Originally Posted by
FrankMorris
I think I know the answer to this, but wanting to see if I'm missing anything. If I book through either the chase or AMEX travel portals, I get 5x points with either. As I'm thinking about it, I would then also get points via American, correct - as in, the same number of points? And if I were to use an AA card, I'd get the same number of AA points whether I booked the flight through the Chase portal or directly with AA, correct?
Just a heads up - with AMEX plat it's 5x through their portal OR direct booking with any airline. Chase however, requires booking a flight through their portal for the bonus. So you do not need to use the AMEX travel portal - however, I do see some good discounts on there for AA flights so I will sometimes use AMEX travel. As others have mentioned, they do charge a $39 change fee, and unless AA cancels/changes your flight you have to work with the travel agent (in this case AMEX) and hold times can be brutal.
I would not recommend booking any travel on a CITI AA card because they gutted travel protections. With AMEX and Chase as long as the transportation tickets are booked with the card, the trip is protected in various ways - delays, cancelation, lost luggage, emergency medical etc. I am going to try and rack up Loyalty points in 2022, and the additional 1x on the AA cards is not worth forgoing travel protection which has saved me thousands over the years.