Best of MJ on Travel: The Amex Platinum Card

I’m enjoying a fabulous European vacation including a cruise aboard Celebrity Equinox right now.  While I’m away I hope you’ll enjoy reading some of your favorite content based on visits to the blog.  Today, in honor of the joy of travel, I write about the benefits of the American Express Platinum Card, and why I truly don’t leave home without it.

In my third installment on the most popular search terms that bring readers to this blog, I’d like to discuss the American Express Platinum Card. Particularly, I’d like to write about why this card can still be a good deal for the frequent traveler, even though American Express recently dropped the domestic 2 for 1 companion travel benefit.

First things first, the Amex Platinum Card is going to cost you $450 dollars per year. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk about why this card is worth the money. For me, the number one benefit of this card is airline lounge access on the day of travel. This benefit offers the cardholder and up to two guests access to the lounges of American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines when you present your Platinum card, a government issued I.D. and a boarding pass for travel on the airline’s lounge you are trying to enter. In other words, if you want to enter an American Admirals Club, you need an American Airlines boarding pass for travel that day. If you’ve read the blog before, you know that I highly recommend that frequent travelers join the lounge program of the airline they fly most. For me, that’s American and Delta. If I were to join the lounge of both airlines, I would be out over $700 dollars in annual fees. With the Amex Platinum card, I have access to both lounges for the price of the card’s annual fee. That’s a good deal for me.

Another benefit of the card is the Fine Hotels and Resorts (FHR) program. FHR offers exclusive benefits including room upgrades, free breakfasts, and individual amenities that are unique to each hotel. To receive FHR benefits, you must book your hotel through Platinum Travel Service (PTS), a full-service travel agency available to Amex Platinum cardholders. I have used this benefit a few times with decent results. PTS can provide the full range of services you would expect from a travel agent, however I admittedly use my own local agent when I am booking a trip that I feel requires the use of agent services. Therefore, I cannot comment on the usefulness of PTS as your regular travel agent.

While Amex has discontinued the domestic 2 for 1 travel program, the international program remains in place. When booking a qualifying first or business class ticket, you are eligible for a complimentary ticket in the same class of service for a companion. There are no limits on the number of times you can utilize this benefit as there were in the now discontinued domestic 2 for 1 program. Other benefits I’ve found useful are elite level privileges in several car rental company programs including Hertz and Avis. Additionally, Amex Platinum cardholders are eligible for Gold membership in the Starwood Preferred Guest program.

There are a number of other benefits, including those that are fairly standard across most American Express Cards. I’ve only scratched the surface with this post. You can review full details about the Platinum Card by clicking here.

I have had nothing but overwhelmingly positive experiences with American Express dating back to my very first card in 1989 while in college. However, I have to write briefly about some of the news items surrounding American Express. There have been widespread reports of American Express reducing the charging ability of customers that appear to be “good customers” based upon charging habits or charging items in areas that American Express has modeled to be higher risk. Just this week, a thread appeared on FlyerTalk indicating that American Express was imposing spending limits on many cardholders with “no pre-set limit” cards like the Platinum Card. I can’t comment beyond what I’ve written as I have not experienced any of these problems, and have my fingers crossed that I won’t. For what it’s worth, I am blessed with employment that is about as stable as one can find in this country and an above average income. Furthermore, I rarely carry balances on my other credit cards, and have a history of on-time payments with a credit score close to 800. That said, it appears from some of the press reports and internet postings that cardholders with similar circumstances have had their charging ability curtailed. You’ll have to do your own research and formulate your own opinions. I’ve found a terrific source of information on the subject of credit at creditmattersblog.com. Check it out. In the meantime, keep reading. I hope this information is helpful.