I recently signed up for a Citibank Premier card that gave me 100,000 free air miles good for any airline with no black out dates. I keep thinking this is too good to be true, but I booked a ticket from SF to Venice, returning from Naples to SF for only an extra $135 after using the miles! I have been worried about booking a consolidator ticket for fear of delays, cancellations, etc and not making it to my cruise. Now I'm worried that that is what I booked, although I was given an airline reference number which I checked, and the reservation is there. Anyone have experience with using Citibank's travel award center?
Posted by
Alta Loma, CA, USA
1446 posts
Robin, my Mom has had a Citibank American Airlines credit card for at least 15 years & she has redeemed her miles many times over the years for trips to Europe without any problems. My husband & I have flown using her miles the last 2 times and I booked it myself & everything was flawless. I would rest assured...you won't have any problems. I have an Alaska Airlines credit card & recently booked my upcoming trip to Italy on Air France using my miles & the process was similiar to the Citibank process. If they didn't assign you seat numers when you booked your ticket, you can call the airline that you'll be travelling on & choose your seats now. As for delays & cancellations, it still happens depending of course on many variables but if they do happen, it won't be due to Citibank's process, it is due to the carrier. Delays can happen to even the best carrier but don't worry, it's usually just a small hiccup. Have a wonderful trip.
Posted by
Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
Robin, since Venice and Naples are smaller airports, I'm curious to know which airlines you used to make this journey and where you changed planes. We have another poster on this site that is looking for information on exactly the same trip. Congratulations on successfully using your airline points.
Posted by
OP
Oakdale, CA, USA
38 posts
Larry,
All the flights are with Lufthansa. SF to Frankfurt, then on to Venice. Home from Naples through Frankfurt, back to SF. Flights are on an Airbus! I saw one for the first time and was amazed at the size...wings wider than a football field. Anyway, I also bought 2 tickets for my son and his girlfriend without miles through the Citibank Travel center as they were $324 less for each ticket than booking directly through Lufthansa. I checked the Lufthansa website after booking, and their reservation is there as well, and I already made seat selections. I don't know how or why it's cheaper to book through Citibank, but hopefully all will go well and we won't get bumped since we have an actual Lufthansa airline reference number.
Posted by
Austin
977 posts
I'm interested to know if your ticket has a price on it, or if it says "bulk" or something similar, and if the taxes are shown. I've bought tickets from a Consolidator that were less expensive than the airline's price. The tickets could not be used on any other airline, in case of flight cancellation or delay (remember the days when airlines used to put you on the 'next available" flight?!). Thanks!