What’s Inside: 2024/25 AMEX Platinum Charge voucher pack

Upon approval or renewal of an AMEX Platinum Charge, cardholders receive a membership pack consisting of a welcome letter, benefits guide, and various travel, dining and lifestyle vouchers.

The voucher pack is the same regardless of whether you’re a new or renewing cardholder. I’ve just received my renewal pack for the 2024/25 membership year, which contains a total of 24 vouchers.

Of course, not all vouchers are equally useful. That’s why the first thing I do upon receiving my pack is to sort them into three piles:

• Keep: Vouchers I’m definitely using
• Maybe: Vouchers I don’t have immediate plans for, but keep around just in case
• Throw: Vouchers I’d happily give away

Here’s my assessment of this year’s voucher pack.

AMEX Platinum Charge Vouchers: Keep

Complimentary 1-night hotel stay

The most valuable item in the renewal pack is the complimentary 1-night hotel stay voucher. The list of participating hotels changes throughout the year, but at the time of writing includes:

Breakfast for two adults is included, but only at overseas hotels. All bookings are non-changeable and non-refundable, so firm up your plans before making a reservation.

I redeemed my most recent voucher at the Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur, as part of a quick getaway trip with the MileLioness and MileCub. We ended up redeeming a total of two vouchers here (she has her own AMEX Platinum Charge, though she’s only keeping hers for the first year), and it was a lovely stay indeed. 

I haven’t decided where to use this year’s voucher, though I’m toying with either the Banyan Tree Doha, or HOMM Saranam Baturiti in Bali (what puts me off is that the location is really ulu).

S$50 Tower Club voucher

The Tower Club vouchers has been reduced from S$100 to S$50 this year, and can be spent at any of the club’s three dining venues, namely Atlantic, Ba Xian or Straits Bar (menus can be found here).

Advance reservations must be made via the AMEX Platinum concierge, and do note that AMEX cardholders and other non-Tower Club members pay a 10% surcharge on everything (on top of the usual service charge and GST), so the actual value of this voucher is closer to S$45.

I find the food at Tower Club to be very mediocre, so I use my vouchers to buy wine instead.  Tower Club has periodic wine sales where they get rid of excess inventory, and you can pop in (no reservation needed) to purchase what you like. The 10% surcharge does not apply to list prices.

Complimentary cake or wine vouchers

The rules for the 2x complimentary cake or wine vouchers at Fairmont Singapore/Swissotel The Stamford have changed. 

While the game plan previously was to order a coffee or single scoop of gelato, then redeem both vouchers at the same time, there’s now two new conditions:

• You must order a main course to utilise a voucher
• You can redeem a maximum of two vouchers per visit 

As before, both the wine and cake can be taken to go; there’s no need to consume it at the restaurant. If you’re opting for the cake, call two working days in advance because they need time to prepare it.

The wine options rotate from time to time, but don’t expect anything fancy. Prego used to have an option to pay a top-up fee for something better, though the latest data points say this is no longer possible. 

AMEX Platinum Charge Vouchers: Maybe

30% off Wan Hao voucher

The 30% off Wan Hao Restaurant voucher isn’t stackable with Love Dining benefits, but remember:

• Love Dining privileges don’t apply to drinks, while the 30% off voucher does
• Love Dining privileges don’t apply to the dim sum menu, while the 30% off voucher does
• Love Dining offers 50% off for parties of two, but the 30% off voucher is valid regardless of party size

Basically, if you’re dining as a group of four or more, this could be useful.

Complimentary bottle of wine at Wan Hao

If your bill at Wan Hao exceeds S$200 (before GST and service charge), you can redeem a complimentary bottle of house wine.

I’ve been told the current option is The Harbour Shiraz, with a commanding score of 3.3/5 on Vivino.

S$100 Restaurant JAG voucher

The S$100 voucher for Restaurant JAG can be used for:

• Dinners from Tuesdays to Thursdays
• Lunch on Fridays and Saturdays

Reservations must be made at least 48 hours in advance, and you should inform the restaurant at the time of reservation that the voucher will be used. No minimum number of diners or minimum spend is required, and blackout dates for public holidays and special occasions like Valentine’s Day apply. 

There is a limit of one voucher per visit (and you only get one voucher per renewal pack anyway), and set lunch starts at S$175++ so you’ll still be paying a bit out of pocket.

Restaurant JAG’s menus can be found here.

S$100 Wooloomooloo voucher

The S$100 Wooloomooloo voucher requires a minimum spend of S$250 before GST and service charge, and does not stack with Love Dining discounts.

That said, it may still come in useful because Love Dining discounts only apply to a specific Love Dining set menu that costs S$168++ per person. If you prefer to order a la carte (or if you’re dining with a larger party where the discount is <50%), then getting S$100 off S$250 would be a better deal.

50% off Asian Market Café

The 50% off Asian Market Café voucher is valid for groups of 8-10 adults.

I don’t think much of the food quality here, but if I were hosting a large group and needed a fuss-free option, then this would probably be it. This halal-certified buffet costs S$88-98++ per adult (and there’s oysters on weekends).

