Card Promotions Amex Platinum Card Benefits, Offers & Discussion

Enjoy a world of travel benefits and 150,000 bonus Amex Membership Rewards Premium Ascent points...

Learn more and apply for this card:



What are the main benefits of this card?
  1. Signup bonus: 150,000 Amex Membership Rewards Points (worth 75,000 Qantas Points, Velocity Points, Avios or Asia Miles, among other options) when you apply by 28 January 2025 and spend at least $5,000 within 3 months
  2. Earn 2.25 Amex Membership Rewards points per $1 spent on everyday purchases, uncapped. You can transfer these points to 12 airline & 2 hotel programs, including Qantas Frequent Flyer.
  3. Enjoy unlimited access to many airport lounges, including Virgin Australia and Priority Pass lounges
  4. Gift Priority Pass membership to one additional cardholder
  5. Receive complimentary elite status with hotel loyalty programs including Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, Radisson Rewards & Accor Live Limitless
  6. Complimentary international travel insurance
  7. Receive a $450 annual travel credit, plus airfare discounts, $400 worth of annual dining credits, subscriptions to The Australian & Wall Street Journal, plus many more exclusive benefits!

amex-explorer-card-art.pngWhy we like the American Express Platinum Card

Packed full of travel perks, the American Express Platinum Card is one of the best publicly-available cards in Australia for frequent flyers.

With a $1,450 annual fee, this metal card is not for everyone. But the return on investment for the high annual fee is strong, as it comes with a lot of useful benefits! This includes an annual travel credit, dining credits and unlimited access to Virgin Australia, Delta, Lufthansa, Priority Pass, Plaza Premium and Amex Centurion airport lounges.

There are also some great hotel perks including a free annual hotel night, Accor Plus membership, Fine Hotels + Resorts benefits and complimentary elite status with Hilton, Marriott and Radisson.

For points collectors, this is one of the most lucrative cards available in Australia. You’ll earn 2.25 Amex Membership Rewards Ascent Premium points per $1 spent on eligible transactions. Points transfer to most frequent flyer programs at a 2:1 rate, although there are some exceptions (e.g. it's 3:1 to KrisFlyer and Emirates).

You can convert your Amex points to around 12 airlines including Qantas, Virgin Australia, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Virgin Atlantic, Emirates and Etihad! Plus, you can transfer points to two hotel loyalty programs for even more redemption possibilities.

To sweeten the deal, new cardholders who apply by 28 January 2025 can also earn 150,000 bonus Amex Membership Rewards points when spending at least $5,000 on the card within 3 months of approval. See our card guide for the full details:


AFF members are welcome to discuss this card in this thread.
 
I was looking to see whether the Accor Plus no longer being offered also meant that Accor Platinum was also gone.

Accor Plus is now showing as open to enrolment or renewals to 31 March 2016 (was September 2015). Accor Platinum as always appears ongoing.
 
It is but they're all plat cards (business ones). I login into the Benefits Directory page but it keeps coming up with "no eligible cards linked to this account".
80K for inconvenience, that's amazing. reminds me of reading a thread about someone who got a $100 dining voucher just coz the concierge couldn't reserve a table for a particular restaurant.

Anyway, I wonder if that's the issue where by having so many cards on the same account the travel/plat benefits default to a card that doesn't have those features. I don't know if its the same deal , but when I had a Velocity / edge / plat charge all under the same account, the velocity would be the default card (with no way to change it). So when I went to check on my plat benefits and use the $200 credit it wouldn't allow me to. It was solved by splitting the cards into a separate account which worked straight away.
 
80K for inconvenience, that's amazing. reminds me of reading a thread about someone who got a $100 dining voucher just coz the concierge couldn't reserve a table for a particular restaurant.

Anyway, I wonder if that's the issue where by having so many cards on the same account the travel/plat benefits default to a card that doesn't have those features. I don't know if its the same deal , but when I had a Velocity / edge / plat charge all under the same account, the velocity would be the default card (with no way to change it). So when I went to check on my plat benefits and use the $200 credit it wouldn't allow me to. It was solved by splitting the cards into a separate account which worked straight away.

