One of the key benefits of the American Express Explorer, Platinum Card and Platinum Edge cards is a travel credit that is usable for booking travel through American Express Travel and helps to offset the cards’ annual fees.
There are a few conditions that come with these travel credits, so you’ll need to consider where and when you maximise their use.
In this guide, we explore the ins and outs of the benefit, what it covers, what it doesn’t, how to use it and, most importantly, how to maximise value from it.
What American Express cards’ have travel credits?
The Explorer card comes with a $400 travel credit, which helps to offset the $395 annual fee. The Explorer travel credit are here.
The $1,450 annual fee Platinum Card has long offered a travel credit, which now totals $450.
Finally, the Platinum Edge has a $195 annual fee, which is offset by a $200 travel credit. Its terms and conditions are here.
What can you use the American Express travel credit for?
The travel credit can be used for travel bookings made through Amex Travel, which includes most domestic and international flights, hotels and some car rentals.
What is excluded but otherwise bookable through Amex Travel? This table should help you out:
| Category | Explorer | Platinum Card | Platinum Edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights (excluding low-cost flights) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Low-cost flights | No | Unclear | No |
| Hotels | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Car rentals (only airport) | Yes | Unclear | Yes |
| Experiences | Yes | No | Yes |
| Cruises | No | No | No |
| Annual fee | $395 | $1,450 | $195 |
| Travel credit | $400 | $450 | $200 |
Notes:
- The Platinum Card terms and conditions are the vaguest but it is most likely that you cannot book low-cost flights or car rentals outside of airports (just like on the other two cards)
- Car rentals must be from and to the same airport location only
- Cruises are not eligible for any card’s travel credit
You can only use your travel credit on car rentals if you are picking up and dropping off at the same airport
The bad: Key restrictions of the travel credit
- The travel credit has to be used in one booking, not across multiple
- There’s no refund on the travel credit if you decide to cancel a booking, although you might get a refund of the points or cash portion if the original booking was a refundable fare or hotel rate
- You won’t earn Membership Rewards points on the portion of the booking covered by the travel credit
- This benefit is given to primary cardholders only, i.e. not supplementary cardholders, although you can use it for an itinerary booked in anyone else’s name (kind of like a gift)
- The credit can’t be used when you are paying for a hotel or car rental directly, as is the case with Fine Hotels & Resorts bookings or non-prepaid/flexible car rental bookings
- Car rentals eligible for the travel credit must be to and from the same airport
- As alluded to above, you can use the credit for a booking that’s less than the amount of the credit on your account but you’ll forfeit the difference
- The credit expires each year if it’s unused, meaning you have 12 months from the day it arrives in your account, i.e. it does not roll over to the next year
- Some readers report that the prices on Amex Travel are higher than through the airline or hotel directly, so do make sure to compare prices to get the best deal (note that Amex Travel does not price match)
Do check that flights through Amex Travel are not more expensive than booking direct
The good: How to maximise the value of the travel credit
The terms above really dictate how to best use your credit because it’s not as flexible as cash.
- Make sure of your plans: this is the most important one. Don’t consider using it for bookings you think you might have to cancel, as you’ll lose the credit amount
- Book travel that is equal to or over the travel credit amount: remember to target bookings that are going to total above the amount of your credit. If you have a specific flight or hotel in mind that is going to cost less than your credit you can consider increasing the cost to make it eligible for the credit, e.g. by booking a more expensive room type
- Beneficial if you are chasing airline status but not hotel status: if you are chasing hotel elite status, you won’t earn any stay credits toward status on prepaid bookings via Amex Travel, so ensure you use it for hotel stays where you would otherwise not be worried about points and status. Conversely, a flight booking using the travel credit will still earn you frequent flyer points and status credits with the airline
- For multiple people: if you are booking a $200 flight for yourself and also want to bring your partner or a friend along, you can book two tickets for $400 and claim the travel credit on the total, i.e. it applies to all passengers in the booking
- For multiple cards: if you hold two or three of the above cards, you can choose which travel credit to use on your booking (phone Amex if you are having trouble doing this online). Note that you cannot stack multiple travel credits on the same booking, i.e. they’ll have to be used on separate bookings
- Use on last-minute flight, hotel or car rental bookings: you know you won’t lose the credit because plans are less likely to change
- Use it for travel into the future: even if your credit expires in, say, January, you can use it for travel in, say, March but you have to complete the booking before the credit expires
Last-minute flights on Qantas can be expensive, so offsetting the cost with your travel credit could represent good value
How to use it online with Amex Travel
Step 1: As soon as you’ve paid your annual fee and made the minimum payment on your first month’s statement, you should find a new credit in your Amex Travel account ready to use
Step 2: Log in to the Amex Travel website, noting that if you have multiple Amex-issued cards in your account, select the card with a travel credit to use. For holders of the Platinum Card, your screen will look something like this:
While logged in as an Explorer cardholder, it will look something like this:
Step 3: Once logged in, in the top right-hand corner of the Amex Travel homepage you’ll see the available credit tied to your account. If you can’t see it and you know it hasn’t been used on your account, contact Amex via live chat or by calling 1800 059 388 (Explorer)/1800 673 760 (Platinum Card)/1800 059 388 (Platinum Edge) to get that rectified
Step 4: From here, you can start researching your flight, hotel, car rental and/or experiences options
Step 5: Once you’ve found one over the amount of your available credit that you’d like to book, you’ll see the following option appear on the last checkout confirmation page:
Step 6: That yellow button is the final step in choosing to redeem your travel credit. The credit is taken off the total price of your booking at the time of it being made, whether that’s over the phone or online—so, in short, you’ll receive it as an immediate discount. You can pay for additional costs with your American Express card, Membership Rewards points or both
Step 7: Review and confirm your booking
You can also use the credit over the phone (using the phone numbers in Step 2) or via the Amex Platinum Travel Concierge if you hold the Platinum Card.
