mia

It sounds as if this is a nominally prepaid reservation, but the property has not yet actually processed the transaction. It also sounds as if Citi processed the credit without waiting for the charge, so it's unlikely they would look at it again, but to be safe I would pay with another Citi card if I had one.

Colin

are you wanting some assurance from randos on the internet that Citi Concierge, should they ever realize their error somehow, will absolutely not work with Citibank to get a charge on your now-closed Prestige account to reverse the mistaken 4th night credit followed by Citi sending you a final statement on your closed Prestige account months down the line demanding payment under threat of turnover to collections?

Benjh

No I just want to know what everyone's thoughts are. Advice, experience. I thought that's why people came here for.

I'm sure everyone at Flyertalk will be happy to be considered "randos on the internet".

jdtravels

Hi, on the point of back to back stays being ineligible, anyone know whether that only applies to back to back stays that are being paid using the Citi Prestige card?

e.g. I want to stay 1-5 (4 nights) on the Prestige Card, 5-9 (4 nights) on another card, 9-13 (4 more nights) on the Prestige Card, will I get 2 free nights in essence?

Thanks.

runnnerdude2k2

I can assure you that this is a real possibility. A few months ago. I mistakenly received the 4th night credit twice. I think they eventually realized this but were nice enough to call me , acknowledge the mistake and take my consent to reverse the additional statement credit.

mster

Any way to get a decent 4NF rate at MLife properties? The rates they quoted me are obscene compared to MLife member rates - singificantly higher even taking 4NF into account.

JeffMIA

I was just able to book at 4th night free rate at Bellagio. Aspire said they had some relationship with Bellagio and quoted a rate that was significantly less than the Bellagio website rate, but slightly higher than the MLife rate that I was offered. With the 4th night benefit, it still easily made more sense to go through Aspire. Was your concierge aware of these rates, or were they just going off of the website? Also, have Pearl MLife tier status, if you have a higher MLife status, perhaps the discount you are trying to match/beat is greater?

Duke787

Yes, what you propose shouldn't be a problem. You just need one night inbetween (and if all at the same property need to make sure the property charges them as separate 4 night blocks instead of rolling them into one mega charge).

Rikki3072

I am beginning to wonder if Citi prefers the booking process with Aspire to be cumbersome and time-consuming because people eventually just give up and book with an online booking site.

After July, the 4th night free will be the last significant benefit that sets the Prestige apart from other cards, so it is likely that only people who use this benefit will keep the card. This is going to be very expensive for Citi if the remaining cardholders are all heavy users of the 4th night free deal, so Citi has no incentive to create an efficient booking mechanism which makes it easier to use it.

Joe758

I just made my first reservation with Aspire for the 4th night free.
At first I wanted to see if they could book the hotels I was interested in. They were smaller properties not available on OTA's.
I sent them a list of hotels and our travel dates. Within a hour, I got an email reply telling me that they were able to book any one of the hotels I sent.

The next day I sent another email with the hotel I picked, the room type, instructions from the hotel website on how to book the AAA rate, the dates and guest names.
After receiving an email back, again within a hour, I was asked to call in because they did not have my CC number on file (It was my first Aspire booking). This was a 5 minute call and I was told the rep handling the file would be back in contact with me. Within 30 min, I received a call to confirm the rate, details and such. Within an hour, I received a confirmation from Citi and also one from the hotel directly.

In all, this was a painless procedure considering it saved me 20% off my hotel stay (we are staying for 5 nights). I was worried with booking a smaller, independent hotel but everything went smoothly. I'll just have to wait and see how quickly I get back the rebate after the trip.

StatusChallenged

Hmm,

I booked my normal 3rd night free rate on Starwood, and the confirmation email shows me a 4th night discount that is taken from the average rate rather than discounting my 4th night - was that change implemented already?

nesnith

The change shouldn't be in effect until 7/23. Reservations made prior to 7/23 (even though they might be for stays after 7/23) should still follow the current rule (i.e. actual 4th night rate, not average).

Bounce it back to Concierge and see what they say?

omghaxcode

Anyone ever get 2x 4th free credits for booking (separately) 2 reservations at the same hotel on the same dates under the same account? I know this is not supposed to be possible but I was able to book (over 2 calls) the same reservation twice. The CSR didn't mention the earlier booking and said exactly what I'd be refunded but I'm not sure if it will actually credit. These are refundable stays so won't know for months.

The only reason I'm using the 4th night free credit is points. I won't be staying in either room for more than 3 nights.

seawolf

CSRs don't check against other reservations when booking. It's the 4th night credit team that verify and audit the folio before they issue the credit. This team is the ones you need to get past.

swag

When the rates vary for different nights, some hotel chain websites (like Marriott) show the rate change explicitly. Others, including maybe Starwood(?) will just show the nightly average.