American Express Membership Rewards - Centurion begins "paying" for itself

The subject is somewhat in jest; I didn't really want to start another argument about whether upgrades, etc. actually constitute saving money...

I had a reservation on Continental for yesterday to go from FLL to SEA via HOU that was to leave FLL at 6:22pm. I checked the flight status before heading to the airport and found that it was 2 hours late. This would guarantee a misconnect, and probably cause me to miss my meeting this morning in SEA. There were no other Continental flights I could make. I decided to head as far west as I could last night and then try to make it to SEA. I did want to ensure First Class, though (I had booked the CO flight in discounted first). I noted that USAir had a late flight to LAS: "Hey, I'm Preferred Gold on USAir now, right?" I booked it for $329 one way coach refundable. I went to the airport, and they let me know that there were 2 F/C seats open and it was just me and a chairman standing by, and no other chairmans or plats with reservations on the flight. So I was upgraded to F/C to LAS.

Also, I used my SPG Plat (which I already had so not really a Cent. benefit) and got a nice room at Alladin. I took a 7am flight from LAS to SEA and made my meeting. :-)

Oh, and the week before I reserved a car for $24.99 per day from Avis in SFO and got a Town Car!

i think anyone can get this if they researched their departure flight well in advance and was desperate enough to get to their destination.

i think anyone can get this if they researched their departure flight well in advance and was desperate enough to get to their destination.

I am guessing you don't have a Centurion. His point was he was taking advantage of his airline status provided by Centurion to be upgraded. Taking advantage of his car rental status to get an upgraded car. In this forum, it is well understood that this is even better than cash money :cool:

I am guessing you don't have a Centurion. His point was he was taking advantage of his airline status provided by Centurion to be upgraded. Taking advantage of his car rental status to get an upgraded car. In this forum, it is well understood that this is even better than cash money :cool:

You got it!

Just wondering, did you use AMEX Travel Services to book the flights, etc?

Just wondering, did you use AMEX Travel Services to book the flights, etc?

No. I can't bring myself to ever do that for flights. It's just too easy to do it myself online. I didn't even book a hotel reservation. I figured there would be a few rooms available in Vegas in the middle of the summer on a Sunday night ;-)

No. I can't bring myself to ever do that for flights. It's just too easy to do it myself online. I didn't even book a hotel reservation. I figured there would be a few rooms available in Vegas in the middle of the summer on a Sunday night ;-)

You know you can log in to your amex account and book travel online using the travel portion of the site. Prices are comparable to the airline sites and at the end they give you the option to use MR points for the purchase, regardless of airline. Point conversions are the same as they would be for a gifts card somewhere, ie, a $365 ticket on United or Northwest would be 36,500 MR points. Mixed payment (MRP+$$) are also accepted. Makes it easy.

I learned the hard way that if you book online and then call PTS about the reservation, they will send you to another part of the travel department. I had a "flow control" cancellation last week and the rep couldn't connect with UAL so I had to call UAL directly to modify my trip.

<<in to your amex account and book travel online using the travel portion of the site.>>

This function (which is available to anyone) is operated by Travelocity, while PTS (which is available only to Platinum and Centurion cardholders) is operated by someone else. This should explain why PTS is unable or unwilling to modify reservations made through the website travel function.

dennis

Plus, whenever I do that they charge me some silly fee on top of the ticket.

Here's a newbie question: do you still get the Platinum/Centurion rewards if you don't book through the AMEX travel site? For example if I stay at a four seasons or something with a platinum AMEX I get an upgrade, late checkout, and free lunch for 2. Do I have to book through AMEX to get this perk?

Here's a newbie question: do you still get the Platinum/Centurion rewards if you don't book through the AMEX travel site? For example if I stay at a four seasons or something with a platinum AMEX I get an upgrade, late checkout, and free lunch for 2. Do I have to book through AMEX to get this perk?

You need to book through PTS for that.