American Express has also produced this video to walk you through the process:
Summing up
The travel credit is a handy and valuable benefit of all three cards but it’s important to remember to use it!
One thing I find troublesome is its non-refundable nature. I much prefer refundable rates, having been burned with wanting to change plans of my own accord too often and losing prepaid hotel nights. This means I often don’t use the credit for one- or two-night stays when it could be used.
That said, there’s almost always a paid Economy flight or last-minute hotel booking where this benefit can come in useful.
I have used my Amex Platinum Edge $200 travel credit for a hotel booking in mid-Sept. If I cancel my Amex Platinum Edge now, will I lose that hotel booking?
Cheers
Yes, using your travel credit is still considered a revenue fare, meaning you will earn status credits.
If low-cost flights were indeed excluded, then your only options to use the credit between Melbourne and Sydney would be Qantas and Virgin Australia (not Jetstar or Tiger).
If using your travel credit I’d suggest taking a screenshot at the time of booking – I’ve recently booked discount fares (~$550 pp/leg) and a week later when payment was processed they were charged at almost $100 pp/leg more expensive – effectively wasting the travel credit. Worse still the fares are now being offered at ~$500 pp/leg on both AMEX & Webjet. Hoping customer service can resolve however a screenshot would have helped the case!
I just booked 2 X return flights, Perth to Bali in August 2018 on the site using my $400 credit as part of the total 2 X $396 airfares(return). It was a $1.50(each flight) more expensive on Amex site from Garuda Indonesia Website, so I happy with that.
1) from website you are restricted to non peak flights
2) only can choose red deals (no Flexi)
3) cannot completely customise and choose your travel times, there is limited selection on TO and they limited you the FROM times (ie. fly non peak TO, however cannot fly peak FROM)
4) more expensive than airline!
I did ring up Amex customer service to specifically book my preferred times MEL > SYD. Almost 600! Approx $130 or so less via airline direct.
Whilst this does somewhat offset annual fee. It’s not a 1:1 in terms of value…
I am definitely cancelling my Amex Card now… very disappointed.
Calling up customer service may help you ‘add’ the baggage for a fee (I assume)
Thanks for the awesome post! I am an existing plat. edge customer and used to redeem 2 flights at the same time near my card anniversary date (if i haven redeem it the previous year).
I wonder if is the same applies to the $200 credits? Do you have any idea about it?
Cheers
The option to use the Travel Credit has not yet been applied. So i think you might have to give Amex Travel a call and ask them to book the travel for you,based on the fact that the free travel is still available till then new Credit limit is applied.
You mention:
“It depends – to be honest, I’m not sure exactly how this can work and can’t test as I’ve no travel credit left on my card. The travel credit is applied during check out on the Amex Travel website, so if the site allows you to add multiple experiences into one reservation and get the total basket size over the $400 credit amount for redemption, then it might work. Test it out and report back if you can?”
I gave it a go. Added 2 x helicopter tours of Sydney at $223 each. Lets me use my $400 credit balance of $46 or so.
Glad you mentioned this in the article. Having trouble finding a way to use the credit with value but this might be a good way to go (the experiences)
“As to why the $395 Explorer gets a higher travel credit than the $1200 Platinum Charge card, I don’t know, but that’s the way it is.”
I believe this would be because the Platinum Charge comes with the option of applying for the Platinum Reserve card as a complimentary card (i.e the annual fee on the Reserve is waived). The Reserve comes with a travel credit of $400, which when added to the credit associated with the Platinum Charge, totals $700, going a bit further towards offsetting the $1200 annual fee. Note the same restrictions apply to it as you mentioned (i.e. you have to use the two credits on separate bookings).
“you can’t use the credit for a booking that’s less than the amount of the credit on your account”
This isn’t technically true, although it is how the online booking is set up. If you’re willing to forfeit the difference, then you can make a booking for a lower amount, however it won’t trigger the option of selecting the credit, and you will be charged the full amount for the booking. You then need to call AMEX travel, quote the booking number, and have them apply the credit manually. I would advise double checking this with AMEX before committing, but this is what I was advised to do, and it worked. As mentioned though, you will only be credited the lower amount (the cost of the booking), not the total credit value.
“you can use it for an itinerary booked in anyone else’s name”
The website will freak out if you get to book travel for someone who does not share a mailing address with the primary card holder. I was advised to put the passengers address down as the same (even though it isn’t). I’m not sure what the impact of this will be when it comes time for the travel yet, as this is still in the future, but I’m assuming it shouldn’t be a big deal.
Good luck to everyone getting the most value out of your cards.
I have an Explorer, Reserve & Platinum Charge, and the travel website always defaults to the Platinum charge (no way to change like in the airline points redemption screen) – guess phone is the only option?
If I have travel credit with the charge, edge and reserve could they all be used at one time for one booking or will I be required to use them on 3 seperate ones?
Thanks
I must be a bit simple. How can it be for cardholder only, if you can use it to book for someone else?
Can I book flights in someone else’s name or must I be traveling too?
Cheers,
Thanks in advance,
Alison
You mentioned that the travel credit are used for one booking only. Are you able to book a few ‘experiences’ through the amex experience page, and use the travel credit then?
Does that mean if I have the Explorer card then I am able to book multiple ‘experiences’ using the travel credit?
You mentioned about hotel status not being credited if using the travel credit, but what about flights? If the travel credit is used to book a flight, would you still get points and status credits for the flight? And would current frequent flyer status be taken into account with the booking as well?
Cheers.