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AMEX Platinum

e6bflyer said:
Wink,
I noticed that they recently put on the club entry rules for the Centurion Lounge, "Note: Passengers holding standby tickets and non-revenue standby passengers, including airline or industry employees traveling on discounted tickets, are not eligible to utilize the lounge unless they have received a boarding pass for the flight for which they are on standby."
This actually recently changed and they added the part about getting the boarding pass. A couple of weeks ago it just said no airline employees on standby travel.
I have tested the waters with a SWA security document about 7-8 times in the Las Vegas lounge and they let me in with no questions, but that's probably what is happening in Miami.
I agree that if they drop this benefit then I am not going to pony up the annual fee when it comes due. The card is handy when I travel, but there are other cards with little or no annual fee that can reap much bigger rewards.
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I just spoke to an AMEX rep. He said there was no rule change and that all you had to do was present your card and the "boarding pass" with or without a seat assignment. Maybe the issue is aircrew going straight to the gate when nonreving with airline ID only and no "boarding pass". Of course, what we normally get is a boarding pass form with no seat assignment which can get you through security if you are not aircrew. According to my conversation something like that should be fine. Maybe if you walk into the club with only your AMEX card and no other credentials to indicate you are traveling that day they will deny admission. I am going to follow this closely.
 
wink said:
I just spoke to an AMEX rep. He said there was no rule change and that all you had to do was present your card and the "boarding pass" with or without a seat assignment. Maybe the issue is aircrew going straight to the gate when nonreving with airline ID only and no "boarding pass". Of course, what we normally get is a boarding pass form with no seat assignment which can get you through security if you are not aircrew. According to my conversation something like that should be fine. Maybe if you walk into the club with only your AMEX card and no other credentials to indicate you are traveling that day they will deny admission. I am going to follow this closely.
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That is exactly what I have seen in Vegas. Of course, I don't tell them I am an airline employee (they have never asked). I dress conservatively, present a security document that says "proceed to gate for seat assignment", usually on my phone. They scan it and say "welcome back, Ashley is the bartender tonight, you are just in time for dinner."
In other words, it has worked like a champ, I am just curious to see if they are going to tighten down on this. I have used the above method in the DFW, LAS, LGA, and SEA lounges.
 
Other than my pilot luggage, I am pretty much incognito. I could see how going in partial uniform or telling them that you don't have a boarding pass because you are jumpseating may raise some eyebrows.
My philosophy is to remain as off the radar as possible to keep a good deal going.
 
Just got my notice 10 months after my official retirement date that I will owe the annual fee in January. Think I am going to just close it. I do like the bennies, but it isn't worth 450 a year considering the phenomenal travel benefits I already get.
Maybe when we are sans kids and travel a bit more I will reopen it.
 
e6bflyer said:
Just got my notice 10 months after my official retirement date that I will owe the annual fee in January. Think I am going to just close it. I do like the bennies, but it isn't worth 450 a year considering the phenomenal travel benefits I already get.
Maybe when we are sans kids and travel a bit more I will reopen it.
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You may know this, but make sure you consider any MR point you have before you close the account. If you have another AMEX card with MR you keep the points, but you lose the points if you don't.
 
Also, the American Express Blue Cash Preferred has among the best cash back programs: 6% on groceries and 3% on fuel. When combined with buying gift cards for a particular store instead of just paying as normal, fuel perks at some grocers is basically a 14% cash back. So you can walk into Lowes or Home Depot and using your 10% military discount + 6% back on the groceries and 14% on fuel - you are looking at a 30% discount for just playing your cards right.
 
Update: switched my airline from delta to United, downloaded their app and bought a $200 Amazon gift card. Apparently it codes however Amex wants, so I was reimbursed for the full $200.
 

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Rugby_Guy said:
Update: switched my airline from delta to United, downloaded their app and bought a $200 Amazon gift card. Apparently it codes however Amex wants, so I was reimbursed for the full $200.
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What??? That is gold. To make sure I'm clear, there is a way via the United app that allows you to purchase Amazon gift cards, from the App? With all of my traveling being within Europe lately, I've got a backlog of Delta credits from my Amex that I can't use (FWP, indeed), especially since you can't use them to upgrade, so this would be amazing.
 
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/amer...200-100-reimbursement-reports-ua-only-34.html

I did what they are talking about. Switch the airline to United with Amex. Download the milage plus x app and they have a section in the app where you can purchase gift cards. I was going to use Amazon anyway, so figured it was worth the risk. 5 days later, $200 airline credit shows up on my AMEX for the $200 Amazon gift card I bought. It has to be bought through the app with a mobile device, but some say you can order any gift card and it'll get refunded.

And, a small bonus is that they were 3 miles a dollar, so Amex refunded me the card and I got 600 miles for free.
 
Rugby_Guy said:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/amer...200-100-reimbursement-reports-ua-only-34.html

I did what they are talking about. Switch the airline to United with Amex. Download the milage plus x app and they have a section in the app where you can purchase gift cards. I was going to use Amazon anyway, so figured it was worth the risk. 5 days later, $200 airline credit shows up on my AMEX for the $200 Amazon gift card I bought. It has to be bought through the app with a mobile device, but some say you can order any gift card and it'll get refunded.

And, a small bonus is that they were 3 miles a dollar, so Amex refunded me the card and I got 600 miles for free.
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Just followed your tips, here's to hoping it works out, I hadn't used my credit this year!
 
Rugby_Guy said:
This sounds like some dark magic.
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Yep. Wish I had been this efficient when I was young, although I probably would've blown the savings on strippers and Jack Daniels. A wife being pregnant focuses the mind and tightens the wallet considerably....
 
Another good card is the Hyatt Chase Visa card. Right off the bat, you get 2 free nights at ANY Hyatt in the world (Hyatt has levels 1 through 7). After that, you can use points or points + dollars for free nights. (We used both up in Boston last year.) We are going to Europe again this fall (thank you Delta SkyMiles...) and plan on using this benefit. 30,000 points per night, or 15,000 points + $300 per night, is good for the Park Hyatt Milan which goes from between $600 and $950 US per night. There are some good deals out there if you know where to look.
 
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