100K point offer for Amex Platinum

[fltireguy]

---

@UpperNwGuy wrote:

Ahh... but I can get Priority Pass with several other less expensive credit cards.  I have it through Chase Sapphire Reserve.  And I might note, I only use Priority Pass overseas.  The US lounges in the Priority Pass network are few, and they are often co-branded with foreign carriers who limit access in the late afternoon hours when you most need a lounge.

---

I can really only speak for the club at MCO.... Never have an issue there, and I fly once or twice a month

[iced]

---

@red259 wrote:

---

@iced wrote:

It's only worth it if you think it is. I personally value MR points at just about $0.00 per point so 100k wouldn't be worth it to me, but someone else may think they're worth much more. None of that matters though, because the only valuation that should matter to you is yours.

I don't understand why you would have to give up the Citi or Ritz to get the Platinum, though. They all have some overlapping benefits, but nothing on the Platinum is going to supercede the other two's key benefits.

---

? The plat will give access to centurion lounges. The plat will give spg/marriott/hilton gold status. Neither of those are you getting from the prestige. Rental insurance can be better via amex as well. These are just off the top of my head so they are not that overlapping. The prestige has really been torn down over time by Citi. I just closed mine recently and back when I got it, it was the best card in my whole collection. 

---

My comment is in regards to the focal benefits of each card:

- Platinum: Delta/Centurion lounge access

- Ritz: hotel credit/club upgrades/path to Platinum Elite

- Citi: 4th night free

There is no benefit on the Platinum that makes getting a fourth night free or club upgrade benefit redundant. Likewise, there is no benefit on the Ritz or Citi that grants Delta or Centurion lounge access. Therefore, I don't see a reason to give up either the Citi or Ritz to get the Platinum as neither are rendered redundant in the same way as say getting a CSR renders a CSP useless. I get there's lots of other benefits on each of the cards, but I do think there's a unique benefit on each card that could make keeping one (or all) of these cards appealing to some.

[Anonymous]

---

@fltireguy wrote:

---

@UpperNwGuy wrote:

As best I can tell, the primary benefits of the Amex Platinum card and the MR points are:  Delta flights, Delta lounges, and Centurian lounges.  I live in a city where Delta has far fewer flights than United, Southwest, American, and Jet Blue.  Delta flights only take me to Delta hubs, and that's not a fun way to fly.  If I don't fly Delta, the Delta lounges are not an option.  Centurion lounges are only in a few cities, and I never travel through those cities.  I agree with iced's valuation of MR points.  If I lived in Atlanta, I might have a different view.

---

Well, if there isn't a centurion or delta lounge, there is a priority pass lounge in pretty much every major airport, and you get priority pass membership for free!

---

You don't get it for free you have to pay 550 dollars a year, I fly out of either BWI, IAD or PHL..  None of these airports have many Delta flights.  Delta seems the least useful of the major airlines.   I have flown to Atlanta several times and even then I didn't fly Delta.

[UpperNwGuy]

---

@red259 wrote:

---

@UpperNwGuy wrote:

As best I can tell, the primary benefits of the Amex Platinum card and the MR points are:  Delta flights, Delta lounges, and Centurian lounges.  I live in a city where Delta has far fewer flights than United, Southwest, American, and Jet Blue.  Delta flights only take me to Delta hubs, and that's not a fun way to fly.  If I don't fly Delta, the Delta lounges are also not an option.  Centurion lounges are only in a few cities, and I never travel through those cities.  I agree with iced's valuation of MR points.  If I lived in Atlanta, I might have a different view.

---

The PP lounges as well, not to mention the hilton/marriott/spg status. In addition you wouldn't be able to use those miles with any of the MR travel partners at all? If you have no interest in flights then why would you even consider a card like this? I wouldn't say the points are worthless at all. I would just say that this isn't the card for some people. If people aren't going to be able to use the benefits or points its like buying a car but not knowing how to drive. The car isn't worthless. The person who bought it just doesn't use it. 

---

As I said in an earlier comment, I only use Priority Pass lounges overseas because the ones in my home airport belong to foreign airlines who lock me out during the late afternoon hours when I want to use a lounge.  As for airlines, I fly often.  However, I fly on United for Europe, American for Latin America and for domestic, and Jet Blue for one domestic route (to visit my elderly father).  Amex MR points don't help me with United and American, and I'm covered on Jet Blue.  I never fly Delta because, for me, all Delta flights require connections, and I hate connections.  As for foreign carriers, I can already use my Chase UR points for transfers to British Airways, Air France, and KLM, and my United miles can be used for Lufthansa tickets.  The other Amex partner airlines don't interest me.  The 5x MR might be an attraction, but I have such a stockpile of United and American miles from my pre-retirement days and UR points earned more recently that I don't need to earn miles for another couple of years.

[bourgogne]

---

@UpperNwGuy wrote:

---

@red259 wrote:

---

@UpperNwGuy wrote:

As best I can tell, the primary benefits of the Amex Platinum card and the MR points are:  Delta flights, Delta lounges, and Centurian lounges.  I live in a city where Delta has far fewer flights than United, Southwest, American, and Jet Blue.  Delta flights only take me to Delta hubs, and that's not a fun way to fly.  If I don't fly Delta, the Delta lounges are also not an option.  Centurion lounges are only in a few cities, and I never travel through those cities.  I agree with iced's valuation of MR points.  If I lived in Atlanta, I might have a different view.

