New list of uninspiring Amex Platinum member events loaded on the website
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If you have an American Express Platinum charge card, you may be interested to know that the latest batch of ‘exclusive member events’ have been loaded onto the website (log-in required).
You will no doubt receive an email about them in the next day or so, but you could book now without any competition for them.
However, unfortunately, the deals are poor in my opinion. I’m really not sure what Amex is playing at here.
Last year, they relaunched their Platinum events programme with some free events. Here is my review of their evening at Berry Bros wine merchants.
Since then, ‘free’ has disappeared from their vocabulary. Fair enough. But there is still a difference between a fair price and a crazy price.
Take their Private View of the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy in June. The Summer Exhibition is primarily a bit of fun in the art calendar, it is – by no means – on a par with a ‘blockbuster’ exhibition such as the Degas show last year.
A standard ticket to the Summer Exhibition is £10. A ticket to the Amex Platinum Private View evening is a whopping £46 per person! Unless they are serving Dom Perignon in unlimited quantities together with caviar canapés, I struggle to see the value in that. (Knowing Amex, it will be some dodgy £7 prosecco!) It is difficult to see this event as a special reward for my £450 Platinum membership fee.
To be fair, some of their other offerings with English National Opera and the Othello theatre evening are better priced (ie closer to the cost of a standard ticket).
However, Mastercard runs regular ‘meet the cast and have a free drink’ evenings for cardholders (see this website) and those are open to anyone with any MasterCard – no £450 membership fee required!
(I have also been to private James Morrison and Jessie J gigs courtesy of Mastercard in the last couple of years, which topped anything that Amex has ever offered me.)
So, again, Amex has failed again to offer an additional reason to justify the card fee. There are also rumours of another Membership Rewards partner pulling out as I will write about tomorrow.
Want to earn more points from credit cards? – December 2024 update
If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.
In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 14th January 2025, the sign-up bonus on ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is increased to 30,000 Membership Rewards points. This converts into 30,000 Avios. Click here to apply.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 14th January 2025, the sign-up bonus on The Platinum Card from American Express is increased to 80,000 Membership Rewards points. This converts into 80,000 Avios! The spend requirement is changed to £10,000 in six months for this offer. Click here to apply.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
Huge 80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review
Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review
Earning miles and points from small business cards
If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:
American Express Business Platinum
50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review
Capital on Tap Pro Visa
10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review
Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa
10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) and NO FX fees Read our full review
British Airways American Express Accelerating Business
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback when you spend at least £2,000 per month.
Barclaycard Select Cashback Business Credit Card
Get 1% cashback when you spend at least £2,000 per month* Read our full review
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