AMEX and Starwood launch credit card for frequent travellers
American Express and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide loyalty programme - Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) - are launching a co-branded credit card linked to Starwood's existing Preferred Guest programme.
The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express will be available in the UK from 1st May, offering premium rewards to business and leisure travellers.
SPG's portfolio spans nine distinct brands including St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W, Westin, Le Méridien, Sheraton, Four Points by Sheraton, Aloft and Element - with 1000 hotels and resorts in 100 countries. SPG Starpoints are earned on virtually all spending on the Card and can be redeemed for rewards such as:
Complimentary hotel nights on weekends and weekdays without blackout dates
Room upgrades
Complimentary flights with no blackout dates with over 350 airlines on SPG.com/Flights including American Airlines, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic
Once in a lifetime experiences such as VIP concert tickets and opportunities to meet celebrities through SPG Moments
Recent research by American Express reveals that over half of Brits (57%) have a credit card that rewards them for their spending. Of these, just over a quarter (28%) currently have a travel related credit card offering free flights, hotel stays and upgrades. According to the survey, travel related rewards are among the top three most popular way of redeeming credit card reward points along with retail vouchers and cashback.
The survey showed that almost half of reward cardholders previously redeemed their points several times a year (48%) and almost a third (30%) once a year. However, redemption frequency is set to increase, as over two-thirds of respondents (68%) said the economic downturn has made them more likely to use their credit card reward points on a more regular basis.
Katrina Cliffe, Head of Consumer Cards at American Express said: "Reward cardholders are increasingly looking for new ways to be able to accumulate travel related benefits for their everyday spending. This is an ideal card for today's discerning travellers, particularly those who have an existing affinity to the Starwood Preferred Guest programme and want to be able to earn Starpoints for all of the spending on their plastic."
Chris Holdren, Senior Vice President of Starwood Preferred Guest said; "SPG's new Credit Card partnership with American Express gives us another way to provide rich rewards to our most loyal guests who will now be able to use their everyday spending as an opportunity to earn valuable Starpoints for stays at our best-in-class hotels around the world. And while the Card offers automatic entry to the SPG programme, cardholders will be upgraded to the Gold tier after £15,000 in spending, which enables them to earn rewards faster - including complimentary nights, automatic upgrades and late checkouts when available."