---

The PP lounges as well, not to mention the hilton/marriott/spg status. In addition you wouldn't be able to use those miles with any of the MR travel partners at all? If you have no interest in flights then why would you even consider a card like this? I wouldn't say the points are worthless at all. I would just say that this isn't the card for some people. If people aren't going to be able to use the benefits or points its like buying a car but not knowing how to drive. The car isn't worthless. The person who bought it just doesn't use it. 

---

As I said in an earlier comment, I only use Priority Pass lounges overseas because the ones in my home airport belong to foreign airlines who lock me out during the late afternoon hours when I want to use a lounge.  As for airlines, I fly often.  However, I fly on United for Europe, American for Latin America and for domestic, and Jet Blue for one domestic route (to visit my elderly father).  Amex MR points don't help me with United and American, and I'm covered on Jet Blue.  I never fly Delta because, for me, all Delta flights require connections, and I hate connections.  As for foreign carriers, I can already use my Chase UR points for transfers to British Airways, Air France, and KLM, and my United miles can be used for Lufthansa tickets.  The other Amex partner airlines don't interest me.  The 5x MR might be an attraction, but I have such a stockpile of United and American miles from my pre-retirement days and UR points earned more recently that I don't need to earn miles for another couple of years.

---

re pp, does your home airport have a lounge in AS?  if so have you had those pancakes out of the machine?  now THAT is what makes pp worth it imo lol.  nothing to add just stopped by to say I like the way you think...you dont have any freedom feeders to the csr?

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@MrDisco99 wrote:
Bare minimum they are worth 0.6 cents per point as statement credit. They are worth a lot more if you transfer to airlines, easily 1.5 to 2.0 without trying too hard and a lot more if you do premium class and/or special searches.

---

The easy 1.5 to 2.0 I never saw but you can get 1 cent on a lot of gift cards for places like the Gap, Old Navy, Crate and Barrel, Pottery Barn. I would not rate MR Points very high though as you can't even get 1 cent on Target or Walmart gift cards while you can get that rate from CITI thank you points.  I would say though with 100000 MR points and the 400 in airline gift cards you get the 550 dollar upfront fee could be worth it.  

I think it would be hard to get over 1 cent in value from MR Points right now as there are no transfer bonuses.  Delta I think are valued at 1.2 a point so you could transfer to Delta but they don't have a reward chart.  I would rate them less than that.  British Airways has terrible fuel surcharges.  I looked at a lot of transfer partners and the values over 1 cent are not real.  You have to transfer to a certain airline and then use with one of their partners if you can even find a flight.   

Compared to Southwest points or American Airline points MR points really are not very good.  

---

You don't need a transfer bonus to get $0.01/point. Jet Blue transfers at a 1000:800 because a Jet Blue point is worth about 1.3-1.7 cents each. 

I would never suggest transfering to HIlton, though, even with the 2:1 deals they occasionally offer... The Hilton branded cards are still a better deal. 

[wasCB14]

frogman1, Virgin Atlantic currently has a 30% transfer bonus for MRs.

I moved a lot during the recent 40% BA promo. Transatlantic fuel charges hurt, but Avios are good for close-in domestic AA awards.

On that note, does anyone have a favored airline for avoiding United's close-in award fee (on United metal)? I know I can book a further-out award, call to change the date, and hope the CSR forgets to charge the fee...but I guess I'm looking for something more reliable that I can do in one booking.

[red259]

---

@iced wrote:

---

@red259 wrote:

---

@iced wrote:

It's only worth it if you think it is. I personally value MR points at just about $0.00 per point so 100k wouldn't be worth it to me, but someone else may think they're worth much more. None of that matters though, because the only valuation that should matter to you is yours.

I don't understand why you would have to give up the Citi or Ritz to get the Platinum, though. They all have some overlapping benefits, but nothing on the Platinum is going to supercede the other two's key benefits.

---

? The plat will give access to centurion lounges. The plat will give spg/marriott/hilton gold status. Neither of those are you getting from the prestige. Rental insurance can be better via amex as well. These are just off the top of my head so they are not that overlapping. The prestige has really been torn down over time by Citi. I just closed mine recently and back when I got it, it was the best card in my whole collection. 

---

My comment is in regards to the focal benefits of each card:

- Platinum: Delta/Centurion lounge access

- Ritz: hotel credit/club upgrades/path to Platinum Elite

- Citi: 4th night free

There is no benefit on the Platinum that makes getting a fourth night free or club upgrade benefit redundant. Likewise, there is no benefit on the Ritz or Citi that grants Delta or Centurion lounge access. Therefore, I don't see a reason to give up either the Citi or Ritz to get the Platinum as neither are rendered redundant in the same way as say getting a CSR renders a CSP useless. I get there's lots of other benefits on each of the cards, but I do think there's a unique benefit on each card that could make keeping one (or all) of these cards appealing to some.

---

Pretty sure I mentioned in a prior post the fourth night free feature of the prestige. Not everyone uses that though so the prestige would indeed be redundant if someone didn't utilize that. Also mentioned the ritz upgrade which again people may not want to be staying at ritz on paid stays and you can't use those upgrades on awards. Also, I doubt most people are going to be running 75k through the ritz card to get plat status. Besides you can get gold status with marriott via the plat without having to spend 10k on the card each year after the first year which you would need to do with the ritz. Those few unique benefits I think are only going to make those cards worthwhile to a small group of people compared to the amex plat. If OP can wants to use those benefits then by all means they can pay those AFs, but for the rest of the benefits I think the plat would cover them.