HELP! Confused about AMEX SPG

[dodfire]

Ok so I am new to this card. And new to all the point systems in general so sorry if this is a dumb question..but...

I am planning a trip for July.

In order to get the maximum benefit of this card do I need to book the resort from AMEX travel website and pay with my SPG.

or

Book through SPG.COM and also pay with SPG or use any card?

[dodfire]

65 views but no answers.

Where are my SPG users??

[CS800]

dod, it would be best if you call AMEX directly.

I use my platinum and always book through them and pay with the Paltinum. I'm also curious as to how the points system works if lets say you booked through Expedia.

[cjcharv]

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@dodfire wrote:

Ok so I am new to this card. And new to all the point systems in general so sorry if this is a dumb question..but...

I am planning a trip for July.

In order to get the maximum benefit of this card do I need to book the resort from AMEX travel website and pay with my SPG.

or

Book through SPG.COM and also pay with SPG or use any card?

---

I think you are correct with booking through Amex Travel site but you may want to contact Amex to make sure.

[Walt_K]

You get 2 points per dollar for spend at SPG hotels with your SPG Amex.  You also get 2 points per dollar for spend at SPG hotels for being an SPG member.  If you are SPG Gold or Platinum, you get an extra point per dollar for spend at SPG hotels for your elite status.  And if you stay there a lot (can't remember if it is 75 or 100 nights, I think 75 nitghs), you get another 1 point per dollar for being uber-elite.

Here is a decent primer on advantages and disadvantages of booking directly with the hotel vs. using online travel agencies.  http://thepointsguy.com/2013/04/maximize-monday-choosing-the-best-site-and-credit-card-for-purchasin...

ETA: because the point earning through the Amex SPG and the SPG loyalty program are separate, if you were SPG Gold and stayed at the hotel but used a different credit card, you would still get your 3 points per dollar through the loyalty program.  For example, if you are staying overseas, you may not want to use your SPG Amex as it has foreign transaction fees.  The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card would be a good option.  It earns 2 UR points per dollar, so on an overseas trip, you would still earn 5 points per dollar using the CSP, 3 SPG points for being Gold and staying with the hotel, and 2 UR points for using your CSP.

[dodfire]

Thank you for your help. I am not a gold member as I just got this card. I was just really confused if I needed to BOTH book through SPG and pay with my SPG or if I could do them seperate.

Book at spg.com and pay with another card.

or

Book at any site and pay with SPG

Thanks again for the tips!!

[Cdnewmanpac]

Just to be clear: you want to know which strategy will yield the most starpoints for your booking, right? Booking either through the hotel website, spg.com and/or amex travel will get you the same points unless one is running a special offer at the time. You might check out the spg board on flyertalk to see if there are any bonuses being run right now. The only thing to be careful about is booking through discount sites (esp hotwire, but read the T&C). Either way, you need to pay with the spg card to get max points.