why this matters: AAdvantage miles are especially valuable for booking premium cabin flights on partners like Qatar Airways (QSuites), Cathay Pacific business class, and even Etihad First Class. Plus, AA eliminated change and cancellation fees, which makes awards far more flexible than most programs.
This new partnership puts Citi on par with Chase and Amex for premium international travel options and adds another strong reason to keep Citi points in your wallet.
Getting the best value out of Citi ThankYou Points: Transfer partners
Beginner note: This can be confusing at first, but a bit of research really pays off. Thanks to airline partnerships, you can book award tickets on your favorite airlines using miles from a partner program. This is what we’re highlighting below.
To transfer ThankYou Points into an airline or hotel account, you’ll use Citi’s transfer partner tool in the Citi Travel® portal. For a high-level overview, please see our Citi ThankYou Points Guide.
Before jumping in, we want to highlight what we believe are the best Citi cards to earn ThankYou points:
A quick note on cash value before we go further: if you ever redeem ThankYou points for straight cash back, the no-annual-fee cash-back cards actually give you a higher rate (1 cent per point on the Citi Double Cash® Card and Citi Custom Cash® Card) than the premium travel cards (0.75 cents per point on the Citi Strata Premier® Card, Citi Strata Elite℠ Card, and the no-longer-available Citi Prestige®; 0.5 cents on the Citi Strata℠ Card). That is by design. The Double Cash and Custom Cash are built to be cashed out, so a 1 cent floor is the whole point of the product. The Strata cards are travel cards: their value comes from transferring points to airline and hotel partners for well above 1 cent, not from cashing them in. So a lower cash-back rate on a Strata card is not a weakness, it just means you are holding the card for a different job.
Citi offers a number of airline and hotel programs to which you can transfer your points, usually 1-to-1. For a complete list, see:
| Partner | Transfer Ratio | Transfer Time | Best Uses | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air France / KLM Flying Blue | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | Monthly Air France Promo Awards often represent very good value. Air France miles can be used to book Sky Team awards, including Delta awards. Air France often offers very good business class award pricing between the US and Europe & Israel. | |
| ALL - Accor Live Limitless | 1,000:500 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:350 for all others | Almost Instantly | Use to pay hotel bill with value of 2 Euro cents per point. | |
| American Airlines AAdvantage® | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠ cardmembers 1,000: 700 for all others | Almost Instantly | One of the very few transferable points programs with the ability to transfer to American Airlines (the other main option being Marriott). | |
| Avianca Lifemiles | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠ cardmembers, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | Avianca LifeMiles can be great for Star Alliance awards. They offer reasonable award prices and no fuel surcharges on awards. They also offer shorthaul awards within the US (for flying United, for example) for as few as 7,500 miles one-way. Best of all, their mixed-cabin pricing can lead to fantastic first-class award prices. | |
| Cathay Pacific | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | Cathay Pacific has a decent distance based award chart, but they no longer allow stopovers longer than 24 hours. Cathay Pacific Asia Miles can be a good option for booking American Airlines flights with a distance based award chart, especially if other OneWorld Alliance miles aren't available. For long distance flights, it is possible to reduce the cost of first class by adding on a business class flight. | |
| Choice | 1,000:1,500 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:1,050 for all others | Instantly | Choice Privileges points seem to be randomly valuable within the US, but dependably valuable internationally in expensive locations such as Scandinavia and Japan. Points can sometimes offer great value when used towards participating Preferred Hotels of the World. | |
| Emirates Skywards | 1,000:800 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:560 for all others | Almost Instantly | The best use of Emirates miles has been to fly Emirates itself. Unfortunately fuel surcharges can be steep. | |
| Etihad Guest | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | 1 hour | Etihad has a very competitive award chart for American Airlines flights, among others. For example, they charge only 50,000 miles one-way for business class flights from North America to Europe. Partner awards must be booked over the phone. | |
| EVA Air | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | If you want to fly one of the best business class products in the sky, the best way to snag EVA flights is with their own miles since they release more award space to their own members. One-way business class flights from the US to Taipei cost 75K to 80K miles. Fuel surcharges are very low on these routes. | |
| i Prefer Hotels | 1,000:2,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:1,400 for all others | Almost Instantly | Redeeming points for hotel stays offers the best value but availability can be hard to find. Next best option is to look for good value points+cash opportunities. Redeeming for certificates is always poor value | |
