The Amex Membership Rewards program has just introduced its latest transfer bonus, valid for the next several weeks. This is the first transfer bonus that we’ve seen to this partner in well over a year…
In this post:
Amex to Etihad Guest transfer bonus
The American Express Membership Rewards program in the United States is offering a 20% bonus on points transfers to Etihad Guest. This promotion is valid for points transfers through Thursday, April 4, 2024.
Ordinarily points transfer at a 1:1 ratio (in 1,000 point increments), while through this promotion you’d get 1,200 Etihad Guest miles for every 1,000 Membership Rewards points transferred.
For context, Amex doesn’t frequently have promotions on transfers to Etihad Guest. The only transfer bonus I ever recall seeing between the two programs was in late 2022.
- 4x points at restaurants, on up to $50,000 in purchases annually
- 4x points at U.S. supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases annually
- 3x points on flights booked directly with airlines or through amextravel.com
- $325
- Access to Amex Offers
- Redeem Amex Points Towards Airfare
- $375
- Earn 5x points on flights purchased directly from airlines or through Amex Travel (up to $500k/year)
- $200 Annual Uber Credit
- Amex Centurion Lounge Access
- $695
- Earn 1.5x on purchases of $5,000 or more in a single transaction on up to $2MM per calendar year
- Redeem Points For Over 1.5 Cents Each Towards Airfare
- Amex Centurion Lounge Access
- $695
- 2x points on purchases up to $50k then 1x
- Access to Amex Offers
- No annual fee
Should you transfer Amex points to Etihad?
We’re seeing a lot of changes at Etihad Guest, both for better and worse. So, is there value in transferring miles to Etihad Guest with this bonus? That depends…
While Etihad Guest has lots of airline partners, unfortunately these redemptions are almost never a good deal. Below is the award chart for travel on partner airlines, which unfortunately doesn’t leave many exciting redemption opportunities.
At this point the biggest value in the Etihad Guest program is being able to redeem for travel in Etihad premium cabins. Etihad is a pleasure to fly with, and the airline has improved very nicely in recent years, with new aircraft and a great premium experience, in both first class and business class. On top of that, Etihad’s hub at Abu Dhabi Airport is a game changer for the airline.
Historically the best way to book Etihad premium cabin tickets has been through partner programs, like American AAdvantage. Unfortunately Etihad has now restricted first and business class award space to partner programs, and only opens this space at most 30 days before departure.
So the question is no longer whether Etihad Guest is a good value compared to other programs, but rather the question is whether you want to fly Etihad, and whether you care about booking 30 or more days in advance.
At least Etihad Guest has lowered some premium cabin redemption rates as part of the program changes. For example, an Abu Dhabi to New York first class award now costs 160,000 miles, compared to 220,000 miles previously. With a 20% bonus, that price is even lower in terms of Amex points. Just be aware that Etihad Guest has redemption surcharges, which can add up.
Bottom line
At the moment Amex is offering a 20% bonus when you transfer points to Etihad Guest. We haven’t seen a transfer bonus like this in quite some time, so it’s worth being aware of.
You should only be focused on Etihad Guest if you want to redeem for travel on Etihad. While redemption rates aren’t great, your only option for booking Etihad premium cabins more than 30 days in advance is directly through the Etihad Guest program. So I wouldn’t make a speculative transfer, but with a specific use in mind, it could make sense.
Do you plan on taking advantage of this Amex transfer bonus to Etihad Guest?
Is this bonus gone or targeted? I don't see it under my Amex portal.
Me neither. Seems like an expired offer.
Lately on Etihad I have been finding business class flights on American from JFK to BCN and lie flat business class 80k points with very low taxes. Also Air Europa flights in business class from JFK to Madrid for 90k points.(For whatever reason a few of them I've booked only end up only costing 84k and $0 at checkout)
With this transfer bonus the JFK to BCN would only be 67k points. The JFK to Madrid would only be 70-75k points.
-Points Travel Buddy
I transferred 6k points from Capital One to Etihad yesterday for a domestic AA redemption and somehow 7.2k points showed up in my Etihad account.
So either the promo applies to C1 as well or Etihad's system screwed up and gave me more points than I was supposed to get.