How about air tickets? Check out flights.com, and you'll find plenty of half price business class tickets. And there are other similar sites. With the exception of the onboard cruise credits, which can virtually pay your annual fee, given the number of platinums they now have, it's unlikely you can't do the same things, and save the 300 bucks. My general experience, before I dumped the card, was that if I couldn't get something, they generally couldn't either. That's not the way it was originally. In the case of hotels, many travel agents have formed consortiums like "Virtuoso" to give clients the same amenities,like upgrades and late checkouts. In almost every case, when Amex booked me the "platinum rate" in a hotel, I found a lower one at the same place by calling direct.