| JetBlue | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | JetBlue points offer the most value when cheap ticket prices are available and when award taxes are high relative to the overall cost of the ticket (more details can be found here). The JetBlue Plus Card and the JetBlue Business Card offer a 10% rebate on awards, so you can get more value by holding one of these cards. | |
| Leaders Club | 1,000:250 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:175 for all others | Almost Instantly | It is often possible to get 8 cents per point value, or more from LHW points. | |
| Qantas Frequent Flyer | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | 1 day | Best use is probably for flights on El Al with no fuel surcharges. Also useful for short AA flights. Qantas offers distance based award charts similar to Cathay Pacific. Both are OneWorld Alliance members. Compare award prices across both programs before transferring to either. Qantas offers round the world business class awards for only 280,000 points (but with many restrictions) | |
| Qatar Airways Privilege Club | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | Qatar has reasonable award prices for flying Qatar itself. Points are now transferable 1 to 1 to British Airways (and from there to Aer Lingus or Iberia). It is now also possible to book JetBlue flights with Qatar Avios. | |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | 1 day | Use to book Singapore Airlines First Class awards (generally reserved for their own members), Alaska Airlines economy awards, or for Star Alliance awards (including United Airlines). | |
| Thai Royal Orchid Plus | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | There aren't any good uses for these miles. | |
| Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | 1 day | Miles & Smiles offers a number of awesome sweet-spot awards including 7.5K one-way anywhere within the US, even to Hawaii. Many awards cannot be booked online but can be booked via phone or email. | |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | Virgin Atlantic offers a few great sweet spot awards including ANA first class between the US and Japan for as low as 55K points one-way; and US to Europe on Delta One business class for 50K points one-way. | |
| Wyndham Rewards | 1,000:1,000 for Prestige®, Citi Strata Premier®, Citi Strata Elite℠, AT&T Access More Cardmembers; 1,000:700 for all others | Almost Instantly | Wyndham often allows booking one-bedroom suites for the same price as a standard room. It's sometimes possible to get great value from points in that way. Bonus: award nights are not subject to resort fees. | |
By transferring points wisely, it’s often possible to get far more than 1 cent per point value.
Smart Tips for Maximizing Your Citi ThankYou Points
Earning Citi ThankYou points is just the beginning, and how you use them makes all the difference. To help you stretch every point for maximum travel value, here are some essential tips to keep in mind:
- Always Keep at Least One Premium Account: Not all Citi cards let you transfer points directly to airline and hotel partners at a favorable rate. With a few exceptions, you’ll need one of the following premium cards: Citi Strata Premier® Card, Citi Strata Elite℠ Card (or legacy cards like the Citi Prestige® and AT&T Access More, if you still have them). You can move points from transferable cards that transfer to partners at a lower ratio (like the Citi Double Cash® Card) into your Strata Premier or Elite account. You’re allowed to move up to 100,000 points per year between accounts if you’re combining with a friend or family member. You can also pool points across your own accounts, making all your Citi points transferable. Heads up on the Citi Custom Cash® Card (no longer accepting new applications): This one is a little different. You can’t move points to someone else’s account, but you can combine with your own Strata Premier to make them transferable.
- Don’t Transfer Until You’re Ready to Book: One of the best features of Citi ThankYou points is flexibility. Once you transfer to an airline or hotel partner, you’re locked in. That means you shouldn’t move points until:
- You’ve found award space
- You’re ready to book right away
- Think of it as a one-way street: once you go, you can’t come back.
- Be Aware of Transfer Times: Most Citi transfers are instant, but not all. Some can take a day (or longer), which can be risky if award seats disappear before your points arrive. Before moving points, double-check the expected transfer times with each partner.
- Always Check the Value Before Transferring: Just because you see an award doesn’t mean it’s a good deal. For example: If a flight costs 25,000 miles but only $200 in cash, you’d only get about 0.8 cents per point. In that case, you’d be better off redeeming your points another way. Keep in mind that cash-back value differs by card: the Citi Double Cash® Card and Citi Custom Cash® Card redeem at 1 cent per point, while the Citi Strata Premier® Card, Citi Strata Elite℠ Card, and the no-longer-available Citi Prestige® redeem at 0.75 cents per point, and the Citi Strata℠ Card at 0.5 cents. As noted above, the travel cards carry a lower cash-back rate because they are built for transferring to partners, where the real value is, not for cashing out. So before you transfer, compare the award against your best alternative use for those points.
- Look at Partner Airlines for Better Deals: One of the most powerful strategies with transferable points is booking through partner airlines. Sometimes a partner offers much cheaper award rates than the airline you actually want to fly. Example: Flying Delta? You might find that Air France/KLM Flying Blue charges fewer miles than Delta itself. This is a classic sweet spot that can save you thousands of points.
