A History of Amex Transfer Bonuses From 2010-Present

April 11, 2013

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7 min read

A History of Amex Transfer Bonuses From 2010-Present

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One of the biggest benefits of having American Express Membership Rewards points is taking advantage of transfer bonuses to the program's airline and hotel partners. Unfortunately, these bonuses used to be offered much more frequently. While we are going through a drought, I figured I'd put together a list of past bonuses so you can see any past trends and decide whether it makes sense to redeem now or wait for a new bonus.

I have no inside information, but if I were a betting man I'd bank on seeing a Virgin America or Starwood 50% bonus within the next couple of months, which I personally wouldn't take advantage of. I'd rather see a British Airways 30-50% bonus or even an Air France/Flying Blue or Virgin Atlantic bonus that I could use towards promo awards (though those do carry big fees.)

While this might be wishful thinking, here's a list of past bonuses from 2010 for the US Membership Rewards program. I'm sure I probably missed a couple, so feel free to comment on any and I'll add to the list.

Here's a brief history of Amex transfer bonuses.

Transfer Partner	Dates	Bonus Percentage	Duration	Notes
Aeroplan	November 22, 2010 – December 5, 2010	25%	11 days	5,000 bonus miles for 20,000 points, max
Aeroplan (for Candada Amex only)	August 9, 2010 – August 15, 2010	15%	7 days
Flying Blue Air France/KLM	September 10, 2012 – September 16, 2012	35%	6 days
Flying Blue Air France/KLM	February 2, 2012 – February 29, 2012	25%	28 days
AirTran	February 1, 2011 – April 1, 2011	25%	29 days	A different points structure: 1,123 AmEx points get you 1 AirTran A+ credit. The equivalent of 9,000 points is good for one-way coach ticket
British Airways	December 3, 2012 – January 14, 2013	30%	43 days
British Airways	March 1, 2012 – March 31, 2012	50%	31 days	This is for Canadian AmEx Rewards Program
British Airways	August 28, 2012 – September 27, 2012	40%	31 days
British Airways	March 15, 2012 – May 31, 2012	50%	77 days
British Airways	November 28, 2011 – January 31, 2012	30%	65 days
British Airways	June 1, 2011 – July 31, 2011	50%	61 days
British Airways	February 2, 2011 – March 31, 2011	40%	58 days
British Airways	November 2, 2010 – December 31, 2010	30%	60 days
British Airways (USA Platinum and Centurion)	April 1, 2010 – June 30, 2010	20%	91 days
British Airways (UK Amex cardholders)	January 23, 2010 – February 20, 2010	100%	28 days
British Airways (UK Amex)	December 3, 2010 – December 24, 2010	30%	21 days
Choice Hotels	April 3, 2012 – June 30, 2012	25% rebate*	89 days	33% bonus on an otherwise 1:1 ratio (750 AmEx = 1,000 Choice)
Choice Hotels	31-Oct-11	50%
Delta	November 14, 2011 – November 30, 2011	30%	16 days	*Plus a 15,000 bonus with every 50,000 transfer, so with that it would be 43%
Delta	July 25, 2011 – September 30, 2011	67% (40% rebate)	68 days	*This was a 40% rebate offer, in 50k increments and with a $60 per 100k excise fee. Also, rebate certificates sent 6-8 weeks after transaction
Delta	June 9, 2011 – September 30, 2011	50%	113 days	*Also 25,000 MQMs, requires 100,000 point transfer
Delta	June 1, 2011 – June 30, 2011	40%	30 days	*100,000 or more points. 25% if less
Delta	April - May 2011	40% (25% rebate)	Approx 2 months	*40% on 100,000+, 25% on less
Delta	January 22, 2011 – May 31, 2011	50%	130 days	*First time transfers only, 25,000 MQM as well
Delta	January 18, 2011 – March 31, 2011	30%	73 days
Delta	November 30, 2010 – December 31, 2010	67% (bonus, essentially)	32 days	* 20,000 bonus (or $250 Macy's card) for 50,000 transfer
Delta	November 1, 2010 – December 15, 2010	50%	45 days	* 25,000 MQM w/ 50,000 point transfer
Delta	August 11, 2010 – September 30, 2010	20%	41 days
Delta	May 10, 2010 – June 30, 2010	25%	51 days
Delta	January 23, 2010 – February 28, 2010	up to 40%	36 days	* up to 49,000 for 10%, 50 to 149,000 for 20%, 150,000+ for 40%
El Al	November 1, 2010 – unknown	25%	unknown
Hilton	April 3, 2012 – June 30, 2012	25% rebate*	89 days	*25% bonus on an otherwise 1:1.5 ratio (750 AmEx = 1,500 Hilton)
Iberia	September 19, 2011 – not specified, but Iberia rolled into Avios on November 16, 2011	20%	59 days
JetBlue	June 12, 2012 – June 17, 2012	30%	6 days
Priority Club	April 12, 2010 – June 3, 2010	20%	21 days
Starwood	April 3, 2012 – June 30, 2012	25% rebate*	89 days	*44% bonus on an otherwise 3:1 ratio (750 AmEx = 333 SPG)
Starwood	March 1, 2012 – March 31, 2012	50%	31 days
Starwood	September 1, 2011 – September 14, 2011	25%	14 days
Virgin America	November 7, 2012 – November 21, 2012	50%	14 days	*Targeted
Virgin America	August 27, 2012 – September 2, 2012	30%	7 days
Virgin America	March 19, 2012 – March 26, 2012	30%	7 days
Virgin Atlantic	April 1, 2012 – May 15, 2012	25%	45 days	*Also a 1:2 ratio transfer, Virgin to Hilton
Virgin Atlantic	November 27, 2012 – December 29, 2012	35%	32 days
Virgin Atlantic	3-Jun-11	25%	Unknown
Virgin Atlantic	January 10, 2011 – February 28, 2011	15%	39 days
Virgin Atlantic	October 1, 2010 – October 31, 2010	20%	31 days
Virgin Atlantic	July 19, 2010 – July 30, 2010	15%	20 days
Virgin Atlantic	February 22, 2010 – at least March 16, 2010 (last mention in post)	15%	23 days (?)

[card card-name='Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express' card-id='22035076' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']

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