Amex (Non Surpass/Aspire) Platinum & Business CC

[mountainboy]

Now with the Platinum, it would kind of be redundant lounge access (slightly better with the resturants)

No PP restaurant access with RC or CSR...
RC gives access to unlimited guests at any Sapphire lounge (= awesome, as PP only gives you ONE lounge visit for oneself, no guests, if NOT with CSR or RC); s, huge, if one's travels take one to places with Sapphire lounges...
AmEx Platty gives access to Centurion & Escape lounges.
(Escape allows 2 guests for free; Centurion requires 75k spend (or addl cardholders) to get guests in...)
So, complimentary to have CSR/RC & AmEx Platty..
TY!

 

[Zenichiro]

No PP restaurant access with RC or CSR...
RC gives access to unlimited guests at any Sapphire lounge (= awesome, as PP only gives you ONE lounge visit for oneself, no guests, if NOT with CSR or RC); s, huge, if one's travels take one to places with Sapphire lounges...
AmEx Platty gives access to Centurion & Escape lounges.
(Escape allows 2 guests for free; Centurion requires 75k spend (or addl cardholders) to get guests in...)
So, complimentary to have CSR/RC & AmEx Platty..
TY!

Ah I didn’t realize they changed the PP restaurants access on the RC.

 

[brp]

On the Marriott side I have a Brilliant and Boundless. Boundless gets 35K FNA for $95. That's a no-brainer as I can easily beat that on stays I would already do. For Brilliant, it's $650. But I get $25/month in dining credits, and I really do use that (haven't missed a single one since they starter like 4 years ago). Then it's $350 with 85K FNA. I can make that work and it also gives breakfast/lounge access and late checkout.

For example, staying at a Marriott near home (San Jose) to run a race tomorrow morning. Start line right outside the front door. Lounge breakfast will be over before I finish, so I get it early, stick it in the fridge, and I know where the microwave is.

Cheers.

 

[mountainboy]

Ah I didn’t realize they changed the PP restaurants access on the RC.

Same time they nerfed the CSR Restaurant credit :-(

 

[mountainboy]

Brilliant and Boundless

Ditto!
(Although I will PC Boundless to RC next yr, unless they nerf RC significantly)
Brilliant is not as nice as Aspire for my use case, but still enough value (+ included Platinum status & lounges very helpful: loved the lounge access at Marriott Union Square SFO & Westin Anaheim), so still a keeper!
Best for your race tmrw!

 

[brp]

So, complimentary to have CSR/RC & AmEx Platty..

Exactly. I have CSR and Amex Plat (with P2 as an AU). P2 has CSP. And now I'm AU on that since CSR will lose the 3X on travel purchases, but CSP still gets 2X on those.

Cheers.

 

[brp]

Brilliant is not as nice as Aspire for my use case, but still enough value (+ included Platinum status & lounges very helpful: loved the lounge access at Marriott Union Square SFO & Westin Anaheim), so still a keeper!
Best for your race tmrw!

Since we are Hyatt people, neither Brilliant now Aspire are primary and only used for the few stays at those places. But I can make the value work. We stay at Hyatt in SF, so have not tried the Marriotts in SF (or SFO) in quite a while.

Thanks for the wishes.

Cheers.

 

[Eric B]

For me, the Uber one credits posted quite quickly. My Lulu credit hasn't posted yet, but the charge is still pending. I noticed on the app that there's an enrollment for that credit that wasn't reflected on the app though I did it on the web site; I've enrolled through there and think it likely that I'll need to circle back to a CSR to discuss this one (Lulu).

Ok, my Lulu credit posted for a second purchase I made after enrolling, on the 30th of September just in case. Got my underwear for half price, all in all, though I wasn't able to get the full $75 credit due to getting a military discount. Nice undies and a good learning experience - check and be sure you've enrolled in the benefit if yours hasn't posted. Got the RESY credit and the Uber one credit within a few days, too. Gotta admit that the RESY credit is way easier than farting around with finding a Chase Sapphire exclusive table participating titanium plated ultra special dining establishment, though I've found a couple of those to try out after October 26th.

 

[brp]

Got the RESY credit and the Uber one credit within a few days, too. Gotta admit that the RESY credit is way easier than farting around with finding a Chase Sapphire exclusive table participating titanium plated ultra special dining establishment, though I've found a couple of those to try out after October 26th.

Is RESY as simple as 1. Dine at a RESY restaurant; 2. Pay with the Amex Plat?

Also, does the reservation need to be made with RESY, or it just be a RESY participating location?

Signed up for Luliu, but likely will never (or rarely) use it. Never know.

Also, assume that these quarterly things are calendar quarter, like started October 1.