- Keep an Eye Out for Transfer Bonuses: Citi frequently offers limited-time transfer bonuses (extra miles when you move your points to certain partners). These can give your points a serious boost. Pro tip: Even expired bonuses are worth a look because they often repeat. That way, you’ll know what to expect in the future.
Flying within the US
There are a number of good ways to use Citi points to fly within the U.S. Here are some examples:
- Transfer to American Airlines. Domestic pricing on AA starts from as low as 5K miles one way for economy, while business class specials start at 15K miles one way. Awards on Alaska Airlines (AA partner) within the contiguous US & Canada cost 12.5K each way in economy or 25K in Business/First.
- Transfer to Qantas Frequent Flyer to fly American Airlines. Qantas charges as few as 9,200 points one-way for short-distance AA flights (up to 600 miles). Qantas can also be a good choice for flights up to 1,200 miles, where they charge 14,400 points one-way.
- Transfer to Air France / KLM Flying Blue or Virgin Atlantic Flying Club to fly Delta Airlines. When Delta releases seats to partners, it can be a good deal (especially on short-distance non-stop flights) to book with either Virgin Atlantic points or Air France / KLM miles. Check both programs to compare pricing.
- Transfer to Avianca LifeMiles to fly United Airlines. Within a single zone, awards typically cost 7.5K one-way in economy class or 10K one-way in business class. Between Zone 1 (most of the East Coast) and Zone 2 (most of the states apart from the far west) is 10K one-way in economy or 15K in business class.
Flights to Hawaii
Singapore KrisFlyer (for United or Alaska)
The short story: Singapore KrisFlyer charges fewer miles for domestic flights to Hawaii than United does for the same flights. Additionally, they have a great chart for Alaska Airlines for those originating in parts of the US other than the East Coast.
Miles required: For United flights: 19,500 miles each way in economy or 39,000 in business (as compared to 22.5K / 40K through United). For Alaska Airlines flights: award prices range from 13.5K to 14K one-way in economy class.
How to find awards: Search for available United Airlines space at United.com (Note: Do not log in, since logging in may show you expanded availability based on your credit card or elite status that is not available for partner bookings) or SingaporeAir.com. For Alaska Airlines award space, search at AA.com.
How to book awards: Book online at SingaporeAir.com or over the phone with Singapore KrisFlyer. Alaska awards must be booked over the phone.
Change and cancellation fees: Change of date / route / class / add a stopover for travel on Singapore Airlines or Silk Air: $25. Change of date / route / class on partner airlines: $50. Cancellation: $75. No-show: $100-$200.
Key warnings: Note that transfers to Singapore KrisFlyer are now instant from Amex Membership Rewards® and typically take around 7 hours from Capital One and Chase (slightly longer from Citi). Waitlisted itineraries that do not clear by 14 days prior to departure will get canceled. Be aware that United.com and AA.com will show availability for flights with longer/overnight connections that are not available with Singapore KrisFlyer miles, so be sure to double check availability at SingaporeAir.com or with a phone agent before booking.
Transfer from: Amex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott
Fly Business Class to Europe
Fly Air France / KLM business class for 60K one-way
Air France and KLM share a rewards currency: Flying Blue. With Flying Blue miles, it’s often possible to find business class awards to/from Europe for only 60,000 miles one-way. Search for available space at AirFrance.us or KLM.com. You’ll need to create a free Flying Blue frequent flyer account to search. Make sure to select “Book with Miles” and then leave the dates of travel blank in order to bring up a monthly award availability calendar.
The short story: Monthly Flying Blue Promo Awards and even regular standard awards can sometimes offer excellent value between the US and Europe.
Miles required: Varies. Air France no longer has an award chart, but business class awards between North America and Europe start at 60K one way (when you can find them). Promo awards often offer better value, with business class awards sometimes available in the 40K’s.
How to find awards: Search for available space at AirFrance.us (you’ll need to create a free Flying Blue frequent flyer account to search)
How to book awards: Book online at AirFrance.com. Can also book via phone.
Change and cancellation fees: €70.
Key warnings: Air France / KLM do add fuel surcharges, though they are often reasonable (about $150-$250 in taxes and fees each way). Business availability at the lowest price levels has been terrible recently.
Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott, Wells Fargo.
Fly oneworld partners using American AAdvantage
Citi is the only major transferable points program that transfers to American.
The short story: American Airlines charges 57.5K miles one-way for partner business class awards to/from Europe. It no longer publishes an award chart for its own flights, but connecting itineraries sometimes price very reasonably.
Miles required: 57.5K miles one-way for partner business class to/from Europe. American does not publish an award chart for its own flights, but we often see itineraries that connect within the US priced for less than nonstop awards to Europe.
