Diners Club Club Rewards - Why don't more people use Diner's Club?

I realize a good portion of this answer is: "because they don't advertise". Still, they are the ONLY Mastercard product I've seen with a rewards program as good as or better than Membership Rewards. Plus there's the added bonuses of being accepted in 10x more places than AMEX and having PRIMARY car rental insurance provided.

Seriously, I would expect this card to be in every businessman's wallet!

Thanks for the insurance on rental cars, I'll have a look for my spanish bank account :)

They offer free access to the airport run VIP rooms , I guess alike Priority Pass, if ticket paid with the card (wonder how they check that!) and after 600€ charged to the card + 6 movements.

That would be a handy back-up card when not travelling ST nor SA (meaning IB or AA for me, low cost not as only Vueling is in T4).

But they do not state the annual fee anywhere (!) and force to participate in th Global Club (15€ per year)...

I'll try and give them a call!

But they do not state the annual fee anywhere (!) and force to participate in th Global Club (15€ per year)...


I don't know about international cards, but US based cards are $25 for the card + $75 for the rewards program for a total of $100.

Carte Blanche (for added travel/golf benefits) is $300 per year, but that includes the rewards program.

can someone provide a link to the diners club page to apply or one that shows the rewards?

thanks

DC recently told me that for the US, they now only accept phone applications.

Rewards here:
https://www.dinersclubus.com/dce_content/clubRewardsandBenefits

can someone provide a link to the diners club page to apply or one that shows the rewards?

thanks

rrgg is correct. There is no online application. The website (www.dinersclubus.com) has an 800# to call. The website also shows the rewards (Club Rewards).

Also noteworthy - they pretend to only offer business cards, but if push comes to shove they will issue you a personal card.

As for the OP's question, most people don't have DC cards because they don't know they're still in business.

I don't know about international cards, but US based cards are $25 for the card + $75 for the rewards program for a total of $100.

Carte Blanche (for added travel/golf benefits) is $300 per year, but that includes the rewards program.

I was under the impression the regular DC card had a $95 annual fee and the Carte Blanche was $300

Thanks for the insurance on rental cars, I'll have a look for my spanish bank account :)

They offer free access to the airport run VIP rooms , I guess alike Priority Pass, if ticket paid with the card (wonder how they check that!) and after 600€ charged to the card + 6 movements.

That would be a handy back-up card when not travelling ST nor SA (meaning IB or AA for me, low cost not as only Vueling is in T4).

But they do not state the annual fee anywhere (!) and force to participate in th Global Club (15€ per year)...

I'll try and give them a call!

Spanish, French, Austrian card do not mention primary car insurance...

Card cost between 75 to 109€ per year which will not drive to use them when my (free) Amex green has same perks minus the VIP rooms which cost 15/20€ anyway to enter. So for the odd case I use a long haul OW or a low cost (otherwise I usually arrive "right on time to the aircraft door"), it'll cost me less to pay-as-I-Use (+ I managed in MAD to get a 75% rebate from 25 to 8€ once... just limited to one drink, one sandwich and 2hours which is less than I used usually!).

So not for me I guess. ;)

my annual feel has always been $95 (though there's a long thread on getting retention bonuses in exchange for that fee)

DC has the best customer support of any company.

They could upgrade their account access website, though.

As for the OP's question, most people don't have DC cards because they don't know they're still in business.



I was under the impression the regular DC card had a $95 annual fee and the Carte Blanche was $300

I just applied for the card and the fee is what I posted above, at least according to the application paperwork.

I just applied for the card and the fee is what I posted above, at least according to the application paperwork.

I've had the card for 15+ years now and my annual fee has been $95 for the past several years, however my cost of that annual fee has always been more than made up for by an annual retention bonus (for example this year's retention bonus was 10K points which I typically value at approx $275).

I applied for the Diners Club card in the 80's in Europe the same year as for the Amex green card.

DC was my favorite card at the beginning, but the acceptance was far lower than for the Amex card. I had sometimes to "fight" in order to use it.
The acceptance in Europe was the main problem with the DC card, it depends mainly of the local franchisee.

Cash withdrawals incurred a 4% fee (Amex was only 2%), points were valid only 3 years (Amex rewards points have unlimited validity).

DC Airport lounges were always difficult to find when you need one, and until now the US remains a desert for DC lounges.

Amex invited me later to Gold, Platinum and Centurion. I still have the DC card but don't use it that much.

DC was a good product, but Citibank didn't know what to do with it.

In its disfavor, DC is one of the few cards that charges you a "handling" fee ($0.95 or 95 Club Reward points per 1000 Club Reward points redeemed). In addition, you cannot schedule your payment for a specific date, but rather only for same day payment--that's annoying.

The ability to pay up to 2 months later (no longer permitted, since the MC affiliation took place) used to be very attractive for some. While I never used that benefit, I have on more than one occasion been exonerated for a late payment (by 1-2 days...caused by my forgetfulness and the system's inability to permit a payment date scheduled for the future). The customer service has been excellent, overall. They used to have a 100% BA miles bonus, which was VERY worthwhile before BA drastically changed its redemptions rewards in Jul-03.

All in all, it's not that card it used to be. Nonetheless, the primary insurance continue to be useful and since the MC affiliation, I have found little need to maintain another Citicard MC. I have used the lounge access on a couple of occasions, over the years. So, overall, I keep it in my wallet but only use it when I don't/can't use my Amex-SPG card.

I had the card for a number of years and would charge about $100K to it annually. They used to issue me a credit to offset the annual fee. One year they refused, so I cancelled.

In its disfavor, DC is one of the few cards that charges you a "handling" fee ($0.95 or 95 Club Reward points per 1000 Club Reward points redeemed).

Amex charges a fee for transfers to airlines I think.


The ability to pay up to 2 months later (no longer permitted, since the MC affiliation took place) used to be very attractive for some.

It is still offered on business cards, at least according to the marketing info sent by the phone agent.

Using your card outside the euro area, Finnish DC converts the charges to euros using the cash (!) rate of the leading local bank. AMEX first converts the charge into USD then again into EUR. Mastercard converts straight using the interbank rate (more or less) Guess which card I use outside Europe?

Using your card outside the euro area, Finnish DC converts the charges to euros using the cash (!) rate of the leading local bank. AMEX first converts the charge into USD then again into EUR. Mastercard converts straight using the interbank rate (more or less) Guess which card I use outside Europe?

The assertion of Amex converting to USD and then to EUR is not correct if you mean that the double conversion incurs double exchange charges.
It's only multiplying (currency vs. USD) * (USD vs. Euro) interbank rates and then applying the 2% fee.