Programs: AA 2 MM LIfetime Platinum, SPG Gold, Hilton Gold, BA
Posts: 3,547
Kathy- I found this place doing a search and now when I look back I see the asterisk and read the disclaimer. So, even though it is listed through the link you listed, one cannot assume it will be OK. Lots of places sell AMEX travelers checks but THEY are not listed. So a lesson learned. Unless it's title is American Express, don't take any chances.
So gpap - you will just have to travel more out of state and make sure you include a week-day non holiday so that you can buy your TC's while away from home.
Location: SF CA USA. FT addict. I love large faceless corporations. And they cherish me in return (sometimes). ;)
Programs: UA 1K, Starwood Gold, HH Gold, PC Gold
Posts: 11,098
Quote:
Originally Posted by dgordon
Kathy- I found this place doing a search and now when I look back I see the asterisk and read the disclaimer. So, even though it is listed through the link you listed, one cannot assume it will be OK. Lots of places sell AMEX travelers checks but THEY are not listed. So a lesson learned. Unless it's title is American Express, don't take any chances.
So gpap - you will just have to travel more out of state and make sure you include a week-day non holiday so that you can buy your TC's while away from home.
There's a different webpage where you can search for OTHER places to buy Amex TC's -- such as banks, grocery stores, etc. Obviously, I didn't include THAT link since such places will ALL charge a fee.
As I said, there is just ONE official American Express Travel Office in my town (plus a couple of others in the region); I will be phoning them within a couple of days to confirm whether they offer the fee-free deal.
Programs: AA 2 MM LIfetime Platinum, SPG Gold, Hilton Gold, BA
Posts: 3,547
The place where I first discovered this was Oak Brook and it is an official AMEX travel center. There are two in downtown Chicago but I rarely go downtown. So all the other locations I checked are travel agents. The link you listed is the one I originally used and had assumed that the ones listed would fall under the same category. Hope this discovery has saved some people follow up phone calls. It is really the one in Oak Brook which is the most realistic, but not really so convenient. For anyone working in downtown Chicago - or most downtown big cities, I think that they will easilty visit once a week on their lunch hour!
I called amex canada today.
The agent yes, I can buy traveller's cheques with my air miles amex.
it is considered a purchase, not a cash advance.
However, I have to go to AMEX Canada's Bank office in Markham.
Since amex no longer has travel offices in Toronto, just little rep offices inside travel agencies, there is only 1 place to do it in the Toronto area.
Ohio also has no amex offices...Can someone post the list of amex offices ONLY...There can't be that many around...And I wonder how amex offices abroad handle this the same way...
Programs: AA 2 MM LIfetime Platinum, SPG Gold, Hilton Gold, BA
Posts: 3,547
gpap I thihk you will have to do your search. there seems to not be a master list.
Given the scarcity of official AMEX travel centers, this will limit how many people who can actually take advantage of this. My guess is those people who can't easily do this in their own hometown will travel differently from now on, always looking to see if there is an official AMEX office at their travel destination. These offices are usually closed on the week-end. May change the whole concept of mileage run.
...My daughter is now going to school in Bar Harbor, ME and the flights out of Bangor leave very early in the morning...
College of the Atlantic? A few years ago, Princeton Review rated them No. 1 among colleges for the quality of the food they served in their dining hall. My daughter went to Bowdoin, in Brunswick, ME, which they put at No. 2.
Location: SF CA USA. FT addict. I love large faceless corporations. And they cherish me in return (sometimes). ;)
Programs: UA 1K, Starwood Gold, HH Gold, PC Gold
Posts: 11,098
Quote:
Originally Posted by dgordon
...These offices are usually closed on the week-end. May change the whole concept of mileage run.
Since a lot of the cheap fares (at least on UA) are only available for Tuesdays/Wednesdays, I can easily see a TC run being incorporated into a mileage run! (At least for those of use who are free to fly mid-week.)
BTW, I accidentally managed to find a master list of Travel Offices for the USA. Only the first 55 in the list are American Express-branded; the subsequent ones are independent agencies operating under license from American Express:
I'm not sure what that is supposed to mean, but the excerpted T&C in post #20 seem to indicate that traveler check purchases will not bring MR (or SPG?) points. Yet, others are saying that they do, and without any fees???
Unlike other affiliated cards, MR is AmEx's program so it can set the earning rules. As someone pointed out earlier in other thread, AmEx can not change the earning rule for certain type of purchase transactions. I noticed that AmEx Blue cards (cash rebate) same restriction on TC purchases. Using SPG/DL/HH cards would be safer bet.
This was never worded correctly in the AAA terms until now, maybe. I ran up against them when trying to do something with my Citi MC. I had set my cash advance on that card to $100 and bought something worth $1000 from AAA. Due to some bank trickery that some vendors will pull, AAA being one of them, their "temp authorization" of just $1 triggered some sort of override to this limit I had set and the next thing I knew, a $1000 cash advance appeared! What I later found out is that my CA limit had to be and could be set to $0. I know this is a different issue than this AMEX gig, but I am mentioning it here because when doing these sorts of things, I think people have to constantly watch and never just rely on any sort of automation in this if going long term. That's when you will miss some suble change or policy update and you will suddenly see some huge charges on your account and be (wongly) all mad at the OP or something. Just tread lightly but go big while you can! I know I have been so far, TYVM...
MM
At least Mid-Atlantic AAA offices posted signs by the cashers, saying that TC's purchase will treat as CASH ADVANCE a month or two before AAA allowed TC to be purchased as purchase instead of cash advance for AAA CREDIT CARDS ONLY. Someone reported racking up awards points by purchasing TC with AAA cards.
...SO wrong. Oh, well, just more availability for us frequent flyer nuts.
shhh! don't tell anyone!
Well, how many miles are needed to fly a dog or any pet? Does your daughter belong to the programs or have her own amex to rack up points too?
She ought to try this gig in this thread even! I cant wait for our 11 month old to grow up so she can start earning miles!
(only kidding--about the grow up part )
MM
__________________
That’s Punny: A guy with miles to burn may well find a gal who wants to play with fire.
if one person were to say, go into the same AMEX office and churn this so boldly they looked suspicious and were never acting below the radar, wouldnt AMEX raise an eyebrow? What if that person did like 100 of these transactions in a month or something wild like that?
So, if 100 people walk into the lone Boston office that could be workable for this gig and did it only once per person, isnt that kinda the same thing?
I wonder how they'd view that.
__________________
That’s Punny: A guy with miles to burn may well find a gal who wants to play with fire.
MM