S$50 off Mikuni or Willow Stream Spa massage

This voucher offers a choice of S$50 off Mikuni, or S$50 off a 90-minute body massage at Willow Stream Spa. 

My opinion is that Mikuni is very overpriced to begin with, almost as if all the dishes assume a 50% discount. And since you can’t stack the voucher with Love Dining benefits, what people would do historically is to buy a S$50 piece of melon. No, that’s not a typo.

Mikuni has since changed its policy to disallow melon runs, so what I’d do is treat the voucher as a subsidy for a lunch set- though keep in mind the cheapest option is S$80++, so you’d still be paying S$44 all-in.

Do note that Mikuni will be closing down from 14 December 2024, so if you plan to use the voucher here, don’t delay. 

As for the spa option, the cost of a 90-minute body massage at Willow Stream Spa is a jaw-dropping S$280++, so you’d still pay S$282 after the voucher!

S$50 Crossroads Buffet voucher

The S$50 Crossroads Buffet voucher is tough to use.

The buffet starts from S$68++ per adult, and this voucher requires a minimum spend of S$100 before GST and service charge. But Crossroads Buffet is also on Love Dining, and if we take lunch as an example:

So the only scenario where the voucher would make sense is if you’re a single diner who orders additional drinks to bring your spend amount to the S$100 minimum (drinks are not eligible for Love Dining discounts).

AMEX Platinum Charge Vouchers: Throw

Spa vouchers

Once upon a time, the AMEX Platinum Charge came with several complimentary spa treatment vouchers. These were completely free, provided you were willing to sit through a brief sales pitch at the end.

Unfortunately, these have been replaced with cash vouchers that require minimum spends:

• S$100 Adeva Spa (min. spend S$180)
• S$100 Spa Rael (min. spend S$180)
• S$130 The Spa By The Ultimate (min. spend S$180)
• S$130 The Ultimate (min. spend S$180)

If you’re the sort who already visits these places, and if you enjoy the service there, then by all means keep the vouchers and value them accordingly. But if you’re like me, they’ll just take up space in your drawer. 

Fairmont/Swissotel discounted rates and upgrade vouchers

There are three vouchers for discounted weekday/weekend nights at the Fairmont Singapore and Swissotel The Stamford.

Each voucher can be used for up to two consecutive nights:

• Weekday rate of S$230++ at Fairmont Singapore/Swissotel The Stamford
• Weekend rate of S$280++ at Swissotel The Stamford 
• Weekend rate of S$300++ at Fairmont Singapore

These cannot be used during blackout dates or “dates of high occupancy” (which isn’t defined). 

Given the current rates at the Fairmont Singapore/Swissotel The Stamford, you could potentially be getting a good deal- provided the “high occupancy” clause doesn’t strike. But since I have no intention of doing a staycation here, these vouchers are essentially worthless to me.

Should you decide to stay nonetheless, there’s also 5x vouchers for a room upgrade valid on Friday, Saturday or Sunday nights. 

Current AMEX Platinum Charge welcome offer

American Express is currently running a welcome offer for approvals by 2 December 2024 that discounts the first year’s annual fee by more than 50%.

AMEX Platinum Charge
Apply
	Offer 1	Offer 2
Pay S$1,744 Annual Fee	–	–
Spend S$8,000 (First 180 days)	88,000 MR points  + S$100 credits + Samsonite luggage	S$900 credits + Samsonite luggage
Base Points from S$8,000 (@ 2 pts/S$1.60)	10,000 MR points	10,000 MR points
Total Spend	S$8,000	S$8,000
Total Return	98,000 MR points + S$100 credits + Samsonite luggage	10,000 MR points + S$900 credits + Samsonite luggage

Applicants who spend at least S$8,000 within the first 180 days of approval can choose to receive S$900 in statement credits (which you can spend on anything) and a Samsonite luggage bag, on top of the usual 10,000 MR points. 

Alternatively, they can choose to receive 88,000 MR points, S$100 statement credits and a Samsonite bag (I’d recommend taking the other offer though).

This offer is available for both new and existing AMEX cardholders, and the only criteria is that you must not have cancelled a principal AMEX Platinum Charge in the past 24 months. 

This makes the first year of membership particularly lucrative, especially since cardholders enjoy two sets of Platinum Statement Credits with a single annual fee. I’ve laid out the case for the first year sweet spot, which you can read about more in the post below.

The AMEX Platinum Charge first-year sweet spot

Conclusion

The latest AMEX Platinum Charge voucher pack comes with 24 vouchers, though which ones you find useful really boil down to your personal spending and lifestyle patterns.

I definitely think the vouchers have grown less generous and more restrictive over the years though, which is why I don’t give them a very high value (with the exception of the one-night hotel stay) in my annual review. Fortunately, there’s value to be gleaned from elsewhere, namely the Platinum Statement Credits, Comoclub birthday vouchers, airport lounge access etc..

Which vouchers are in your keep, maybe and throw pile?