Here's a newbie question: do you still get the Platinum/Centurion rewards if you don't book through the AMEX travel site? For example if I stay at a four seasons or something with a platinum AMEX I get an upgrade, late checkout, and free lunch for 2. Do I have to book through AMEX to get this perk?

I have found that sometimes I can get a lower rate directly with the hotel (online) so I always check that rate before callling PTS. In some cases, PTS is able to get me the lower rate with the amenities. Also, in some cases where a hotel does not participate in the FH program, allowing PTS to book your room will also get you the breakfast and other perks anyway (FS NY, for example).

I was told that they put a notation in your reservation record that you are a VIP guest and I guess some hotels actually care.

With all of the negative postings about Centurion, I thought I should post about another great experience I had this weekend:

I took a weekend to Las Vegas, but this time with my whole family (wife and two small kids). So, the focus was not on luxury.

I booked economy on USAir, and split the reservation into two records. This way each record would have a USAir "gold" elite and one kid (my wife is an additional cardholder). All 4 of us were upgraded in both directions 3 days in advance, even though first class only had 12 seats and the planes ended up full.

(unrelated to Centurion in particular) I used MR points to book 2 adjoining rooms for 2 nights each at the MGM Grand (80,000 points). This was a good deal for this weekend, because the whole city was nearly sold out and rooms were averaging much more than $200/night at any decent hotel.

I booked a full-sized car from Avis (around $30/day), and because I am President's club through Centurion I ended up with a nice Volvo.

The wife needed to see the Miami Dolphins play on Sunday, and the kids weren't allowed in sports books. The ideal place would be the ESPN Zone inside New York, New York. I called them directly and was told that I could not get a reserved table, and the wait was 2 hours. I called Centurion concierge and she also called there and got the same story. She wasn't willing to give up, so she called a New York New York casino host and sweet-talked her into calling the ESPN Zone and reserving me a table, even though I was not rated at the hotel and didn't intend to play any games there. We walked into the ESPN Zone and were immediately seated into what was literally the best seat in the house, which was being held for us. I begged the concierge to become my personal concierge, but unfortunately she said she's at her allocation. She really went the extra mile.

Great "CENT Report" :D

I booked economy on USAir, and split the reservation into two records. This way each record would have a USAir "gold" elite and one kid (my wife is an additional cardholder).

Is your wife an additional Centurion cardholder on your account? May I ask what the fee for that is?

I think I read once that it would be $1,000 to get a supplementary Centurion card for my husband which I can't quite decide if I want to do. But it might be worth it to ensure him the airline Gold status when we travel together. Right now, I'm Gold and I have to hope they will give us the companion upgrade.

Susan

$2500 / $1500 for primary / additional

Just had to add my Cent experience here too - I've been flying Delta a lot this year taking advantage of the Gold Elite that Cent holders get. Of the last 18 Delta segments I've flown, 14 were upgraded. Not bad.

The only ones that I have trouble on are the ones between SFO and ATL.

I always book online with Delta, as they tell you right away if you have good upgrade chances, and I tend to slide my travel around during the day to hit the best chances of upgrade.

That alone is well worth the annual fee for me, I don't really fly enough to maintain much status with an airline otherwise.

I've been upgraded on CO flights too, not very often, maybe 25%, but hey, free upgrades are always good!

I guess I'm not losing too much sleep on the loss of SPG Plat - I've never once gotten an upgrade with it, ever. I stay mostly at "W" hotels, but sometimes the usual Westin. Even when staying at a NYC property for three weeks I couldn't get even an inch. The only thing I'll miss is the 4pm check-out, is that a plat-only perk?

--Doug

I guess I'm not losing too much sleep on the loss of SPG Plat - I've never once gotten an upgrade with it, ever. I stay mostly at "W" hotels, but sometimes the usual Westin. Even when staying at a NYC property for three weeks I couldn't get even an inch. The only thing I'll miss is the 4pm check-out, is that a plat-only perk?

