One of the best ways to get the most value out of your hard-earned credit card points is to transfer them for a redemption with an airline or hotel partner.
That’s true whether you’re in search of a premium lie-flat seat or just hoping to avoid paying for that short domestic flight in coach.
American Express Membership Rewards offers some of the best transfer partners of any issuer, from Emirates Skywards to Air Canada Aeroplan and British Airways Executive Club (and its Avios currency that can be moved to a bunch of international airlines).
If you’re in need of a stash of Amex points to get a jump-start on planning your next trip, there’s good news: Right now, new cardholders who add The Platinum Card® from American Express to their wallet can earn 80,000 points — simply by spending $8,000 in the first six months of card membership.
Exactly what could those points get you?
The transferability of these points opens up a number of “sweet spots” and other popular redemptions that can help you get excess value out of your 80,000-point welcome bonus.
One of the best ways to redeem is for an economy ticket to London from several U.S. cities for 6,000 points on Virgin Atlantic. This Amex bonus is enough points to cover six round-trip tickets in case you want to bring five of your friends.
You can score Qatar Airways’ Qsuite for 70,000 Avios via British Airways Executive Club (as long as there’s award space, of course!).
Last year, TPG’s Madison Blancaflor booked Virgin Atlantic’s lie-flat Upper Class one-way to London for just 21,000 Amex points (plus taxes and fees) thanks to a 40% transfer bonus that was running at the time. Amex points normally transfer at a 1:1 ratio to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Despite a recent devaluation, the Air France-KLM Flying Blue program is a go-to option for TPG staffers. You can get business-class seats to Europe for as few as 60,000 miles one-way, or 25,000 miles for coach.
And, while you’ll likely get the most mileage out of your Amex points with an airline partner, keep in mind that Membership Rewards points transfer to Hilton at a 1:2 ratio. Last summer, I transferred 40,000 Amex points to book the Rome Cavalieri, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel for 80,000 Hilton points per night.
If any of these redemptions pique your interest for potential 2025 trips, the current 80,000-point offer on the Amex Platinum Card, with all of its travel credits and benefits that make traveling more enjoyable, might be worth considering.
Posts in this newsletter contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products, and this may impact how or where they appear. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
You are receiving this email because you opted in atthepointsguy.com.
Where to find us:
The Points Guy 100 5th Ave., 16th Floor New York, NY 10011 USA USA
If this newsletter was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here.
Advertiser Disclosure:
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don’t cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
