The recent post searching for a decent Centurion travel agent got me thinking: is a gold card member better off upgrading to Platinum to use the travel services ($365-90= $275 additional cost) or finding and paying for an independent travel agent? For the sake of discussion lets assume there is no value of the added benefits of Platinum over Gold. For each scenario heavy traveler, moderate traveler, and light travel, what do you think? What is the best way to find a good AMEX Travel Agent?