How to find awards: Search for available space at AA.com.
How to book awards: Book online at AA.com.
Change and cancellation fees: None for award tickets. Note that Web Specials can not be changed, but can be cancelled and redeposited without a fee.
Key warnings: Watch out for high surcharges on British Airways awards to/from the UK (surcharges can be much more reasonable departing from other European countries on British Airways). Note that nonstop routes on American Airlines-operated flights to Europe can often cost an exorbitant number of miles, but connecting from a non-hub within the United States can sometimes drastically reduce the cost of an award.
Transfer from: Citi, Marriott
Fly Star Alliance partners for 70K (or fewer) Citi points one-way
Avianca LifeMiles offers a good way to book business class flights to/from Europe on their Star Alliance partners (United, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Swiss, TAP Air Portugal, etc.) with no fuel surcharges. For most routes, LifeMiles charges 70,000 points one-way. Better yet, business class flights between the US northeast and the UK or Ireland cost only 45,000 points one-way.
The short story: Avianca LifeMiles offers competitive-ish business class pricing for Star Alliance awards to Europe, with no fuel surcharges.
Miles required: 69-80K each way in business class with no fuel surcharges.
How to find awards: Search for available space at LifeMiles.com (you’ll need to create a free Avianca LifeMiles frequent flyer account)
How to book awards: Book online at LifeMiles.com. Can also book via email. Phone bookings are known to be a hassle but also possible.
Change and cancellation fees: Theoretically $50 within a region, though flights between regions can cost $200 to cancel.
Key warnings: Availability at LifeMiles.com does not always match what you’ll find at United.com. Phone agents generally do not see better availability than what is shown at LifeMiles.com. Always check the LifeMiles site before transferring points. Keep in mind that the mandatory $25 booking fee (added to all bookings) is the same whether one-way or round trip, so book round trip to save.
Transfer from: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Wells Fargo, Marriott.
Fly JetBlue Mint for 78K Citi points one-way
This isn’t the cheapest option in this round-up, but award space is usually plentiful. Thanks to Qatar Airways’ partnership with JetBlue, it’s possible to book JetBlue business class (Mint class) to/from Europe for 78,000 miles one-way.
The short story: Qatar Airways Privilege Club offers reasonable award pricing on JetBlue, which can be a great way to book Mint (business) class to Europe.
Miles required: 78K each way. Taxes & fees departing the US are $10.10.
How to find awards: You can search for space via QatarAirways.com, but it is easier to start by finding “I” class space for business class awards.
How to book awards: Book on QatarAirways.com
Change and cancellation fees: $25 more than 24 hours in advance / $100 Between 3-24 hours in advance / Nonrefundable within 3 hours or after departure
Key warnings: Note that Qatar only charges mandatory taxes ($10.10 departing the US and between ~$40-$100 departing Europe) with no additional carrier-imposed surcharges on JetBlue awards.
Transfer from: Amex, Citi. Also transfer to BA and then to Qatar with: Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
Fly Business Class to Asia
Fly oneworld partners using American AAdvantage from 60K one-way
The short story: American charges a reasonable number of miles for partner awards in business class between the US and Asia. Unlike Atmos™ Rewards (formerly Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan program), American does not allow a stopover, but American Airlines miles can be quite easy to amass.
Miles required: 60K miles each way in business class to Asia 1 (Korea or Japan) or 70K miles each way in business class to Asia 2 or the Middle East or the Indian Subcontinent. Economy awards start at 35K.
How to find awards: Search for available space at AA.com.
How to book awards: Book online at AA.com or over the phone.
Change and cancellation fees: None for award tickets. Note that Web Specials can not be changed, but can be cancelled and redeposited without a fee.
Key warnings: Finding space can be tough, but if you can find it this can be an excellent use of American Airlines miles.
Transfer from: Citi, Marriott
Fly EVA Airways from 75K one-way
EVA offers very good award space to its own members, and Citi is the only major transferable points program that transfers 1 to 1 to EVA. To do so, you must have a Citi Strata Premier or Strata Elite card (or a no-longer-available Citi Prestige or Access More card).
The short story: EVA’s award chart features fairly average pricing at 75K or 80K each way from the US to Asia in business class, but EVA offers what is widely regarded as one of the best business class products in the sky and they make quite a bit of award space available to their own members. The best value is booking round trip since EVA allows a free stopover (stopover not allowed on one-way tickets).
Miles required: 75K / 80K each way from North America to Asia on EVA (80K from Chicago, New York, Houston, or Toronto). Economy awards are 50K / 55K.
