A lot of readers have the City National Bank (CNB) Crystal Visa Infinite card, back in December Travel With Grant posted that points were now worth 1.35¢ each only to have this debunked by Frequent Miler. There is actually a relatively easy way to get a true 1.3¢ per point in value.
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Travel Portal (1.35¢ Per Point, Inflated Prices)
If you book through the CNB travel portal flights will price out at 1.35¢ per point. The problem as FM mentions in the above linked article is flights show up more expensive than they should (e.g if you search for a flight on another site it will be significantly cheaper on that site).
Concierge (1.3¢ Per Point)
If you book through the CNB concierge they can book through their advanced live-inventory system and if that doesn’t show the flight you want or if it’s available at a price higher than normal they are also able to book directly with the airline. When doing this you receive a flat 1.3¢ per point.
Additional Concierge Benefits
In addition to booking through the concierge being better value, there are a number of other additional benefits:
- They can combine other discounts (e.g the Visa Infinite $100 round trip discount)
- You earn credit card points on the flight. When a flight is booked you’re charge the full cost of the flight to the CNB Visa Infinite and then at a later date they apply a statement credit, meaning you also earn 3x points on the flight booking
- They sometimes give you random gifts/benefits. For example one reader received a United Club membership after booking a $1,600 flight through the concierge
If anybody knows any other tricks for CNB, I’d love to hear them.
Hat tip to reader AKSF
