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Amex Platinum Recommended Flights offer increased value when booking via Amex Travel

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If you’re an Amex Platinum or Business Platinum cardholder and you’re thinking of booking any travel between now and March 31st, 2021, you may want to check Amex Travel. Certain flights are popping up as recommended and pricing quite a bit less than you can find them elsewhere. Apparently this has been going on for a little while, but alas, it completely escaped me. This reminds me of their International Airline Program which is always worth a gander, but includes economy flights this time around. You’ll also earn 5x points on these flights which is amazing.

Here’s a quick look at the program

  • Purchase with your Amex Plat or Biz Plat by 12/31/20
  • Travel by 3/31/21

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I randomly looked up LAX to JFK in early January – starred with Recommended – $195

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Compare this to Google Flights

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Overall:

The bigger the route, the more you’ll see recommended flights pop up, and there is definitely value to the program. Is it universally cheaper? No, but it’s an option I would heavily consider if you’re looking to book a flight and carry either an Amex Plat or Biz Plat.

Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.

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Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card


4.8
4.8/5
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is a great starter card that earns Premium Ultimate Rewards that can be transferred into over a dozen partners many of which are US based including Hyatt, Southwest, United, IHG, and Marriott.

Welcome Offer

60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months

Annual Fee

$95

Points Earned

Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards

  • 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
    • Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
  • 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
  • 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
  • 3x on select streaming services
  • 3x on online grocery purchases
    • (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
  • $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
    • The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
  • 2x on all other travel
  • 10% Anniversary Bonus
    • Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
  • Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
  • Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
  • Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
    • Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
  • Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
  • $95 Annual Fee

We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.

Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.

Main Cast: 

Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.

Supporting Cast:

Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on. 

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.

If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners

Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.

The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.

7 Comments

  • Alexis December 14, 2020

    If you book through the portal do you still earn miles from the flight (aside from 5x amex points you get by booking with the card)?

    • Miles December 14, 2020

      Yep, you’d earn Elite miles, AA miles, and 5x Amex points

  • Robert Wilkis December 14, 2020

    Could you pls clarify what deals are available to existing Platinum members?

    Thank you

    • Miles December 14, 2020

      regarding “recommended flights” – if you search on Amex travel, select routes have these available, and from what I’m seeing, could save some cash

  • Robert Wilkis December 14, 2020

    Could you pls clarify what deals are available to existing Platinum members?

    Thank you,

    Robert Wilkis

  • Daniel Castellanos December 13, 2020

    Fake news

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