I am always a reader to the flyertalk and this is actually the first time for me to post - so nice to meet you all flyertalk community ;)
I have just confirmed with Citibank Hong Kong (issuing authority for Diners Club Cards in Hong Kong) that all complimentary lounge accesses have gone. Accessing any lounge worldwide would carry "at least" US$25 access fees, upto US$75; accessing the local airport lounge would require a HK$1,500 (~US$200) spending per visit, otherwise they will charge US$25 access fee per visit. Citibank Hong Kong insisted that they are not the first site for removing the free overseas lounge accesses.
I have been a Diners Club card holder for a couple of years. Though I can't find any places to use the card in Hong Kong, it is fascinating that using the club in Taiwan and Japan always bringing me a lot of surprises. (To my surprise, if I am not wrong Citibank Taiwan has started to offer class upgrades for designated flights for Diners Club Card Taiwan Holders.) Moreover, it is the primary card for me to access airport lounges.
Too bad I don't have enough income for applying credit cards come with priority pass or other lounge access privileges - yet I fly frequent with the local bargain airlines...
Basically I cannot find anymore reasons to hold this card. Before cutting this card, I am wondering if Citibank HK is speaking the truth...
Does any DC holders in other parts of the world have to pay for lounge access?
Terms and Conditions for Complimentary Access to the Airport Lounge
2.
Diners Club® Cardmember can also access to over 450 Club Lounges located in airports worldwide outside Hong Kong and a fee of HK$200 or US$25 will be charged per visit. Please visit www.dinersclub.com for details.
3.
Diners Club® Cardmember can enjoy one complimentary service per visit per day if the Cardmember's accumulated spending with Diners Club® Card is HK$1,500 or more during the calendar month or the consecutive one calendar month after the Cardmember access the airport lounge. If the specified amount is not reached, the Cardmember can continue to enjoy the airport lounge access for HK$200 per visit. The charge of HK$200 will be debited from Cardmember's account directly. Patronage of extra service is subject to respective entrance/service fee to be charged to Cardmember's account. A fee may be charged to enter selected locations. Admission for guests will be charged at HK$200 per person per visit. Valid Diners Club® Card spendings include all posted retail purchase, autopay transaction, billed interested-free monthly installment payment, cash advances transaction and posted cash amount from "Dial-a-check" Valid spendings exclude (but not limited to) traveler's checks, balance transfers, bank fees & charges (including annual fees, finance charges, late charges, cash advance fees and other fees and charges), unposted installments, casino transactions, unposted/cancelled/refunded transactions and other unauthorized transactions. Both Basic and Supplementary cards spending will be counted as accumulated spending.
beep88
Apr 11, 12, 10:55 am
Oh I have seen/heard about the accumulation of purchases for lounge access on this forum, for cards issued in some countries.
But your card still offers unlimited access of the lounges at HKG.
Do you pay any annual fees? The Canadian card charges 99CAD.
AmD950
Apr 12, 12, 11:42 am
Oh I have seen/heard about the accumulation of purchases for lounge access on this forum, for cards issued in some countries.
But your card still offers unlimited access of the lounges at HKG.
Do you pay any annual fees? The Canadian card charges 99CAD.
The customer services confirmed one visit per HK$1,500 spending, or they will charge US$200. For annual fee, yes for once (HK$650 around US$85 you can say) and they automatically waived the subsequent years after I reached the spending criteria overseas.
bjerregaard
Apr 13, 12, 6:57 am
It started this New Year in Scandinavia.
One of the reasons I was told, was that many customers only kept the card to have access to the lounges.
Because, they did not use the card for purchase it was adeficits business for Diners Scandinavia.
Well for every 10000 DKK you spent on the card in a year, we still have 1 free lounge access the following year. It is only 833 DKK every month.
I think it is fair enough.
Now I think it might will be rolled out in all their markets, step by step?
sdsearch
Apr 13, 12, 10:42 am
Now I think it might will be rolled out in all their markets, step by step?
I don't know. I think there's a different situation in smaller countries (with one dominant airport, at which there is a DC lounge in most if not all terminals because there are few terminals), than in large countries with oodles of airports with not only few of those airports with a DC lounge but even when so only in one of the many termianls. (LAX has 9 terminals, as does JFK. You cannot go to a different terminal because each terminal is only for at most one or two main airlines and maybe a few smaller airlines. Yet DC never has lounges in every such terminal.)
So in HKG or ARN or HEL or CPH or OSL, if anywhere you're flying you're likely to be in the terminal where the DC lounge is, then DC is going to get a lot of lounge access for people based in those countries, while very little for people based in countries like the US with everyone flying out of a different airport and many major airports being fragmented into airline-specific terminals.
So I think this restriction is more likely in countries where there's easy access to a DC lounger at the main airport in the o....ry for most flyers at that airport, but less likely in countries where most people don't get access to a lounge in the own country rarely if ever.
(Being based at LAX, I've never yet been in a situation where I've had access to a DC lounge domestically in the terminal I was in. It's always on some other continent.)
tsastor
Apr 13, 12, 1:05 pm
So in HKG or ARN or HEL or CPH or OSL, if anywhere you're flying you're likely to be in the terminal where the DC lounge is, then DC is going to get a lot of lounge access for people based in those countries, Just to make it clear: HEL and OSL do not have a DC lounge at all. (Still Norwegians have to pay for lounge access...)
bjerregaard
Apr 13, 12, 4:16 pm
Just to make it clear: HEL and OSL do not have a DC lounge at all. (Still Norwegians have to pay for lounge access...)
