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The Citi ThankYou Rewards program will devalue two hotel transfer partners for premium ThankYou Rewards cardholders starting April 19.
The value of transfers to the Choice Privileges program will be cut by 25%, and transfers to I Prefer Hotel Rewards (the program for Preferred Hotels & Resorts) will be reduced by 50%.
Here’s what you need to know and what to do now.
Citi transfers to Choice Privileges reduce in value by 25%
Currently, ThankYou Rewards points transfer to Choice Privileges at a 1:2 ratio (i.e., 1,000 Citi points equal 2,000 Choice points). From April 19, that drops to 1,500 Choice points per 1,000 ThankYou Rewards points, a 1:1.5 ratio and a 25% reduction in what program members currently receive.
Choice Privileges has no set award chart, and although the hotel program no longer caps award nights at 35,000 points, most stays still cost between 8,000 and 35,000 points.
Choice Privileges can be a great value for the right hotel bookings. For example, centrally located hotels in Japan can typically be booked for 8,000 to 12,000 points per night (up from only 4,000 Citi points per night before the devaluation). You can also book select Radisson properties across North America and access more than 300 participating Preferred properties starting at 20,000 Choice Privileges points per night through a cross-program partnership.
While we don’t recommend speculatively transferring points without an immediate use in mind, it’s a good idea to check hotel availability and transfer and book now before the April 19 deadline if you see something that fits your travel plans to take advantage of the higher current transfer rate.
Capital One miles and American Express Membership Rewards points also transfer to Choice Privileges but at a 1:1 ratio, so you’ll still get a better value from your credit card points by transferring Citi points rather than Capital One miles.
Citi transfers to I Prefer Hotel Rewards reduce in value by 50%
The current (and generous) rate of 1,000 Citi ThankYou Rewards points to 4,000 I Prefer Hotel Rewards points is being halved, dropping to 2,000 I Prefer Hotel Rewards points per 1,000 ThankYou Rewards points.
I Prefer Hotel Rewards is an underrated program that lets you book luxury, boutique hotels with points. With the current transfer rate, you could book a stay starting at 3,750 Citi ThankYou Rewards points per night.
However, with the upcoming devaluation, a hotel that would typically cost 100,000 I Prefer Hotel Rewards points or just 25,000 Citi ThankYou Rewards points per night will now cost 50,000 Citi ThankYou Rewards points.
Though 50,000 points may seem like a lot, this can still be a valuable deal, especially if room rates are over $1,000 a night.
Bottom line
Devaluations are an unfortunate reality of earning and redeeming points and miles. Usually, these devaluations stem from airline and hotel programs increasing their redemption rates. You can protect yourself by keeping your transferable credit card points and miles in the issuer’s program until you are ready to use them.
Unfortunately, in this instance, it is the transfer rate from a credit card program to a transfer partner that is taking a hit, and there’s no way to protect yourself from this other than to consider booking Choice and Preferred hotels before April 19.
Related reading:
- Preferred Hotels & Resorts’ revamped loyalty program has more ways to use points
- Getting started with points, miles and credit cards to travel
- Capital One adds new transfer partners: Japan Airlines, Qatar Airways and I Prefer Hotel Rewards
- Choice Privileges announces positive changes to its loyalty program
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
