The 100k welcome points offer is back!
For those who think the annual fee of the Platinum card is too high, this card offers a good availability to collect Frequent Flyer points like Asian Miles. The annual fee is $395 but offers a $400 travel credit that can be used easily. It also offers other useful perks like 2 airport lounge accesses and travel insurance.
Referrer: 40,000 Reward Points
Referee gets 200,000 MR points. Referrer gets 150,000 MR points.
We have used the travel credit for a hotel booking. We want to cancel it and book another one. However, the terms and conditions state that if we cancel, we will lose the $450.
I booked hotel via Amex travel and cancelled that day or so after and got refunded back to dollars instead of travel credit.
Same experience. Cancelled a hotel booking even though this hotel states free cancellation 24 hours before check in. I still lost $400 Amex travel credit.
You lose the $400 travel credit - ie you can't use it again.
However, now you pay for your booking and Amex credit your account the $400 - you get it back as cold hard "cash" as a credit on your statement/account.
Tl;dr you lose the $400 travel credit and can't use it again to book travel, however it'll be applied as a credit on your statement anyway.
This is very interesting!
Confirmed this is the case. At least that was my experience last June.
@Feiniao: So you used the travel credit for the hotel booking and then cancelled it.
After that. you have chatted with customer service and they credit the total amount back to you?
@FlyingPanda99: You don’t need too. After cancellation process, you just wait and the credit back to your amex account
@ginger-gin: I think the risk is that if we cancel the booking, we won’t receive any credit back based on the T&C
From their terms: https://web.aexp-static.com/content/dam/amex/au/staticassets…
How does one interpret this "Reverse statement credits issued in the relevant anniversary" ? Does it mean Amex may/potentially not issue the travel credit upon your next year of the card (if you were to keep if after 1 year).
do you mean:
1. Book a flight on Amex travel, using the travel credit
2. Cancel the flight within 24hrs
3. The whole amount (cash plus travel credit) refunded as dollars to your Amex card
Correct, this was my experience
keen to give this a whirl….but nervous too!
@JuryWheel: You can do a car book instead of airline. Make sure read the car company cancellation policy, i did genuinely and have it done
Did you cancel via Amex travel or directly with the airline?
Can confirm this works as of Dec-2024. Booked a hotel, and canceled because of a change in plans. The customer service told me that I would be receiving it as $. It works. Safer to book something just above 400 with free cancellation and cancel soon after booking. The card is technically free
how do you cancel? via the amex site, chat, phone?
I cancelled directly on the travel website
Do you have to book the flights/hotel through the amex site or can O book from another site like booking.com?
Looks like signing up via referral links gets the same offer.
Yep! If you're feeling kind, remember to use a referral link for your fellow OzBargainers
(Link for a random referral from OzBargainers https://www.ozbargain.com.au/api/referral/118)
What does 100,000 Membership Rewards Points in $ value?
Following. How does 100k compare to the 100k qantas points on the other card. I see this card is 2 points per dollar spent which is very nice. Travel credit basically the same too.
2.25 vs 2
100k here only equals 50k once you transfer to Qantas. Not sure what other card you’re talking of with 100k Qantas promo - but sounds like that would net you twice as many Qantas points
Can't transfer amex MR to Qantas. The point of this card is the ability to transfer to other airlines, e.g. Velocity, Krisflyer, Emirates, etc. The travel credit can also be used for hotels, unlike the Qantas one.
Where did you get the
100k here only equals 50k once you transfer to Qantas
?
According to this https://www.americanexpress.com/en-gb/rewards/membership-rew… it looks like it's a 1-1 transfer, isn't it?
Am I looking at the wrong thing?
@digitalane: Oooh wow thanks for that, that explains it. Big "my bad", google led me to this page and I didn't check the url
$500
I had an Essentials card before, whats the cool down period before I can get this offer?
18 months.
18 months.
By the way, I was told the Essentials card has been discontinued now.
Yeah, it's been replaced by the Essentials Rewards card with the $9/month fee by higher points earning rates
What about those existing customers with the Essentials card? Will they be transitioned to monthly fee card?
I used to have an amex card I closed down do you know how long until I am eligible?
18m
18 months since it was closed.
this or Qantas Ultimate?
depends on what are you collecting / where are you planning to go. This gives you flexibility to other airlines.
this
Kicking myself for downgrading this card - might have to upgrade just so I can do some referrals :)
Any thoughts on the Platinum? I have another year in the Amex cool-down room before I can apply, but I’m curious to hear people’s opinions.
What is the conversion rate to krisflyer miles? I see contradicting information claiming 1:1 as well as 3:1.
Sadly definitely 3:1 - in other markets (like US i believe) many of the airline programs are 1:1
Yes, credit card points in US typically convert 1:1
The US has by far the best credit card points programs. Friend of mine has the (now discontinued) Citi Prestige card which gives 5x points on restaurants, he eats out enough that he's racking up 80-90K points every year just from regular eating out which convert to the same number of miles.
I’m getting 4x in my US Amex Good
@digitalane: Yeah the Gold is one of the best points earning cards for restaurants. Too bad the monthly statement credits can't be used to offset the AF outside of the US.