Yes correct, and now we have two lounges to choose from in CPH. Rather strange.
Going back to the topic, there is 200 more lounges than one year ago.
Spent_All_My_Miles
Apr 28, 12, 7:05 pm
Not to get too far off track, but does DC actually disclose all the details anywhere? There are references to "some cardholders" and "some lounges" ... why can't they provide the details? Why are they not obliged to provide those details?
tsastor
Apr 28, 12, 10:08 pm
Not to get too far off track, but does DC actually disclose all the details anywhere? There are references to "some cardholders" and "some lounges" ... why can't they provide the details? Why are they not obliged to provide those details?
I think this is understanable, as the rules vary per Diners franchise, i.e. Country. The lounge info is maintained centrally though, at www.dinersclub.com.
beep88
May 3, 12, 1:04 pm
Not to get too far off track, but does DC actually disclose all the details anywhere? There are references to "some cardholders" and "some lounges" ... why can't they provide the details? Why are they not obliged to provide those details?
I am sure they do. Each card issuer (in each country) has different terms. You just have to look, or ask them to provide you with a copy.
And lounges are independently owned/operated by 3rd parties who may (and did, in my experience) refuse entry even though those lounges are listed on the diners club website.
lgts
Jul 22, 12, 7:27 am
Citibank is also the DC issuer in Greece. Sometime last year they also introduced a per-visit fee.
AmD950
Aug 28, 12, 5:06 am
Official From Citibank Hong Kong:
With effect from September 1, 2012 ("Effective Date"), the complimentary access to Club Lounges located in airports worldwide outside of Hong Kong will be discontinued for all Diners Club? Cardmembers ("Cardmembers")1. Cardmembers shall pay HK$200 or US$25 per service per visit on and after the Effective Date for using the overseas Club Lounges2.
sokolov
Nov 19, 12, 12:50 am
Holders of Diners Club cards issued in Austria are facing severe restrictions for lounge access: Lounge visits will only be free if the account shows a volume of 3.600 Euro within the 365 days before. Otherwise a fee of 20 Euro will be charged.
The new policy kicks in Dec 1.
Note that DC adds the spending of the primary card holder and secondary cards of the same account together when calculating the 3.600 Euro spending requirement. However, with some very popular co-branded DC cards, secondary cards are not available (or only at a fee that is much higher than for the primary card).
tsastor
Nov 19, 12, 6:01 am
Sounds very reasonable to me. Only 300 €/month is not much.
sdsearch
Nov 21, 12, 5:15 pm
Sounds very reasonable to me. Only 300 €/month is not much.
Given that it's an average (ie, it's that average amount per month for a full year), yes. It's just to insure that you don't keep the card open solely for a couple of the benefits. (I don't know if the card there comes with collision/theft coverage for rental cars, but the Diners Club USA card does, and there are a number of USA-based FTers who use that card only for rental cars and nothing else, which if they don't rent cars often enough could well be less than that amount that Diners Club Austria requires for lounge access.)
bumblebees
Nov 22, 12, 12:53 pm
I wonder if they'll make restrictions on the UK issued ones? If they do, I doubt I'd give it up. They offer better Travel insurance than my amex tbh. The rewards program is very poor though.
sokolov
Nov 25, 12, 9:47 pm
Sounds very reasonable to me. Only 300 €/month is not much.
I understand the change. I don't like the details: The rolling 365 days rule is very hard to keep track off. How much have you spent on your card in the last 365 days?
And they should have announced that earlier - and told all their customers. I read it on AustrianAviation.net - but Diners Club hasn't made me aware of it. So it can be a trap for many members and that will upset them.
sokolov
Nov 25, 12, 9:49 pm
Given that it's an average (ie, it's that average amount per month for a full year), yes. It's just to insure that you don't keep the card open solely for a couple of the benefits. (I don't know if the card there comes with collision/theft coverage for rental cars, but the Diners Club USA card does, and there are a number of USA-based FTers who use that card only for rental cars and nothing else, which if they don't rent cars often enough could well be less than that amount that Diners Club Austria requires for lounge access.)
There are no Austrian credit cards on the open market with such rental car benefits. (Not sure about Amex Centurion.) It is totally unheard of.
iamife
Dec 10, 12, 3:25 pm
Card business in the US is a whole other ball game entirely...
Roger
Dec 15, 12, 5:08 am
They offer better Travel insurance than my amex tbh.This surprised me, but I guess it depends on which AmEx you're comparing. ;) I had a look at the new DC website and still find the DC insurance offer disappointing. It's emergency assistance only. No harm with that but hardly comprehensive.
The airport lounge programme for the UK card is also disappointing, especially in the US. Far less comprehensive then the Priority Pass programme included with some UK AmEx cards.
As for the rewards, I see that even the new DC website is offering Swiss International travel miles (at a poor rate) which DC says can be redeemed on a bunch of OneWorld airlines. Perhaps somebody should tell DC that Swiss are now part of Lufthansa, the Star Alliance and Miles and More. :D
OTOH, if the Swiss International travel miles can really be redeemed on American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas and more, I stand to be corrected.