How to find awards: Search EVAAir.com
How to book awards: Book simple awards online at EVAAir.com. Must call and book over the phone for stopovers.
Change and cancellations fees: $50
Key warnings: Star Alliance pricing is higher (87.5K / 97.5K each way). Best use is for EVA flights since they release more award space to their own members.
Transfer from: Capital One, Citi
Fly First Class to Japan
The cheapest way to fly ANA first class between North America and Japan (or between Europe and Japan) is with Virgin Atlantic points.
The short story: Despite devaluations in recent years, first class and business class awards are still very good redemptions between the US and Japan.
Miles required: 72.5K / 85K one-way for first class between the US West Coast / US East Coast and Japan or 52.5K / 60K miles in business class. Economy awards are 30K-32.5K.
How to find awards: Search United.com to find ANA partner award space.
How to book awards: Call Virgin Atlantic Flying Club at 800-365-9500.
Change/Cancellation fees: $100. If your original taxes were less than $100, Virgin Atlantic will allow you to simply forfeit the taxes.
Key warnings: Virgin Atlantic charges each segment separately, so this award is best for direct flights. They also add fuel surcharges for ANA flights, which as of 2024 are about $360 from the US to Japan or $450 from Japan to the US (or around $730 if booked as a round trip).
Transfer from: Amex, Capital One, Citi, Chase, Marriott, Bilt, Wells Fargo
Stay in Preferred Hotels & Resorts
Citi offers two ways to get great value when booking Preferred Hotels:
- Transfer to Choice Privileges. Citi offers a 1-to-2 transfer ratio to Choice Privileges for those with a Strata Premier or Strata Elite card (or a no-longer-available Citi Prestige or Access More card). Many luxury hotels in the Preferred Hotels & Resorts collection can be booked with Choice Privileges points. Point prices range from 20,000 to 87,000 points per night. Given the 1 to 2 transfer ratio, this translates to 10,000 to 43,500 Citi ThankYou points per night for some incredible hotels.
- Transfer to Preferred Hotels I Prefer. Citi offers an incredible 1 to 4 transfer ratio to I Prefer. Point prices range from 15,000 to 150,000 points per night. Given the 1 to 4 transfer ratio, this translates to 3,750 to 37,500 Citi ThankYou points per night for some incredible hotels.
Note: Not all hotels are available to book with points. And, there’s no obvious correlation between hotels bookable with Choice points vs those bookable with I Prefer points. Worse, when a single hotel is bookable both ways, award availability differs.
Stay in an Ascend Hotel Collection Boutique Hotel or Resort
Citi offers an excellent 1-to-2 transfer ratio to Choice Privileges for those with a Strata Premier or Strata Elite card (or the no-longer-available Prestige or AT&T Access More cards). Choice’s Ascend Hotel Collection offers high-end boutique hotels and resorts with award prices usually ranging from 16,000 to 40,000 points per night. With most award prices between 16,000 and 30,000 points, the cost with Citi points is only 8,000 to 15,000 points per night.
Stay in a Leading Hotel of the World (LHW)
For those with a Strata Premier or Strata Elite card (or the no-longer-available Prestige or AT&T Access More cards), Citi points transfer 1,000 to 200 to LHW’s (Leading Hotels of the World) Leaders Club. That transfer ratio doesn’t sound great, but Leaders Club points are worth approximately 8 cents each towards hotel stays, and so this transfer ratio gives you 1.6 cents per point value with your Citi points.
One cool thing about this opportunity is that just by booking through Leaders Club, you are eligible for on-property perks:
- Upgrade priority upon arrival
- Daily continental breakfast for two
- Early check-in and late check-out considerations
High-value Citi ThankYou points sweet spots: Bottom line
Citi ThankYou points often get little attention compared to Ultimate Rewards and Membership Rewards. While Chase and Amex boast some of the most sought-after transfer partners, Citi still offers plenty of worthwhile options, as shown above.
Keep in mind that this post does not list all of the value spots in Citi’s transfer partners but rather easy (or easy-ish) ways to get good value from ThankYou points.
If you’re willing to put in some more time and effort, programs like Turkish Miles and Smiles and EVA MileageLands may also offer solid value for Star Alliance flights. However, if you’re looking for relatively simple values, there are plenty to be had with ThankYou points.
If these sweet spots have caught your eye and you don’t yet have a premium Citi card, the Citi Strata Premier® Card is a solid place to start. It is worth checking the current offer to see whether the signup bonus fits your plans, since that bonus is the fastest way to build a ThankYou points balance you can actually use.
(Some of this content originally appeared on The Frequent Miler and has been posted with permission.)
