City National Crystal Visa Infinite Credit Card
- Best for: City National clients who pay U.S. airline fees and use airport lounges every year
- What Sets It Apart: Up to $350 a year in airline fee credits; Priority Pass Select for two cardholders; a $550 airline lounge membership credit after $50,000 in yearly spending
- Cost: $400 annual fee; $95 per additional card; no foreign transaction fee; 20.75% or 24.75% variable APR
- Rewards: 3 points per $1 on airlines, hotels, rental cars, trains, buses, taxis, rideshares, and restaurants; 1 point per $1 elsewhere; no cap
- Pros: A $50 net cost once the $350 airline credit offsets the $400 fee; rental car damage coverage that pays before your own insurance; $120 Global Entry credit every four years
- Cons: No welcome bonus; points don’t transfer to airline or hotel programs; guests pay $32 per lounge visit
Get the City National Crystal Visa Infinite only if you bank with City National and will use its airline fee credit and Priority Pass lounges every year. Used in full, its $350 airline fee credit cuts the $400 annual fee to a net $50 for the lounges and triple points on travel and dining.
The Crystal is City National Bank’s premium travel card, which the bank markets to customers who already hold accounts there. Instead of an online application, you leave your details on the bank’s site and a relationship manager walks you through it.
Key Features
- $400 annual fee, plus $95 a year for each additional card
- 3 points per $1 on airlines, hotels, rental cars, trains, buses, taxis, rideshares, and restaurants, takeout included; 1 point per $1 on everything else
- Up to $350 each calendar year in statement credits for fees such as checked bags and ticket changes on U.S. airlines’ domestic flights
- Priority Pass Select airport lounge access for up to two cardholders, with each guest costing $32 a visit
- $120 credit every four years toward Global Entry, the program that speeds you through U.S. customs and includes TSA PreCheck
Pros
- A $50 net cost once the $350 airline credit offsets the $400 fee
- No foreign transaction fee
- Rental car damage coverage that pays before your own auto insurance, so you can decline the rental company’s damage waiver
- Points that don’t expire while the account is open, with no earning cap
- Point redemptions for flights on most airlines, with no blackout dates
Cons
- No advertised welcome bonus
- Points that can’t move to airline or hotel loyalty programs
- No fixed, published value per point
- $550 airline lounge membership credit only after $50,000 in yearly spending
- Airline credit that excludes tickets, seat fees, and fees on international trips
If you bank with City National, use airport lounges, and already pay $350 or more a year in airline fees like checked bags and ticket changes, ask your relationship manager for the Crystal. Frequent travelers who don’t bank there will often get more from a national premium card than from the Crystal, and Capital One’s Venture X, for one, costs $395 a year and transfers its miles to 15-plus travel loyalty programs.
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