Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts Stays Are Now Bookable With Points
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One of the many benefits available to American Express card members with a Platinum or Centurion-branded card, including the Platinum Card® from American Express and the Business Platinum Card® from American Express, is access to the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program (also known as Amex FHR). This program provides elite-like benefits like daily breakfast for two, guaranteed 4pm late checkout and a unique property amenity valued at around $100 at select properties worldwide.
The American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program made a splash last fall when it was announced that card members could earn 5x points on prepaid Fine Hotels & Resorts bookings. We subsequently found that many, but not all, hotel loyalty programs would still provide elite benefits and earnings on these stays. Now, Amex has began sending emails to card holders stating that they can use Membership Rewards Pay With Points to cover all or part of a Fine Hotels & Resorts stay.
The Pay With Points option will only appear when you are logged in as a primary card member. As an authorized user on my husband’s Platinum Card, I didn’t see the Pay With Points option until I logged in as him. Once you log in, you’ll see that the Pay With Points option only values Membership Rewards points at 1 cent each.
Redeeming your Membership Rewards points for 1 cent each generally isn’t a high-value redemption, especially considering you’ll be giving up the chance to earn 5x points on your stay. After all, TPG’s latest valuations value Membership Rewards points at 2 cents each. But, if you have ample Membership Rewards points or don’t want to worry about transferring your points to any of the Membership Rewards transfer partners, this is another option for getting value from your points. And given that you’ll be enjoying free breakfast, late checkout and an on-property credit with an Amex FHR stay, you could argue that you are getting more than 1 cent per point at the end of the day.
Featured photo of the Park Hyatt Beijing by the author.
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- Earn 50,000 Bonus Miles and 5,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months.
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- Earn up to 20,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) with Status Boost® per year. After you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can earn 10,000 MQMs two times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status. MQMs are used to determine Medallion® Status and are different than miles you earn toward flights.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.
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