American Express has launched a new campaign for local staycations called “Open for Travel”. Cardholders will enjoy hotel statement credits, discounted staycation rates, and enhanced value when redeeming Membership Rewards points for charges at selected hotels.
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This campaign runs from 25 August to 8 November 2020, and applies to all Singapore-issued American Express cards (excluding those from Citibank, DBS and UOB).
Statement Credits for Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and Millennium Hotels
American Express cardholders can now register for the following AMEX Offers via the AMEX app or online banking portal. Some of these may be targeted, so if you don’t see them, that may be why.
| ❓ What are AMEX Offers? |
AMEX Offers are opportunities to earn bonus miles or Membership Rewards points, or discounts in the form of statement credits. These are available to Platinum, True Cashback, and KrisFlyer cobrand cardholders, and can be found in the “Offers” section of the AMEX app or web portal.
Registration is required, and some offers may be targeted. These are not applicable to DBS/Citi/UOB AMEX cardholders. |
These offers are valid till 8 November 2020, and can be used for dining, spa treatment or stays at participating hotels. All payments must be made via the hotel’s official website, or in-person at the hotel/restaurant/spa. Rates booked through OTAs will not qualify for any rebate.
| Chain | Offer | Max Uses Per Card | Reg. Cap | |
| Spend | Credit | |||
| Hilton | S$400 | S$120 | 3* | No cap |
| Hyatt | S$300 | S$75 | 1 | 10,000 cards |
| Marriott | S$400 | S$100 | 1 | 10,000 cards |
| Millennium Hotels & Resorts | S$500 | S$100 | 1 | 10,000 cards |
| *One credit per participating property, at a maximum of three properties All offers valid for spending made after card registration, up till 8 November 2020. | ||||
In terms of effective rebate, Hilton leads the way (30%), followed by Hyatt & Marriott (25%), then Millennium Hotels & Resorts (20%).
Registration is on a per card basis, so if you have two different AMEX cards, you can register both and enjoy the Hyatt offer twice (or the Hilton offer six times). Supplementary cardholders can also register, but out of consideration to others, please don’t spam registrations.
Spending can be spread out across multiple transactions; there’s no need to spend the entire amount at one go (I’ve confirmed this with AMEX). For example, the Hyatt offer requires S$300 in cumulative spending to trigger a S$75 statement credit; you could achieve this with three separate transactions of S$80, S$200, and S$120.
The following hotels, dining outlets and spas are participating (hotels that have been approved for staycation guests are in green):
| Chain | Hotels | Dining Outlets |
 Hilton(Full details) | Conrad Centennial |
|
| Hilton Singapore |
| |
| Hilton Garden Inn Serangoon |
| |
 Hyatt(Full details) | Andaz Singapore |
|
| Grand Hyatt Singapore |
| |
 Marriott(Full details) | Ritz-Carlton Millennia |
|
| St Regis Singapore |
| |
| W Singapore |
| |
| Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel |
| |
 Millennium Hotels & Resorts(Full details) | Orchard Hotel Singapore |
|
| M Social Singapore |
|
T&Cs for each of these offers can be found here:
What about Love Dining?
The sharp-eyed amongst you may have noticed that some of these restaurants participate in the Love Dining program. The Love Dining and AMEX Offers will stack, and it all boils down to the nett amount charged to your card.
For example, if I spent S$800 at LaBrezza with a 50% Love Dining discount, then S$400 is charged to my card- sufficient to trigger the S$100 statement credit. You probably won’t spend S$800 at one go, but remember: it need not be in a single transaction.
Special American Express Staycation Rates
American Express members can book special staycation rates at the following chains or through the following OTAs. All stays must be booked by 8 November 2020, and stay dates vary as shown below:
| Chain (Code) | Offer | Book* | Stay |
| Accor (AMXSVR) | 25% off flexible rate + breakfast | 8 Nov 20 | 31 Mar 21 |
| Expedia (AMEXSGD12) | 12% on local hotels | 8 Nov 20 | 30 Apr 21 |
| Far East Hospitality (AMEXOFT) | 25% off BAR + 4 p.m check-out | 8 Nov 20 | 31 Jan 21 |
| Four Seasons (AXOPEN) | 20% off BAR (min 2 nights) + breakfast | 8 Nov 20 | 8 Nov 20 |
| Hotels.com (AMEX25SG) | S$25 off min spend of S$250 on local hotels | 8 Nov 20 | 30 Apr 21 |
| *All booking periods start 25 August, except Accor which starts on 14 September | |||
No registration is required, but all payments must be made with an eligible American Express card. Where Accor and Far East Hospitality are concerned, the following properties are participating in this promotion:
| Chain | Participating Properties |
 Accor |
|
 Far East Hospitality |
|
The full T&Cs can be found here.
Redeem Membership Rewards points for hotel statement credit
From 25 August- 8 November 2020, AMEX cardholders can redeem Membership Rewards points at an enhanced rate of 1,000 points= S$6.50 (usual: S$4.80) for charges at the following hotel partners:
- AMOY Hotel
- Andaz Singapore
- Conrad Centennial Singapore
- Expedia (www.expedia.com.sg/amex)
- Fairmont Singapore
- Grand Hyatt Singapore
- Hilton Garden Inn Singapore Serangoon
- Hilton Singapore
- Hotels.com (www.hotels.com/amex-sg)
- M Social Singapore
- Oasia Hotel Downtown
- Orchard Hotel Singapore
- Orchard Rendezvous Hotel Singapore
- Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel
- Sofitel Singapore City Centre
- The Barracks Hotel Sentosa
- The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore
- The St Regis Singapore
- Village Hotel Bugis
- W Singapore – Sentosa Cove
While that’s a 35% boost compared to normal, it can’t beat the 1,000 points= S$9.60 rate that AMEX offered up till 20 July 2020. I actually converted about S$2,000 worth of statement credit during that last promotion, which I’m now using to fund my staycation reviews.
So should you take advantage of it? Well, if you’re an AMEX Platinum Charge or Centurion member, that’s the equivalent of accepting 1.04 cents per mile (1.17 for all other AMEX cards, thanks to the different conversion rates). It’s not fantastic, and unless you’re really flush with points, it’s better to sit this one out.
The T&C of this offer can be found here.
Conclusion
Of the three promotions AMEX is running, I’d say the AMEX Offers are the most “worth it”. That’s because you can stack them with the hotel’s existing staycation rates, doubling down on your savings.
The discounted staycation rates with Accor/Far East/Four Seasons could also be useful, but you’ll need to see how the hotel’s best available rate prices for the dates you’re looking at.
I wouldn’t advise people to use their Membership Rewards points to offset staycation expenses, unless they’ve got a genuine abundance on hand (and if so, you’re better off using them to offset your annual fee).
thinking out loud. another alternative maybe? can buy the hotel’s mooncakes if not intending to stay or dine.
yes! that’s a good use case for this, assuming you’re spending that much on them
if I sign up for an amex card and manage to get it approved, will these offers appear in my account ?
let me check with amex.
New card members won’t be able to see these offers in their app or account. But they can call in to enroll, subject to the cap.
Contacted AMEX but they said they cannot provide the offer to those who do not see it in the app (new amex card holder who just received my card this week)
that’s the answer I got from the AMEX PR rep. they say they will remind the customer service team about this, so maybe call back in a couple of days?
Will do! Thanks!
Hi Aaron. Noticed the Hilton TnC says “in-person at the front desk or at a participating restaurant, bar or spa within the property”. Does that means pre-paid booking via Hilton app is not eligible? Although normally app prepaid booking is processed offline by the hotel itself
Yes, Hilton must be paid at hotel.