Cheers.

 

[Eric B]

Is RESY as simple as 1. Dine at a RESY restaurant; 2. Pay with the Amex Plat?

Yes

Also, does the reservation need to be made with RESY, or it just be a RESY participating location?

No reservation was necessary - I got the credit as a walk in.

Signed up for Lulu, but likely will never (or rarely) use it. Never know.

Everyone's needs vary, of course. I wear undies most every day, myself, so am happy to get free new ones that are nice. YMMV.

Also, assume that these quarterly things are calendar quarter, like started October 1.

It is so.

 

[1Kflyerguy]

Is RESY as simple as 1. Dine at a RESY restaurant; 2. Pay with the Amex Plat?

Also, does the reservation need to be made with RESY, or it just be a RESY participating location?

Signed up for Luliu, but likely will never (or rarely) use it. Never know.

Also, assume that these quarterly things are calendar quarter, like started October 1.

Cheers.

Yes, Resy is that simple. Just pay with your Amex at Resy restaurant. I did make my reservation with Resy, but my understanding is that is not required. There a number of Resy eligible places here in San Jose / south bay.

 

[brp]

Everyone's needs vary, of course. I wear undies most every day, myself, so am happy to get free new ones that are nice. YMMV.

The only think useful I can get from Saks is undies...so not sure just how many I need in a given year

Cheers.

 

[brp]

Yes, Resy is that simple. Just pay with your Amex at Resy restaurant. I did make my reservation with Resy, but my understanding is that is not required. There a number of Resy eligible places here in San Jose / south bay.

Yeah, was just looking and see some as close as Los Gatos. As it's quarterly (as opposed to the CSR half-yearly), more finding to do. For the CSR, we can undoubtedly find something in a place we're visiting. This and next half are already spoken for. Quarterly is a little more work. Of course, I have Bonvoy Brilliant monthly, but that's any restaurant anywhere. Couponing is fun. Really

Cheers.

 

[RebelR]

Do you have to dine in or does the Resy credit also apply to take out at eligible restaurants?

 

[brp]

Do you have to dine in or does the Resy credit also apply to take out at eligible restaurants?

Looking through the full T&Cs, I don't see it mentioned. My guess is that the charge being coded to a Resy participating restaurant should be sufficient as I'd think there's no way to tell it was dine in/take out from the charge.

Benefits Dashboard

global.americanexpress.com

Cheers.

 

[mountainboy]

my understanding is that is not required.

correct!
Used twice last month; no reservation. Just ate at Resy participating restaurant (& paid with Amex Plat) & got credit promptly!

Gotta admit that the RESY credit is way easier than farting around with finding a Chase Sapphire exclusive table participating titanium plated ultra special dining establishment,

Agree 100%!

 

[mountainboy]

*Per DoC, Rakuten10-15x MR pts bonus for using Rakuten for Lulu (I don't use any browser extns but for those you do, it is a nice bonus)!

Rakuten: Lululemon 15% Back (15x Per Dollar)

Rakuten is offering 15x rewards or 15% cashback on Lululemon purchases. Perfect for using the AmEX Platinum $75 credit

www.doctorofcredit.com

 

[mountainboy]

Lulu credit posted

Love Lulu!
Much better & more useful for our use case than Saks Amex Plat (AP) credit... (post #74 above)

Amex (Non Surpass/Aspire) Platinum & Business CC

I have heard good things about Aura, and know a few people who have had and loved them for years. I am interested in them, but have not explored exactly what the membership covers. For the most part, the membership is needed to understand and analyze the data collected and to use the api...

tugbbs.com

 

[mountainboy]

*Interesting posts re (possible) number of Amex Platinum cardholders, their apparent net worth & apparently Gen Z using Amex Platinum as a flex/status symbol...
(Also some interesting stats on credit card usage in general, stateside)....

https://www.reddit.com/r/amex/comments/t8cvrp/has_aexp_ever_shared_the_number_of_platinum

How Amex became a Gen Z status symbol | Bankrate

Gen-Z and millennials consider an Amex card to be a status symbol. How did this happen?

www.bankrate.com

The Strange Mythology Around The Amex Platinum Card And American Express Success - View from the Wing

American Express appears to be doing well with its Platinum card, having turned it into an Entertainment Book of coupons you pay for and then strive to get more value than its cost from. I have the card and do this successfully, but the mythology around the product is strange?

viewfromthewing.com

https://www.reddit.com/r/amex/comments/zee0qm/bloomberg_the_number_of_platinum_holders_doubled

Credit Card Ownership Statistics [Income, Credit Score, Education]

