With the sign-up bonus on The Platinum Card from American Express increasing to 60,000 points over the last month, many are wondering how to put these points to good use. There are currently hundreds of ways to redeem 60,000 Membership Rewards points, thanks to Amex’ extensive transfer partner list. After meeting the $5,000 spending requirement, here are some ways you can get great value out of your 60,000 point haul:
1 – Singapore Business Class
Following the March 2017 Singapore Krisflyer devaluation, the number of miles required for premium cabin awards increased substantially. Part of this was due to increases in redemption rates and part of it was the discontinuation of the 15% online booking rebate.
That said, it’s still possible to book Singapore’s premium cabin awards with the 60,000 point sign-up bonus from the Amex Platinum cards. One example is the New York – Frankfurt route, which costs 65,000 miles each way in business class. Now that’s not as great as the previous 48,875 miles but it’s still at least possible to cover one-way fare with a single credit card sign-up bonus.
2 – Transfer to Avios for a JAL flight to Japan
If you’re on the West Coast, you’re probably aware of a British Airways award chart sweet spot: 25,000 miles each way for a flight to Tokyo on Japan Airlines. With the 60,000 point sign-up bonus from the Amex Platinum card, you could book one roundtrip ticket and have 15,000 points left to spare. Or you could splurge on a business class ticket, setting you back 50,000 miles each way.
3 – Transfer to Avios for 12,500 West Coast – Hawaii Flights
There are lots of great ways to redeem Avios and flights between the West Coast and Hawaii is one definite sweet spot. Considering legacy carriers normally charge 22,500 miles each way for these awards, redeeming just 12,500 Avios each way is a bargain. With the 60,000 point sign-up bonus from the Amex Platinum card, you can cover roundtrip airfare for two to Hawaii and have 15,000 Membership Rewards points left to play with.
4 – Redeem a Star Alliance Award between the West Coast and Europe
American Express’ partnership with Aeroplan makes it possible to use the sign-up bonus from the Amex Platinum card for travel to Europe on Star Alliance carriers. For just 60,000 miles and $112 you can fly roundtrip between San Francisco and Frankfurt on United. If you prefer a premium cabin, you could instead redeem 55,000 miles and around $500 for a one-way business class ticket on the same route. All this for just one sign-up bonus. Not bad!
5 – Book travel through Membership Rewards
Redeeming points directly through Membership Rewards Travel can work out well if you play it right. You can redeem 65,000 Membership Rewards points for $650 worth of travel. If you’re someone who likes staying at budget hotels and flying budget airlines, that travel cash can go a long way and actually save you a ton of more valuable points through your favorite hotel or airline program.
These are some of the ways you can get hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars worth of value out of the 60,000 point sign-up bonus from the Amex Platinum card. If you’ve recently picked up this card, I’d love to know: How are you putting your sign-up bonus to use?
Written by Frugal Travel Guy @ http://www.frugaltravelguy.com
Written by Frugal Travel Guy @ http://www.frugaltravelguy.com