7,500 Membership Rewards® points =
2,500 KrisFlyer miles
Minimum transfer 7,500 points
Maximum transfer 99,999,999 points
Transfer increments 3 points
Waiting for deal on platinum edge
The referral deal is live but only gives first year free
This is purely my thoughts others may disagree but I still feel Qantas Amex is far better value however, Explorer gives you the option to transfer points to other airlines/hotel programs.
Qantas Amex Ultimate 100,000 QFF Points
1c per point ~ $1,000 + $450 Qantas Credit - $450 AF = $1000
AmEx Explorer 100,000 MR Points
1.5c per point ~ 33,333 Kris Flyer Miles Kris Flyer = $500 + $400 Travel Credit - $395 AF = $505
1c per point ~ 50,000 Velocity Points = $500 $500 + $400 Travel Credit = $505
Yes, I agree, if we are purely comparing the value. The only thing is the this card is more flexible, MR can be transferred to many airlines including Cathay Pacific, and 58K can get you a business ticket from SYD to HKG, for Qantas it's 84K. Also, you can use the travel credit more easily than the Qantas credit.
68400 points from MEL to HKG on QF flight
I actually think value wise this card is better, with Qantas Ultimate - you need to spend $450 to get $450 travel credit which is often of lesser value than booking with other airlines.
If using the above refund after booking to get cash credit - this card is effectively paying you $5 net gain.
So as long as you meet the spend requirements, you get a 'free' 100k MR points while with Qantas Ultimate you got to spend $450 in addition.
Qantas Ultimate can do the same refund trick
does it work if you upgrade your card from an essential?
I think this works for new customers only
No. But there is a 25k points if you upgrade and spend $3k link. DM me if you’d like it
Any serial churners been approved?
Haven't been able to get an AMEX for 4 years because of my churning :(
No problems everywhere else.
No thanks! The last time I got this card they were offering 240.000 points for 3k spend in 3 months, which would convert into 120,000 points with Velocity, KrisFlyer, Qantas…!
Good old times… I've been monitored for a long time and 100k is the highest offer after the pandemic.
I know… everybody's jumping on these bad deals so the banks keep throwing them at us. Plus the increase on waiting periods is killing credit card churning
I got on this at that same time, but because it was just post covid the travel was super expensive and limited anyway. It still paid for flights for my honey moon for one of us! Apart from that though, I found it very difficult to accumulate a decent amount of points, even spending 40k on my wedding.
Hey buddy, do you guys take amex?
Yeh, nah
Cheers mate
Cheers
I'm tempted by this offer but hesitant for the same reason you have mentioned.
Does Sniip allow AMEX cards to be added? Most supermarkets accept AMEX from what I remember….
Yes looks like Snipp accepts Amex…
https://sniip.com/pay-bills-american-express-points-calculat…
Zip doesn't seem to accept Amex…
With proliferation of Square readers a lot of small places take Amex, when I last had an AMEX card wasn’t that common to not have it accepted.
For online a lot of time selecting PayPal would allow it to be used too.
Just wondering what is the best use of points in getting a new zealand economy flight from australia?
As in, would using the points directly from the amex travel portal directly to buy air new zealand tickets be the same value, compared if i was to swap it for virgin velocity points and using the velocity points to buy it from virgin flights website?
Are there any other alternatives worth looking at in for NZ?
Thanks
Not the best but the highest of rencent
I signed up mine got 225,000 pints during covid in Oct 2021
I think I saw 240,000 during COVID, but given the bare pickings now I regret passing on 180,000 or even 150,000 shortly after COVID.
Only for Sydney and Melbourne users , they should also consider other lounge access like priority pass.
Has anyone tried stacking this with a referral bonus from an existing AMEX card holder?
platinum vs platinum business, what is the real difference besides the bigger bonus and the fact that if you have a business its a better option you can get 99 sub cards?
in terms of perks does it gain or loose out on anything compared to civilian version? i googled and asked chatgpt+ cant seem to find a definite answer. even chatgpt says its unknown, tf
I want to know how to get an invitation to the Black Card.
According to Rates.fm "You must be a wealthy person who spends a lot. Reports suggest you need to spend at least $350,000 for a personal card and $500,000 for a business card in one year. In addition, you'll also need to have at least one year of history with American Express and an excellent credit score of 800 or higher."
I guess that's USD.
how long does it usually take to get approved for these cards?
Mine took somewhere between 2 weeks
If I’m a supplementary user of another AMEX can I still get this?
You can indeed. Make sure you use a referral - probably best from whoever your a supp on to be nice :)
If I currently have a Amex Velocity Platinum Card, is there a way to switch over to this card and get this deal?
Unlikely. Sometimes Amex offers bonus points as an incentive to upgrade from a lower level card to a premium card. But your card is already premium, so it's unlikely. Doesn't hurt to call and ask though.
If I use the referral links above, will I get the bonus referee points on top of the 100,000 from this deal?
even thou the offer is the same with or without referral, I use the referral random picker, and got Karen's. it is my way to give back to community and may it grows.
and btw i didnt get a straight approval, just a thank you we have received your application, anyone got the same and got it approve?
I see 110k point offer now, probably not worth a post though. Hopefully keeps going up
Damn, it's gone back to 100k again…
FYI My last travel credit from AmEx I booked a flight and cancelled within 24hrs and they refunded me in dollars. This was like 4 months ago but I’m sure it would still work.