Huge Changes are Reportedly Coming to Citi Prestige in July of 2017 (More than Just Loss of Admiral’s Club Lounge)

You probably have already seen the latest news on  changes to Citi Prestige offer. The official application page on Citi.com has been updated and here is the scoop:

“Earn 40,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within 3 months of account opening. Points are redeemable for a $532 flight on any airline or $400 in gift cards.” Obviously, those are negative developments, but it gets worse.

We already knew that Admiral’s Club lounge access will go away next year for existing cardholders. And indeed, it’s not even mentioned in the new offer. But here are other items that are missing from the landing page:

1) Ability to redeem for American flights and get 1.6 cents per point. It only says that you will get 1.33 cents towards airfare on any airline.

2) No mention of golf benefit.

 

• no more free golf
• no Admiral’s Club access (we already knew that)
• no 1.6 or 1.3 c/m redemptions. It will be 1.25 cents across the board for airline redemptions
• 4th night free for hotels will be based on average nightly rate and no longer include taxes.

I have no way of knowing if this is indeed true, but he says that he saw the data with his own eyes.

So, what should you do? Well, nothing. Citi has apparently done the  research and  made the decision based on the fact that current benefits are too generous. Honestly, I’m not all that surprised. If the deal is too good to be true, eventually it will die. If you have already applied for Citi Prestige before today, congratulations. If not, you might still have a chance.

According to this post on Doctorofcredit, there is still a working link for 50,000 points’ offer (it’s in the post). I just checked it and it works. I can’t guarantee that it will come with golf benefits and Admiral’s Club  lounge access, or that you will be able to redeem your points on American flights at 1.6 cents apiece, but this is probably your last chance to get it. At the very least, you will be able to receive 50,000 points’ bonus after spending $3,000 in 3 months. Take a screenshot just in case.

Readers, who is planning to apply in the eleventh hour?