| | Now that's my kind of spa day | | by Ellie Nan Storck, Managing editor, hotels | |  | Earlier this summer, I decided to take the leap and apply for The Platinum Card® from American Express. (Pro tip: I had gotten a targeted 125,000-point welcome offer, but you may be eligible to do better than that now with these juicy new welcome offers.*)
As soon as I got that shiny (and heavy!) card in the mail, I wanted to put it to good use.
I knew I had a stopover coming up in Vancouver, British Columbia (en route to test a new Cathay Pacific Aria Suite route to Hong Kong), so I figured that would be the perfect time to extend the trip by a night to test out one of this card's incredible perks: booking a hotel through Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts.
I'd heard colleagues wax lyrical about the amazing benefits that come with this program — a room upgrade upon arrival, daily free breakfast, guaranteed 4 p.m. late checkout and a $100 experience credit.
The first thing that came to my mind? Spa day.
I booked two nights at the lovely Rosewood Hotel Georgia. The cash cost would've been about $460, but I ended up using 39,000 Amex Membership Rewards points from my welcome bonus to cover it. (Even if I'd paid cash, I could've gotten up to a $200 statement credit toward the nightly rate, which still would've made for a pretty good deal. Enrollment is required.)
I then booked myself a 60-minute Georgian Revival Massage for $155. But thanks to the $100 experience credit you get for these stays, I paid just $55 (plus tip, of course). And with my tasty pancake breakfast also covered, that $55 massage amounted to my total out-of-pocket cost.
So to recap: - $460 two-night stay: Covered with points
- $18 breakfast: Covered by my FHR benefits
- $155 massage: Just $55 thanks to the $100 experience credit
An incredible experience at a luxury hotel I'd been wanting to try in one of my favorite cities was just $55 total — thanks entirely to some easily overlooked benefits of this top travel rewards card.
Check out these TPG articles to learn more about hotels where you can optimize your FHR benefits: * Welcome offers vary, and you may not be eligible for an offer.
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