Amex thought that might have been the problem, but the complementary plat reserve is on a separate login (with the other personal cards). All the cards on the other login are business plat amex which should be eligible for the benefits. The thing is, the login worked fine until about two weeks ago so not sure why it became "ineligible" all of a sudden.
 
Accor Plus is now showing as open to enrolment or renewals to 31 March 2016 (was September 2015). Accor Platinum as always appears ongoing.

Thanks for clarifying that. My card has an expiry date of 04/2016 so I was hoping to "renew" before the end of March. In any case, retaining the Accor platinum is better than nothing I suppose.
 
Hoping I have trouble with my log in soon . Wink!

You might look forward to this then! I redeemed the points quick smart before they changed their mind!
[TABLE="class: dataTable dataTableTop, width: 790"]
[TR]
[TH="class: date en_AU, bgcolor: #BFCDD8"]Date[/TH]
[TH="class: desc en_AU, bgcolor: #BFCDD8"]Description[/TH]
[TH="class: charge en_AU, bgcolor: #BFCDD8"]Charge[/TH]
[TH="class: basepts en_AU, bgcolor: #BFCDD8"]Base points[/TH]
[TH="class: bonuspts en_AU, bgcolor: #BFCDD8"]Bonus Points[/TH]
[TH="class: totalpts en_AU, bgcolor: #BFCDD8"]Total Points[/TH]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
[TABLE="class: dataTable, width: 100%"]
[TR="class: rowEven"]
[TD="class: date en_AU, bgcolor: #DAE2E8"]24/09/2015[/TD]
[TD="class: desc en_AU, bgcolor: #DAE2E8"]Velocity[/TD]
[TD="class: charge en_AU, bgcolor: #DAE2E8"][/TD]
[TD="class: basepts en_AU, bgcolor: #DAE2E8"]-84,000[/TD]
[TD="class: bonuspts en_AU, bgcolor: #DAE2E8"]0[/TD]
[TD="class: totalpts en_AU, bgcolor: #DAE2E8"]-84,000[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: imgCol"]
[TD="class: date en_AU, bgcolor: #E8EDF1"]23/09/2015[/TD]
[TD="class: desc en_AU, bgcolor: #E8EDF1"]Once Only Valued Customer Loyalty Bonus[/TD]
[TD="class: charge en_AU, bgcolor: #E8EDF1"][/TD]
[TD="class: basepts en_AU, bgcolor: #E8EDF1"]0[/TD]
[TD="class: bonuspts en_AU, bgcolor: #E8EDF1"]84,000[/TD]
[TD="class: totalpts en_AU, bgcolor: #E8EDF1"]84,000[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]



 
It is but they're all plat cards (business ones). I login into the Benefits Directory page but it keeps coming up with "no eligible cards linked to this account".
Yes getting exact same thing. I shot an email to them, but got some generic answer telling me to check the bottom of my accounts summary page. But this just shows the offers/benefits (e.g. fairfax subscription)
 
Think it's time for me to call them re: this problem. hope they give me the cold shoulder lol ;)
Firstly, I have the Platinum Business card.

So just gave them a call, and the guy on the other end, referred me to the fairfax subscription benefits again. Had to walk him through all the links to the real Plat benefits directory after a few mins on the phone telling him I'm not after the fairfax subscription. Finally get to the platinum rewards page. Then he tells me the Platinum Business card is not eligible for all these platinum benefits, e.g. Shanri-la golden jade, accor plus platinum etc. I told him I just applied for the shangri-la and approved a couple months ago. Had to go compare the Personal Vs Business Plat cards to see what the difference is, and on the Bus. Plat card, it only shows SPG and Club Carlson on the summary page as a benefit. Has the Business Plat card been "enhance"recently that I'm unaware of? or is the guy on the phone unaware of the real benefits of all the Plat cards? OR was I accidentally allowed access to the personal platinum benefits?

Anyways, his gonna get the relationship manager to call me. Very annoying that the guy manning the Platinum telephone line can't even remember the benefits of the plat card. I hope they haven't changed the benefits.
 
