Why You’ll Want To Use Your Amex Airline Fee Credits Now

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Be sure to use your Amex Airline Fee credits now as they reset at the year of the calendar year. This is one of my favorite benefits of both the Platinum Card from American Express, and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN, which offer a variety of perks including access to the American Express Centurion Lounges, a Priority Pass Select membership, and Delta SkyClub Access in addition to the annual $200 airline fee credit.

a man walking past a glass wall

The American Express Platinum card has a ton of benefits and have even added some new perks this year.

Amex has added the following new benefits to the Amex Platinum card this year:

  • $200 Uber Credit: Cardholders will receive an annual $200 fee credit for Uber. If you are a Uber user, as long as you link your Platinum Card to your Uber account, you’ll actually get a $15 ride credit each month culminating with a $35 credit each December. This is in addition to being granted Uber VIP status, which can score you the highest Uber drivers.
  • 5X Points on Hotels: Similar to the current benefit of earning 5X Points on airfare, you’ll now earn 5X points on hotels, however this is only valid for hotels booked through the amextravel site. In addition, Fine Hotels and Resorts bookings do not earn the added points.
  • New Metal Card and Complimentary Gold Authorized Users: Taking after the Chase Sapphire Preferred, cardholders will now be issued metal cards with a new design. Additionally, authorized users will receive complimentary Gold cards before requiring a $45 fee.

One of the reasons I keep this card year after year is for the lounge access you receive with it. Below is brief overview of the lounges you can access as a cardholder.

American Express Centurion Lounges

Centurion Lounges by American Express are my favorite type of lounge within the collection. Locations include Las Vegas, Dallas, New York (LGA), San Francisco, Miami, Seattle, and Houston, Hong Kong and Philadelphia. As a cardholder, you receive access for yourself and up to two guests traveling with you.

We’ve had the opportunity to stop by a few of the Centurion Lounges including:

a bar with bottles of liquor and glasses

Delta Sky Club Lounges

Cardholders receive access to Delta Sky Clubs when flying Delta and we’ve had the opportunity to check out several of them across the country.

Priority Pass Lounges

Cardholders receive a Priority Pass Select membership and recently have added the perk that you can bring two accompanying guests for no charge when you visit priority pass lounges. Take a look at the all the lounges part of the Priority Pass program you’re able to visit.

Airspace Lounges

Cardholders receive complimentary access to Airspace lounges, with locations currently in New York at T5, Cleveland, and San Diego.

Escape Lounges

Cardholders receive complimentary access to Airspace lounges, with locations in the US currently in Minneapolis and in Oakland.

Card Details: The Platinum Card® from American Express

For those with a small business, you’ll want to consider The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN, which also offers the same lounge access perks and airline fee credits as the personal version.

people sitting at tables in a room with airplanes in the backgroundWhat’s your favorite perk of the American Express Platinum card? Feel free to comment below!

Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or suggestions expressed on this site are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed.

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Here at Points, Miles and Martinis, we love all things travel. We focus on topics relating to travel including destinations, airline, hotel, car rental and credit card reward programs. Our goal is to help people travel better. - See more at our About Us page.

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Comments

  1. United Airlines has closed it TravelBank system with the following message:

    “We’re sorry, our gift registry page is currently unavailable for maintenance. You can still use the funds from your gift registry to book travel during this time, but you will not be able to receive contributions or update your registry details. We expect the page to be up and running again in early 2018.”

    This translates to IF you have not placed your $$ from your AMEX card in your account @ UA you will not be able to do so this year, and since they do not identify WHEN in 2018 it will be back, this mechanism for using this AMEX credit money @ UA is unavailable for the time being.

  2. I don’t view the travel credits as a good benefit at all. As a United 1K, everything I could use it for is already provided for free. The travelbank is dead until next year. At least the Chase SR has the travel for anything! Huge disappointment.

  3. @steve: Well not all of us are able to achieve United 1K status like you did. And then I wonder why you got the Platinum card anyway if you already have all that included in United 1K for free?

  4. The ten cards between me and my wife means 1800 in gift cards on Southwest, which double in value with my companion pass. Free domestic travel.

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