Choosing the right travel credit card can significantly enhance your travel experiences, offering rewards, benefits, and savings that cater to frequent travelers. The Citi Travel Credit Card, specifically the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®, provides a suite of features designed to reward business travelers and American Airlines loyalists. This card offers a compelling combination of AAdvantage® miles, travel perks, and business-focused benefits, making it a strong contender in the travel credit card market. Let’s delve into the details of what this Citi travel credit card has to offer.
Decoding the Citi Travel Credit Card: Benefits and Features
The CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® is structured to reward spending and enhance the travel journey, particularly for those flying with American Airlines. Understanding the pricing, rewards structure, and benefits is key to determining if this card aligns with your travel needs.
Pricing and Fees
Like all credit cards, it’s important to understand the costs associated with the Citi travel credit card.
- Annual Fee: The card comes with a $99 annual fee, which is waived for the first 12 months. This introductory period allows you to experience the card’s benefits without initial cost.
- Purchase APR: The Annual Percentage Rate (APR) for purchases is variable, ranging from 20.24% to 29.24% based on your creditworthiness. It’s crucial to pay your balance in full each month to avoid interest charges.
- Cash Advance APR: The APR for cash advances is a higher variable rate of 29.49%. Cash advances are generally a costly way to access credit and should be avoided.
- Penalty APR: A penalty APR of up to 29.99% may be applied if you make late payments or have a payment returned. Maintaining timely payments is essential to avoid this higher rate.
- Foreign Transaction Fee: Notably, there are no foreign transaction fees, making this card suitable for international travel purchases.
- Cash Advance Fee: For cash advances, there’s a fee of either $10 or 5% of the amount of each advance, whichever is greater.
- Minimum Interest Charge: The minimum interest charge is $0.50.
Earning AAdvantage® Bonus Miles
The rewards program is a major draw for any travel credit card, and the Citi travel credit card, linked with American Airlines AAdvantage®, offers several avenues to earn miles.
- Welcome Bonus: New cardmembers can often take advantage of bonus mile offers upon meeting specific spending requirements within a defined timeframe. It’s important to note that bonus miles are not available if you’ve received a new account bonus for this specific CitiBusiness® card in the past 48 months.
- Double Miles on American Airlines Purchases: Cardholders earn 2 AAdvantage® miles per $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases. These include flights booked through American Airlines channels like aa.com, reservations, Admirals Club®, American Airlines Vacations℠, Google Flights, and airport/city ticket counters.
- Double Miles on Select Business Categories: You also earn 2 AAdvantage® miles per $1 spent on purchases in certain business-related categories:
- Telecommunications Merchants: Includes equipment and services.
- Car Rental Merchants: Short-term and long-term rentals of cars, trucks, and vans. Note that rentals through third-party travel sites or for recreational vehicles may not qualify.
- Cable and Satellite Providers: Subscriptions for TV, internet, phone, and radio programming.
- Gas Stations: Fuel purchases primarily for consumer use. Purchases at warehouse clubs, discount stores, or convenience stores might not qualify depending on their merchant coding.
- 1 Mile per $1 on Other Purchases: For all other purchases, you earn 1 AAdvantage® mile per $1 spent.
It’s important to understand what doesn’t qualify as a purchase for earning miles. These exclusions include balance transfers, cash advances, returned items, interest and fees, traveler’s checks, foreign currency purchases, money orders, wire transfers, lottery tickets, and gaming chips. Bonus miles typically appear in your AAdvantage® account 8-10 weeks after meeting purchase requirements.
Alt: Close-up image of a CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard, highlighting the card design and logos.
Travel Benefits Enhancing Your Journey
Beyond miles accumulation, the Citi travel credit card provides several benefits to make your travel experience smoother and more cost-effective.
- First Checked Bag Free: The primary cardmember and up to four companions on the same reservation receive their first checked bag free on domestic American Airlines flights. To be eligible, the account must be open for at least 7 days before travel, and the AAdvantage® number must be included in the reservation 7 days prior to travel.
- Preferred Boarding: Cardholders enjoy preferred boarding privileges, boarding in Group 5 after priority boarding but before general economy boarding on American Airlines flights. This benefit extends to up to four companions on the same reservation. Similar to the checked bag benefit, account and reservation requirements apply.
- 25% Savings on Inflight Purchases: Enjoy a 25% savings on eligible inflight food and beverage purchases and inflight Wi-Fi purchases when using your CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® card on American Airlines operated flights. The Wi-Fi savings apply to services from Gogo, Viasat, and Panasonic, as well as American Airlines’ Wi-Fi Subscription Plan. Savings appear as statement credits 8-10 weeks after the transaction.
- American Airlines Companion Certificate: After spending $30,000 or more in purchases within a cardmembership year, you can earn a $99 domestic economy fare American Airlines Companion Certificate. This allows you to book a round-trip domestic economy ticket for a companion for just $99 plus taxes and fees (ranging from $21.60 to $43.20 depending on the itinerary) when you purchase a qualifying Main Cabin fare ticket. The certificate has specific terms, conditions, and expiration dates, and redemption is through American Airlines Meeting Services.
Additional Card Features
- Authorized Users: You can add employees as authorized users to the account. Miles earned by authorized users accrue to the primary cardholder’s AAdvantage® account.
- Fraud Protection: Citi monitors for fraud and suspicious activity and has measures in place to protect your account.
- AAdvantage® Program Link: The card account is linked to your American Airlines AAdvantage® membership, and Citi reserves the right to cancel the card if your AAdvantage® membership is terminated.
Is This Citi Travel Credit Card Right for You?
The CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® is particularly well-suited for:
- Frequent American Airlines Flyers: The rewards structure heavily favors American Airlines travel, making it ideal for those loyal to this airline.
- Business Travelers: The “Business” designation and bonus categories suggest it’s designed with business expenses in mind.
- Travelers Seeking Perks: Benefits like free checked bags, preferred boarding, and inflight discounts add tangible value to the travel experience.
However, consider these points:
- Annual Fee: While waived for the first year, the $99 annual fee needs to be justified by the benefits you’ll utilize in subsequent years.
- Rewards Lock-in: The miles are specific to the AAdvantage® program, which might be less flexible than general travel rewards programs.
- APR: As with any credit card, responsible spending and timely payments are crucial to avoid high interest charges.
Conclusion
The Citi travel credit card, specifically the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®, offers a robust package of travel rewards and benefits for American Airlines customers. From bonus miles on spending to practical travel perks, this card can be a valuable tool for optimizing your travel budget and experience. By understanding the features, fees, and rewards, you can determine if this Citi travel credit card is the right choice to elevate your travel endeavors. Remember to always review the latest terms and conditions and compare it with other travel credit card options to make an informed decision that best suits your individual needs and travel patterns.