--Doug

I've had good experiences on upgrades. Just spent two nights (2 weeks apart) at the Sheraton Gateway LAX in a corner suite.

Gold gets 4 p.m. late checkout when available, whatever that means.

I've had good experiences on upgrades. Just spent two nights (2 weeks apart) at the Sheraton Gateway LAX in a corner suite.

.

Wouldn't individual nights be much more likely for upgrade than a 3 week stay anyway?

nice benefits of the Centurion card... Too bad I only have the platinum card and will never spend 250,000 a year with AMEX

I don't travel an awful lot, but Centurion works great for me. Just returned from a pre-cruise 2 night stay in London, and got a free night at the Mandarin Oriental, with one free lunch (for 2) and breakfast each morning, plus an upgraded room. Right before that I was at the Peninsula in Chicago for one night, and there was a room upgrade, free breakfast, and a full hour massage for 2. We took full advantage of the massages and the spa. Upgrades on Delta probably run about 75% of the time or better. Oh, by the way, the cruise gave us a $500 Centurion credit, and CTS gave us 25,000 membership rewards for the vacation. Last year at the St. Regis in NYC, we booked the least expensive room and were upgraded to a 2 bedroom "Madison" suite w/butler. I will really miss Plat SPG.

nice benefits of the Centurion card... Too bad I only have the platinum card and will never spend 250,000 a year with AMEX

Interesting. What exactly are the differences between Centurion and Platinum apart from the difference in the annual fee? Is there a concise list somewhere?

Also, has anyone heard of the White card, apparently set to be more exclusive than Black and offered to celebrities like Posh and Becks?

yes there is a list that aviators99 and i made. it is displayed on msite.

the white card is a myth, as is the crystal card. they do not exist, the centurion card is the most exclusive card that american express has to offer.

http://www.geocities.jp/ctwxg845/platvscent.html

this is the list aviators and i made. this is for the US versions of the cards.

http://www.geocities.jp/ctwxg845/platvscent.html

this is the list aviators and i made. this is for the US versions of the cards.

You list National Emerald Club -- is that still part of AmEx Platinum or Centurion? I didn't get any info about it with my U.S. Centurion and it isn't currently listed on the Centurion website. I remember seeing it listed some years ago, but don't think it is offered any more.

Susan

You list National Emerald Club -- is that still part of AmEx Platinum or Centurion? I didn't get any info about it with my U.S. Centurion and it isn't currently listed on the Centurion website. I remember seeing it listed some years ago, but don't think it is offered any more.

Susan

Emerald club used to be part of the Centurion Benefits package (don't know about plat), but it was "enhanced" a few years ago and sent to Centurion Benefit heaven along with SPG Plat and Hyatt Diamond :)

I just noticed...Plat still has emerald club link (https://www124.americanexpress.com/cards/platinum/carrentalpartner.jsp#national) Weird how that works...

im responsible for the platinum side of it as i dont have access to the centurion website. i am noti sure about national emerald for centurion

im responsible for the platinum side of it as i dont have access to the centurion website. i am noti sure about national emerald for centurion

I can confirm that National Emerald is on the Platinum site but not on the Centurion site (!)

I find that pretty amusing. Maybe it should be fixed on the chart (it would look even funnier there). Maybe they realized that it's such a non-benefit that they wouldn't *burden* us Cents with it ;-)

Can the $250,000 be spread out over additional cards (given to others) on one account, or does it have to be on a single card?

Can the $250,000 be spread out over additional cards (given to others) on one account, or does it have to be on a single card?

My personal plat amex was only in my name and I ordered an additional card for my wife and it was the combined spend that amounted to the qualifying $150k at that time, so I'm sure it probably is for the $250k, too.

http://www.myoffshoreaccounts.com/english/DeltaQuest_AMEX-Centurion-card-VIP-credit-cards

The New White Card is the Stratus Rewards Visa

Check it out here:
http://www.stratusrewards.com/CorporateHome.aspx