Questions and Answers

Lucky,
I love your blog and helpful posts. I have learned a lot. Right now I have a premier rewards gold AMEX. I really wanted to upgrade to a AMEX Platinum for the Lounge access( I am an avid delta flyer out of ATL). I was about to make the plunge and apply for a platinum but I started to compare ultimate rewards vs membership rewards. I have been researching it like crazy. In every circumstance it seems like ultimate rewards are significantly less points needed per redemption then the Amex travel with membership awards. Like in many cases it was 100-150k points less per 5 night stay at a hotel in the Caribbean. Even on delta flights comparing the same exact flights on the same exact time and day the ultimate rewarda were less points the the Amex travel membership rewards and even less points than booking with Skymiles directly on my Delta app.

With this being said I am factoring in the discount on points given for a sapphire reserve holder. But still.[B] Am I missing something?? [/B]Is there a way that membership rewards would give me cheaper redemptions on hotels or flights? Like I said looking at transferring to Delta or Marriott(where I stay often for business traveling) still didn’t beat the ultimate rewards points cost.

I wanted badly for the platinum paired with another amex card to be my duo because I like the use of the Delta sky lounges but at this point it looks like the chase sapphire reserve paired with a freedom unlimited offers a much better return. Why doesn’t the platinum offer the same discounts booking through Amex like the sapphire reserve does through ultimate rewards?

I appreciate you answering my question and I look forward to reading and learning more.

Cole