Is credit card ownership related to income, location, education level, or gender? We'll break down the relationship between these and more.

upgradedpoints.com

Amex bets on millennials, Gen Z for growth

As it pursues younger consumers, the company is angling to ensure its high-fee cards offer enough value for millennials and Gen Zers.

www.paymentsdive.com

 

[ljmiii]

So...the SUB for the AMEX Platinum and some of the coupons make it tempting despite the annual fee. What I'm trying to figure out is how people use AMEX points in the real world. I see lots of ways to get a penny a point...but TPG's valuation is 2.0 cents a point. And when I look to see why TPG values them so highly I'm finding lots of examples like book "ANA to Japan through Virgin" or "UA to Hawaii through Singapore Airlines". Which is great if your job is to find out the hidden gems in travel award redemptions...but a bit much for mere mortals. Thoughts/experiences are welcome...TIA.

 

[Eric B]

So...the SUB for the AMEX Platinum and some of the coupons make it tempting despite the annual fee. What I'm trying to figure out is how people use AMEX points in the real world. I see lots of ways to get a penny a point...but TPG's valuation is 2.0 cents a point. And when I look to see why TPG values them so highly I'm finding lots of examples like book "ANA to Japan through Virgin" or "UA to Hawaii through Singapore Airlines". Which is great if your job is to find out the hidden gems in travel award redemptions...but a bit much for mere mortals. Thoughts/experiences are welcome...TIA.

I have the Schwab AMEX Platinum and the Business AMEX Platinum. Got a decent SUB for both. I generally use my points to book flights through AMEX on my selected airline going through the Business one because one of the benefits is a 35% rebate on points used for that one. (It used to also cover any business or first class air fares but they took away that part.) As a result, 1 cent of air travel costs me 0.65 points, making the point value about 1.54 cents using the airline I regularly use. IIRC, the TPG valuations depend on transferring points to different airlines for bonus amounts - like you I find that a bit too much work and not really supportive of traveling when my travel plans have me traveling.

 

[bnoble]

I'm not sure how TPG gets $0.02, and I'm not willing to jump through the hoops to figure it out. My "worst case" use is as Delta SkyMiles. They redeem at about $0.012 natively, but I get a 15% miles discount on award tickets by virtue of holding a Delta-branded Amex. That means my "worst case" redemption value is a little bit north of $0.014. That's good enough for me.

 

[RebelR]

I'm not sure how TPG gets $0.02, and I'm not willing to jump through the hoops to figure it out. My "worst case" use is as Delta SkyMiles. They redeem at about $0.012 natively, but I get a 15% miles discount on award tickets by virtue of holding a Delta-branded Amex. That means my "worst case" redemption value is a little bit north of $0.014. That's good enough for me.

I recently transferred some points to BA to book a domestic flight via AA. When searching on the AA website, the price was slightly under $1200 which made my redemption $0.02 but when searching for that same flight via Expedia, it was half that cost. So maybe that's how they're getting the $0.02 number?

 

[brp]

I recently transferred some points to BA to book a domestic flight via AA. When searching on the AA website, the price was slightly under $1200 which made my redemption $0.02 but when searching for that same flight via Expedia, it was half that cost. So maybe that's how they're getting the $0.02 number?

I transfer to BA to use for upgrades to international First from Business, when available. But, Amex points are virtually useless for us, so the vast majority of our spend goes on Chase cards which can transfer to Hyatt. Amex spend is the bare minimum to take advantage of various perks across several cards.

Cheers.

 

[mountainboy]

So...the SUB for the AMEX Platinum and some of the coupons make it tempting despite the annual fee. What I'm trying to figure out is how people use AMEX points in the real world. I see lots of ways to get a penny a point...but TPG's valuation is 2.0 cents a point. And when I look to see why TPG values them so highly I'm finding lots of examples like book "ANA to Japan through Virgin" or "UA to Hawaii through Singapore Airlines". Which is great if your job is to find out the hidden gems in travel award redemptions...but a bit much for mere mortals. Thoughts/experiences are welcome...TIA.

*Consider pointsyeah (Thx to @Zenichiro ) or other portals to look up good redemption opportunities (& best use via UR/MR?TY pts etc from Chase/Amex/Citi resp). (AmEx gives you free access to Point.me for seeing best use case for MR pts also)

* I xfr'd my Amex MR pts to HA---> AS, which was phenomenal value; I use AS pts for short-haul AA metal flights; much cheaper than booking via AA, esp Biz. (That backdoor closed in June this year unfort).

Still good redemptions; may ask your fav AI tool to come up with good use case or spend a few minutes on 10x travel or award travel or TPG etc to see best use case, for your use case..
TY!