Chase Luxury Hotel and Resort Collection Versus AMEX Fine Hotels and Resorts

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Keith:   American Express and Chase each offer separate programs for booking paid stays at luxury hotels at more than 900 hotels, resorts, lodges, and spas throughout the world.

When you book a stay through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts or Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection, you can find competitive rates and enjoy extra perks like late check-out, room upgrades, and free breakfast.  But you’ll always want to shop around before booking to make sure you get the best deal!

The programs are only available for folks with certain credit cards from each issuer.

Who Can Use Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection and AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts?

Link:   American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts 

Link:   Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection

1.   AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts

To book a stay through the AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts program, you must have one of these cards:

• The Business Platinum® Card from American Express
• The Platinum Card® from American Express

You won’t have to pay for your reservation with your AMEX Platinum card.  But you will have to use a card that’s linked to your AMEX account.

2.   Chase Luxury Hotels & Resorts

The Chase Luxury Hotels & Resort Collection is much more flexible, although Chase doesn’t publish a list of which cards are eligible.  But readers report success with these cards:

• British Airways Visa Signature® Card
• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®
• Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card
• Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Credit Card
• United MileagePlus® Explorer Card

The information for the British Airways Visa card has been collected independently by Million Mile Secrets. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

To check if your Chase card is eligible, you can search for hotels.  Then, enter the first 6 digits of your Chase card when prompted.

You’ll find out right away if your card qualifies.  And you must use one of the above eligible cards to pay for your stay in order to qualify for the Luxury Hotel and Resort collection.

Chase Luxury Hotel and Resort Collection Versus AMEX Fine Hotels

• Guaranteed 4:00 pm late check-out when booking with AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts versus late check-out based on availability with Chase
• AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts program offers limited-time offers for select hotels, including 4th, 5th, or 6th night free
• Prices on the AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts site do NOT include taxes & fees, but these are included when searching on Chase
• You’ll earn hotel loyalty points if you book a chain hotel through the AMEX or Chase program
• Booking through either program is deal for folks without hotel elite status because you’ll enjoy perks as if you did have status.

Here’s a more detailed analysis comparing the 2 programs.

1.   Perks

Overall, the perks of the AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts and Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection programs are very similar.

When you book through AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts, you’ll get:

• Early check-in (if available)
• Complimentary Wi-Fi
• Daily resort or hotel credit (if available)
• Free daily breakfast for 2
• 4:00 pm guaranteed late check-out
• Room upgrade (if available)

And when you book through Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection, you’ll get:

• Early check-in (if available)
• Daily resort or hotel credit (if available)
• Free daily breakfast for 2
• Late check-out (if available)
• Room upgrade (if available)

So, one perk of the AMEX program compared to Chase is the guaranteed late check-out.  This can come in handy if you have a late afternoon flight and would like to spend extra time at the hotel or resort.

The AMEX program also has limited-time offers, which are not available through Chase.  For example, certain hotels in their program offer a complimentary 4th, 5th, or 6th night with your paid stay.  I’ll explain more about this shortly.

My wife and I booked through AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts to get a 4th night free at the One & Only Palmilla in Los Cabos.

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2.   Price Comparison

To compare prices between the AMEX & Chase programs, I searched 1 night at the Wynn Las Vegas.

Through AMEX, the nightly rate for a deluxe resort king room is ~$359.  But this amount does NOT include the estimated room taxes!

Chase shows the total cost of a room including taxes of ~$431.

So although the AMEX rate appears to be cheaper, it does not include the taxes.  In the end, both programs have the same rate and similar perks.

If you book the same room directly through Wynn Las Vegas, you’d pay ~$447.  But you wouldn’t get perks like:

• $100 resort and spa credit
• Free breakfast for 2

So, in this example, it would make sense to book through AMEX or Chase to get the added benefits that won’t cost you a dime!

Here’s another example for a 1 night stay at the luxurious Shutters on the Beach hotel in Santa Monica, California.

I found a 1 night stay directly through the hotel for ~$733, which includes taxes and fees.

AMEX and Chase both show a nightly rate of ~$862 (including taxes) for the same type of room.  But when you book through AMEX or Chase, you’ll get:

• $100 spa credit
• Free breakfast for 2 (up to $50)

In this case, you’ll want to do the math to see if paying an extra ~$129 is worth the potential $150 in perks.

Remember, you’ll also get a guaranteed 4:00 pm late check-out through AMEX.  So consider this when booking if you’d like to spend some extra time on the beach!

3.   AMEX Limited-Time Offers

Unique to the AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts program is a list of limited-time offers.

You’ll want to check the terms of each complimentary night offer.  Because certain weekends and holidays can be restricted.

Also, the credit for the complimentary night will apply when you check-out.

Using the AMEX complimentary night can certainly be a valuable perk.  But I always recommend shopping around.

That’s because the AMEX promotion might only apply to certain types of rooms or suites.  Therefore, you might be able to save money paying for all of the nights directly through the hotel.

4.   Earn Hotel Loyalty Points

With paid stays through the AMEX or Chase hotel programs, you can earn credit and loyalty points.

But you might not be able to link your loyalty account online.  I’d recommend calling AMEX or Chase to ensure you get credit for your stay.

Keep in mind, you will not be able to combine any hotel loyalty promotions with your stay through AMEX or Chase.  For example, if a certain hotel has a 5th night free promotion, AMEX or Chase will NOT be able to apply this to your stay.

Bottom Line

The AMEX Fine Hotels & Resorts and Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection programs offer competitive rates for paid luxury hotel stays.  But I always recommend shopping around to make sure you’re getting the best deal!

When you book through one of these programs, you’ll also enjoy automatic perks like free breakfast for 2 and a spa or resort credit to use during your stay.  And when available, you’ll get added benefits like early check-in and room upgrades.

The AMEX program has an advantage because you get a guaranteed 4:00 pm late check-out.  And they have limited-time offers at certain hotels for complimentary nights with a paid stay.

Do you book hotel stays through AMEX Fine Hotels or Chase Luxury Hotels?  I’d love to hear about your experience in the comments!