Really considering this card as a way to warehouse points to redeem on multiple airlines. Currently with QFF (STG amplify sig), but looking for a bit more flexibility. Not a big traveller, when i do it is in Business. Would this card offer value for the non frequent flyer with roughly a 70-100k annual spend? Do Amex really get cheaper business class airfares, and is the concierge really that useful in securing last second reservations to a wide variety of restaurants (Sydney). I'd pay the fee (and more) if i could get into any/most restaurants at a seconds notice!
 
Really considering this card as a way to warehouse points to redeem on multiple airlines. Currently with QFF (STG amplify sig), but looking for a bit more flexibility. Not a big traveller, when i do it is in Business. Would this card offer value for the non frequent flyer with roughly a 70-100k annual spend? Do Amex really get cheaper business class airfares, and is the concierge really that useful in securing last second reservations to a wide variety of restaurants (Sydney). I'd pay the fee (and more) if i could get into any/most restaurants at a seconds notice!

Hi big_head,

I think the hotel status boosts across the board are pretty good value, especially Accor and its early checkin/late check out | Free upgrade etc..

For your restaurant question, I'd say they would have the best chance compared to anyone out there. For starters you have 2 tables reserved for platinum & centurion card holders at any 'good' restaurant. These tables are held until 10AM each day where I would assume are then let back into the pool for everyone to grab. My recent experience is being able to secure both Sepia and Quay in Sydney around the Christmas period with no problem. In fact I was able to get the concierge to secure the best table with a vantage point of the opera house (i'm from Melbourne, so not sick of the sight of it :) )

In my experience the concierge is pretty good, especially if you need to secure restaurants overseas where the language barrier and timezone can be tricky to navigate. There are a few overseas restaurants that offer special benefits like Alain Ducasse in Paris where you get a few special perks like a tour and parting gift etc..
 
Really considering this card as a way to warehouse points to redeem on multiple airlines. Currently with QFF (STG amplify sig), but looking for a bit more flexibility. Not a big traveller, when i do it is in Business. Would this card offer value for the non frequent flyer with roughly a 70-100k annual spend? Do Amex really get cheaper business class airfares, and is the concierge really that useful in securing last second reservations to a wide variety of restaurants (Sydney). I'd pay the fee (and more) if i could get into any/most restaurants at a seconds notice!

Amex hold table reservations at a lot of restaurants up to 4 guests till 10am every day. Sydney alone has about 70 restaurants listed to choose from. I have also had some luck here and OS with concierge achieving bookings at other places. The warehousing of points with this card is a truly great benefit as it gives you so many more options then other cards. Its the only card in my wallet that will let me send them to both Velocity and Qantas. When I was looking at flying business to Nadi this year they definitely were quoting me lower prices then I could get direct with the airlines.

Ill see if I can find a link regarding their restaurant reservation gig.
 
Hi big_head,

I think the hotel status boosts across the board are pretty good value, especially Accor and its early checkin/late check out | Free upgrade etc..

For your restaurant question, I'd say they would have the best chance compared to anyone out there. For starters you have 2 tables reserved for platinum & centurion card holders at any 'good' restaurant. These tables are held until 10AM each day where I would assume are then let back into the pool for everyone to grab. My recent experience is being able to secure both Sepia and Quay in Sydney around the Christmas period with no problem. In fact I was able to get the concierge to secure the best table with a vantage point of the opera house (i'm from Melbourne, so not sick of the sight of it :) )

In my experience the concierge is pretty good, especially if you need to secure restaurants overseas where the language barrier and timezone can be tricky to navigate. There are a few overseas restaurants that offer special benefits like Alain Ducasse in Paris where you get a few special perks like a tour and parting gift etc..
How early did you book Sepia/Quay before dining?
I've used them to book overseas restaurants, Epicure in paris, so I guess it's good for overseas restaurants where the language barrier can be a problem.
 
Really considering this card as a way to warehouse points to redeem on multiple airlines. Currently with QFF (STG amplify sig), but looking for a bit more flexibility. Not a big traveller, when i do it is in Business. Would this card offer value for the non frequent flyer with roughly a 70-100k annual spend? Do Amex really get cheaper business class airfares, and is the concierge really that useful in securing last second reservations to a wide variety of restaurants (Sydney). I'd pay the fee (and more) if i could get into any/most restaurants at a seconds notice!
The annual fee is high, very high, $1200 for personal and $1500 for business and considering your annual spend of up to 100k, I think you'll need to actually dig deeper into benefits (loyalty programs etc) vs cost (annual Fee, acceptance + surcharges) and how much use you'll get out of the benefits annually.
If you're in it for the points earn, have you considered Citibank Signature/Prestige? Cheaper annual fee, better acceptance, can warehouse. Not sure about any concierge on these cards, but for Prestige I assume it would be at the same level as Amex Plat concierge.
 
