Transfer Citi Points to American Airlines for Business Class Flights

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• I have found cheap award flights in business class on Japan Airlines using American Airlines miles.
• Transferring Citi Points to American Airlines allowed me to earn enough miles for two round trip tickets.
• The flights would have cost almost $ 19,000 if I had paid in cash, and if I have to cancel, there is no charge.
• Read the Insider Guide to the Best Credit Cards with Travel Rewards.

I’m (hopefully) heading to Japan in business class for only ~ $ 110 out of my pocket in April 2022! Since the announcement of the transfer of Citi ThankYou points to American Airlines until November 13, 2021, I have searched the American Airlines website to see which award flights are available (this is how everyone goes. his weekends, right?).

Japan is one of my favorite destinations of all time, and I love that several flights from the US now land in Haneda (HND), which is much closer to Tokyo, instead of Narita. (NRT). While researching, I plugged in dates during cherry blossom season, which is usually late March to mid-April, depending on where you want to go – and I was shocked to see some many flights available in business class on Japan Airlines for only 60,000 American Airlines. miles each way.

Learn more: How to earn, redeem, and maximize American Airlines AAdvantage miles, even if you’re not traveling with the airline

After posting the monthly calendar, I saw many dates with multiple business class seats and booked two return flights for myself and my friend for 240,000 miles and around $ 110 in taxes and fees.

Here’s how I used the Citi ThankYou points to book the trip.

Securing tickets

I only had 140,000 American Airlines miles on my account, but I was ready to book as soon as I saw seats were available. 60,000 miles one way to Japan in business class is a lot, but I needed 240,000 miles for two round trips.

Fortunately, American Airlines allows you to keep an award for up to five days if you book more than 14 days before departure. I opted for round trip tickets for my friend from New York-JFK to Tokyo-Haneda and then booked New York-JFK to Tokyo Haneda with a return to Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) for myself . My friend’s flights were issued within minutes, but I needed 100,000 miles for mine.

This is where my Citi thank you points came in handy.

Citi ThankYou Points Transfer to American Airlines

Citi says point transfers to American Airlines can take up to five business days, but for the record, I’ve heard they’re usually completed the same day or the next.

It was getting late that night, so I went to bed. When I woke up there was an email from American Airlines saying I had five more days to book the award and call to complete the ticketing.

Learn more: You can transfer Citi ThankYou points to 17 partner airlines, and the best programs can save you thousands of miles on flights to destinations like Hawaii

Later that day the miles appeared on my account and I called American Airlines with my reference numbers. The agent found them easily, debited my card for taxes and fees, and sent the request to the ticket office.

It’s an incredible offer worth almost $ 19,000

After securing the tickets, I plugged the flights and dates into Google Flights to check the retail cost. My friend’s flights came in at $ 9,426 and mine came in at $ 9,128.

For Citi ThankYou points (and really all points), I aim to get at least 2 cents per point in value. For these flights with a combined total cost of $ 18,554, the usage of 240,000 points breaks down to almost 8 cents per point in value.

I have flown to Japan with Japan Airlines before, so I knew what level of service, seating configuration and overall experience to expect. That, combined with the value I got from my points, makes me so excited to return to Japan to further explore their amazing cities and culture.

Citi ThankYou points are easy to earn

Another reason I booked this trip without hesitation is because I know I can quickly replenish the Citi ThankYou points I redeemed. With the Citi Card Trio, it’s easy to save thank you points for almost every purchase I make.

In addition, the Citi Premier® card currently offers a record welcome bonus: 80,000 bonus ThankYou® points after spending $ 4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after opening the account. That’s enough for a one-way business class flight to Japan worth over $ 4,000 – and you would have 20,000 points left.

Read more: Citi Premier Credit Card Review

In fact, the Citi Premier offers surprisingly strong bonus categories, including 3 points per dollar on air travel and hotels, as well as in supermarkets, restaurants, and gas stations. This makes it one of the best Citi cards to have in your wallet and to hold for the long term.

There is nothing to lose by booking

I booked my trip for April 2022, which is nine months from now. Anyone can guess where the world will be by then when it comes to COVID, travel rules, vaccination requirements and everything in between.

I haven’t flown internationally since March 2020 and I’m ready like everyone else for the world to reopen. Late last year, American Airlines stopped charging reinstatement fees for canceled award flights. In most cases, your miles will be instantly redeposited when you cancel your award ticket on aa.com.

So, while I’m ready to travel, knowing that I can get all my miles back free of charge if I have to cancel reassured me about booking the trip.

Read more: Europe is reopened to Americans – here are the 8 best ways to get there with points and miles

Besides, it’s fun to dream of traveling again! Searching for the reward space and booking the ticket made me feel like it could be real, and it gives me something exciting to look forward to. There is no place in the world like Japan.

And by the way, there is still plenty of reward space left for a lot of fun destinations. In fact, using American Airlines miles for long-haul international award flights with partner airlines is one of the most beneficial ways to redeem them, just in case you’re ready to start dreaming of traveling again.