Did you know that American Express has added a new hotel benefit to all the varieties of personal Platinum Cards? Cardholders now have a $200 Hotel Credit that can be used on either a Fine Hotel and Resorts or a Hotel Collection pre-paid booking. The hotel collection requires a minimum two-night stay. Learn how to use the new Amex Hotel Credit in the basic guide below.

$200 Amex Hotel Credit

All American Express Platinum Cards now include a $200 Hotel Credit. This credit can be used through the Amex Travel Portal for either a Fine Hotel and Resorts or a Hotel Collection pre-paid booking.

Does the $200 Amex Hotel Credit Expire?

The Amex Hotel Credit expires at the end of the calendar year. Given the credit is based on the calendar year, it’s important to pre-pay any hotel booking that qualifies for this credit which falls after the calendar year. Another calendar year bonus is that it’s possible to receive the credit twice in 12 months since it’s not based on card-member year.

Which American Express Cards Include the $200 Hotel Credit?

• The Platinum Card® from American Express (See Rates & Fees; terms apply)
• The American Express Platinum Card® for Schwab
• The Platinum Card^® from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanly

Fine Hotel and Resorts

There are over 1,100 options included in the Fine Hotel and Resorts portfolio. Each booking includes some pretty great benefits like free breakfast and late checkout. Take a look at the full list of benefits below:

• Room Upgrade (when available)
• Daily Breakfast for Two
• Guaranteed 4pm Check-out
• Noon Check-in (when available)
• Complimentary WiFi
• Experience Credit (Typically Spa or Food & Beverage Credit)

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(See Rates and Fees; terms apply)

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(See Rates and Fees; terms apply)

The Hotel Collection

There are over 600 options included in The Hotel Collection. The important restriction to be aware of with The Hotel Collection is that reservations must be for a minimum of two nights. Benefits of booking with The Hotel Collection include a $100 property credit that can be used on qualified dining, spa, and resort activities. In addition, guests will receive a room upgrade if available upon check-in.

Fine Hotel versus Hotel Collection?

In my opinion, the Fine Hotel and Resorts option is the winner here. There are more options, better perks, and there is not a two-night minimum restriction on bookings when compared to the Hotel Collection.

How to use the $200 Amex Hotel Credit

1 ~ Go to the Amex Travel Website and complete the search criteria

2 ~ Scroll down and check the boxes on the left-hand side for Fine Hotel and Resorts or The Hotel Collection to narrow the search results.

3 ~ Select a Hotel from the search results

4 ~ When booking, be sure to select the option to use a Credit Card. It’s important that the $200 is charged to the correct Platinum Card to receive the credit back.

Tips to remember with the Amex Hotel Credit

• When conducting the search, be sure to select at least two nights to see options from The Hotel Collection.
• For Fine Hotel and Resorts options, click the hotel in the search to see what the experience credit is. For the example above, Bellagio offers a $100 Food and Beverage Credit.
• Based on my research, I’ve found that the best value options to use the $200 credit are located in:
  • Las Vegas
  • India
  • China
  • Bulgaria
  • Malaysia
  • Colombia
  • Peru
  • Chile

My Experience using the Amex Hotel Credit

I booked the Palacio Del Inka in Peru for $312.30 per night. The $200 hotel credit brings my total cost down to $112.30 which is pretty great value for this hotel. In addition, I’ll receive a $100 spa credit and free breakfast. Finally, since I used my Amex Platinum card to book this reservation, I’ll earn 5X Membership Rewards points or 1,560 MR points. With the points, credits, and breakfast together I’d tally this up as a basic travel victory!

How long does it take for the statement credits to appear?

I booked the Palacio Del Inka on November 7th and the credit appeared three days later on November 10th.

Basic Breakdown

I like seeing new benefits added to credit cards that I can actually use, especially when it helps to offset the annual fee. Although for this particular benefit, I’m torn. Many of the hotels I looked at were very expensive which really limited my ability to get great value from the credit. Given I usually use points or hotel certificates that cost me very little, paying for a hotel is hard to swallow. In the future, I hope to see more options that hover around the $200 mark per night.

What do you think of the Amex Hotel Credit?

I’d love to hear in the comments below or over in our 8,700+ Member Basic Travel Facebook Group!

More Basic Reading

• Top Travel Credit Card Offers of the Month
• Basic Guide to Amex Membership Rewards Points
• 5 Reasons Why I Love the Amex Gold Card
• Amex Business Platinum Changes ~ Pleasantly Suprised!
• How Transferring Points and Miles Works

For rates and fees for American Express cards mentioned in this post, please see the following links: The Platinum Card® from American Express (See Rates & Fees; terms apply).