Firstly, I have the Platinum Business card.

So just gave them a call, and the guy on the other end, referred me to the fairfax subscription benefits again. Had to walk him through all the links to the real Plat benefits directory after a few mins on the phone telling him I'm not after the fairfax subscription. Finally get to the platinum rewards page. Then he tells me the Platinum Business card is not eligible for all these platinum benefits, e.g. Shanri-la golden jade, accor plus platinum etc. I told him I just applied for the shangri-la and approved a couple months ago. Had to go compare the Personal Vs Business Plat cards to see what the difference is, and on the Bus. Plat card, it only shows SPG and Club Carlson on the summary page as a benefit. Has the Business Plat card been "enhance"recently that I'm unaware of? or is the guy on the phone unaware of the real benefits of all the Plat cards? OR was I accidentally allowed access to the personal platinum benefits?

Anyways, his gonna get the relationship manager to call me. Very annoying that the guy manning the Platinum telephone line can't even remember the benefits of the plat card. I hope they haven't changed the benefits.

From what I gathered, the business plat seems to get cut down benefits but the supplementary card attached to it gets the full plat benefits package. I had already activated most of the benefits anyway, but can't understand why the benefits page became suddenly inaccessible. I can still access all the benefits albeit manually via filling out the forms if needed. Amex don't seem to know why the page won't load themselves so I'm guessing its an IT glitch of some sort rather than an enhancement.
 
From what I gathered, the business plat seems to get cut down benefits but the supplementary card attached to it gets the full plat benefits package. I had already activated most of the benefits anyway, but can't understand why the benefits page became suddenly inaccessible. I can still access all the benefits albeit manually via filling out the forms if needed. Amex don't seem to know why the page won't load themselves so I'm guessing its an IT glitch of some sort rather than an enhancement.
So, the supp cardholder (to the bus. plat. card) gets more benefits than the primary bus. plat. cardholder? Weird! Yeah, I've activated most of what I wanted, and the Shangri-la only a couple months ago. The guy on the phone kept asking why I wanted to look through the benefits directory as he could apply for me, kept trying to tell him in different ways I was just curious and just wanted to have a look through it, as browsing online is faster and simpler than him going through it one by one. He still didn't understand.

I had always thought the Bus. Plat. would have more, or atleast the same, benefits than personal, since the annual fee is $300 more.

How long did you wait before you called them back?
 
The annual fee is high, very high, $1200 for personal and $1500 for business
Each are halved if you have both. That's $1,125 p.a. after tax which is cheaper than the personal on its own. After a colossally messed up application process, I've got the personal card free for life so it's only $525 p.a. AT for both cards (plus my free companion Platinum Edge). I'm rather impressed with all that; pretty good value for money really.
 
Wow the concierge service does sound rather good. I've never used a concierge service on a credit card before, always thought it was a waste of time. Might have to give the AMEX one a go though!
 
Each are halved if you have both. That's $1,125 p.a. after tax which is cheaper than the personal on its own. After a colossally messed up application process, I've got the personal card free for life so it's only $525 p.a. AT for both cards (plus my free companion Platinum Edge). I'm rather impressed with all that; pretty good value for money really.

Oh, so if you have one, you may as well get the other? Is there a link or anything that confirms this?
 

Become an AFF member!

Join Australian Frequent Flyer (AFF) for free and unlock insider tips, exclusive deals, and global meetups with 65,000+ frequent flyers.

AFF members can also access our Frequent Flyer Training courses, and upgrade to Fast-track your way to expert traveller status and unlock even more exclusive discounts!

AFF forum abbreviations

Wondering about Y, J or any of the other abbreviations used on our forum?

Check out our guide to common AFF acronyms & abbreviations.
Back
Top