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Time running out to get Amex Platinum if you want free Accor Platinum status

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If you have been thinking about getting the American Express Platinum charge card, there is a ‘sweet spot’ for the next 10 days or so.

Six weeks ago, American Express added three new hotel status benefits to the Platinum card:

Hilton HHonors – Gold status (gets free breakfast)

Shangri-La Golden Circle – Jade status

MeliaRewards – Gold status

This is on top of the existing three hotel status cards:

Le Club AccorHotels – Platinum (top tier) status

Starwood Preferred Guest – Gold status

Club Carlson (Radisson, Park Plaza, Park Inn) – Gold status

However …..

According to the Amex website:

Enrolment to receive the American Express benefit of 1-year complimentary Le Club AccorHotels Platinum tier membership will end on 15 April 2016; after which Cardmember requests cannot be accepted, and Cardmembers will not be enrolled or upgraded to Le Club AccorHotels Platinum tier.

Yes, after 15th April you will no longer be eligible for free Accor Platinum status.

If you stay at Ibis, Novotel, Mercure, Sofitel, M Gallery or Pullman hotels on a regular basis, this status is worth having.  I never took great advantage of this, but my wife used it successfully at the Sofitel in Sochi.  Even on my last Novotel stay I received two free drinks, an upgrade and bonus points.

This is the only top-tier hotel status that comes with Platinum.  You are guaranteed lounge access at Sofitel hotels, for a start, which is a good benefit.

If you want to grab Le Club Accor Hotels Platinum status, you would need to apply for Amex Platinum within the next 7-10 days.

You need to be 100% certain that you will receive your card before 15th April because you need the card in your hand before you can register it and claim your Accor status.

My full review of Amex Platinum is here.  The application page is here.

You will receive 30,000 Membership Rewards points for signing up and spending £2,000 within 90 days.  These will convert to 30,000 Avios points or various other things.

If, after a few months, you find that the card does not suit your lifestyle, you can cancel it for a pro-rata refund of the £450 annual fee.  You will retain your hotel status cards until they expire naturally, usually after 12 months.

Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 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 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 card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

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.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

15,000 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:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

American Express Business Platinum

40,000 points sign-up bonus 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 Business Rewards Visa

Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 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 on your spending.

Barclaycard Select Cashback Business Credit Card

1% cashback uncapped* on all your business spending (T&C apply) Read our full review

Category

Accor Live Limitless, American Express Platinum card

Comments (68)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Lee Harris says:
    25 Mar25 March 10:52

    On Monday, when this report was posted, I decided to upgrade my Gold to Platinum straight away, instead of waiting the 2 months or so before my Gold first year was up. Yesterday, only 3 days after upgrading, my Accor status was upgraded to Platinum and my Hertz and Avis physical cards have come through, as well as my Priority Pass.

    *Much* quicker than I was expecting!

    And the expiry on the Accor Platinum is confirmed as end of April 2017.

    Thanks for the heads-up on the end of this deal, and for all the work you do to keep this site up to date!

    • Rachel says:
      27 Mar27 March 19:18

      Lee, can I ask whether you had to wait for the physical platinum card to arrive before you were able to upgrade Accor status? I am thinking of upgrading to platinum but am not sure if it is already too late.

      • Genghis says:
        27 Mar27 March 19:24

        You do not need the physical Amex plat card to apply for Accor status

      • Lee Harris says:
        28 Mar28 March 19:45

        Nope – mo need to wait. Your online account will show as Platinum immediately, and you can apply for Accor Plat (and the others) within minutes.

  • JamesW says:
    25 Mar25 March 14:57

    Great news Lee.

    Hopefully I’ll get the Accor Platinum in the next few days then.
    Want to book a hotel for end of April and am keen to have the status confirmed before I do.

    My MR points have returned to me too since the upgrade from Gold to Plat so that’s gone smoothly.

  • Josh R says:
    26 Mar26 March 18:52

    I’m a 1st year, Amex Gold card holder with 5 months to go before I must pay for my first renewal. I’ve been curious about ‘upgrading’ to Platinum to nab the benefits before downgrading… It sounds like now might be the best time to do it.

    However, is it possible at all to upgrade to Platinum, get the benefits and hit the spend goal, before downgrading back to Gold? I’m a long way off hitting my second spend goal of 10k for 10k bonus points so not too worried about that.

    • Rob says:
      26 Mar26 March 20:04

      Yes, fine. Only issue is that, after downgrading, you start paying for Gold immediately – no free first year.

  • Rachel says:
    27 Mar27 March 18:07

    I have been thinking about upgrading from Gold to Platinum Amex. I have booked Accor hotels already on Hotels.com website. If I get the platinum status, will they offer upgrade or is it only for the bookings made on Accor website?

    • Rob says:
      27 Mar27 March 18:42

      Shouldn’t, but you might if they are in a good mood at check in. No chance of points though.

    • Genghis says:
      27 Mar27 March 18:43

      It’s hit and miss and most likely a miss. However, from comments on the boards a few days ago, the ship has now sailed on getting Accor plat from Amex plat.

      • Rachel says:
        27 Mar27 March 18:48

        Thanks for your reply. It’s already too late to upgrade to Amex plat and get Accor plat? That’s a shame. I thought I may have a chance as there are more than 2 weeks till 15th April.

        • Genghis says:
          27 Mar27 March 19:02

          I don’t know for sure but that’s what someone said a few days ago after they called Amex. However, worth trying. There’s still the 20k MR bonus if you upgrade to plat after spending £1k in 3 months

          • Lee Harris says:
            29 Mar29 March 11:20

            I upgraded online last week, got Amex Platinum status *immediately*, and filled out the details online for the various programs (including Accor) and got my Accor Platinum status confirmed within days.

          • Rachel says:
            7 Apr7 April 21:51

            Thanks for your reply, Lee. I applied and got platinum amex immediately and got accor platinum 3 days later. All set for a two week Australia trip with priority and accor stays. Thanks raffles for great info.

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