AMEX Platinum $300 OBC - Is it Refundable?

[hubofhockey]

I just booked a cruise with my Platinum card, which provides a $300 Onboard credit.  If you have received the AMEX credit, do you know if it's refundable?

 

Azamara is already providing $300 nonrefundable OBC and agency is providing $475 in OBC, which thankfully, is refundable.  Quite honestly, all of the OBC is a reason we didn't book a suite because figuring the $300 will go to specialty restaurants.  I am pretty sure the AMEX credit is not refundable, so that's $600 we need to spend.

Edited February 22, 2023 by hubofhockey

[lenoirm]

All OBC are refundable except Azamara OBC.

 

We have received OBC from travel agents, banks credit cards  and American Express.

 

Azamara will charge your expenses on their OBC then use the other OBC , in necessary .

Please note that extra tips in specialty restaurants and donation to crew fund will be always taken out the refundable OBC.

 

In the past Azamara credited our credit card on file , in a few days after the cruise.

On our last cruise  (Xmas 2022/23 ) we received cash on the last morning from the customers desk.

You could walk away with maximum $ 745 but be kind to the crew and to yourselves .

 

Micheline
 

[hubofhockey]

Thank you very much for clarifying.  I doubt we'll be walking away with much cash from our $1,075 OBC.    Between specialty dining, spa/gym, extra device for WIFI, we'll be well into the refundable amount provided by the TA.  If we walk away with $200, I'll be surprised.  We have only been on one Azamara cruise (15 days in SE Asia), but you're right about that crew.  They deserve extra tips.  They really are so much of the difference between a cruise on a larger line and Azamara.

[azjoy]

We've used this particular credit on many cruises and I recall it being non-refundable.

 

It's listed on your confirmation from Azamara and shows available in the Azamara website Cruise Planner so can be used to book shore excursions pre-cruise and any the leftover can be used on board, like all other OBC.

 

One thing that it cannot be used for is tips for specialty dining. There are a few other exceptions for using OBC but I don't remember all of them.  

 

As for why it's non-refundable, I can only speculate that it's being provided by both Azamara and American Express, but that's just a guess on my part.

 

My most recent use of this credit was in December on back-to-back cruises. 

 

[hubofhockey]

1 hour ago, azjoy said:

We've used this particular credit on many cruises and I recall it being non-refundable.

 

It's listed on your confirmation from Azamara and shows available in the Azamara website Cruise Planner so can be used to book shore excursions pre-cruise and any the leftover can be used on board, like all other OBC.

 

One thing that it cannot be used for is tips for specialty dining. There are a few other exceptions for using OBC but I don't remember all of them.  

 

As for why it's non-refundable, I can only speculate that it's being provided by both Azamara and American Express, but that's just a guess on my part.

 

My most recent use of this credit was in December on back-to-back cruises. 

 

I saw something online that indicates that you are correct and that it's an AMEX promotion they do with cruise lines, so non-refundable.   Right now, both the essentials package $300 (free with current promotion) and the AMEX are showing up as onboard credit for a total of $600. I am going to see if it lets me use it for Chefs Table + 4 dining packages. 

[the_dylaness]

My prior experience (on X, RCCL and other lines) is that Amex Plat 300 is not refundable.

 

I was surprised to learn that the Virtuoso consortium OBC was NOT combinable with Amex Plat on Azamara... has been on every other cruise I've ever used Amex Plat to book which is a few lines.  We decided to go with Amex Plat since it at least gave us a bottle of wine too 🙂

[hubofhockey]

1 hour ago, the_dylaness said:

My prior experience (on X, RCCL and other lines) is that Amex Plat 300 is not refundable.

 

I was surprised to learn that the Virtuoso consortium OBC was NOT combinable with Amex Plat on Azamara... has been on every other cruise I've ever used Amex Plat to book which is a few lines.  We decided to go with Amex Plat since it at least gave us a bottle of wine too 🙂

The bottle of wine, when they give you the essentials/premium drink package, is a bit ironic.  I love the Platinum card and they usually give me a nice retention benefit to maintain the card because I spend enough.  The $300 Azamara and $300 Amex will be spent on Chefs Table +2 package and spa/gym.  We’d do those anyway.  My favorite other perk of the card is $20 a month credit against Disney+/ESPN+/Hulu package.  Oh, have a great time on your first AZ cruise.  

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

The $300 Amex Platinum cruise benefit is very expensive— because it means you charged the cruise cost on that card with only 1% (give or take) cash back instead of using a card with 2% (or even better, the Costco Visa card with 3% cash back).   I have a Platinum card for its other benefits, but I never use it for travel expenses. 

[hubofhockey]

3 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

The $300 Amex Platinum cruise benefit is very expensive— because it means you charged the cruise cost on that card with only 1% (give or take) cash back instead of using a card with 2% (or even better, the Costco Visa card with 3% cash back).   I have a Platinum card for its other benefits, but I never use it for travel expenses. 

The cruise I used it on was $5700 for a 10-day cruise, so the Platinum card use 300 on 5700 made a lot of sense.  I have the Costco Cit Visa.  It just made no sense here.

[Grandma Cruising]

On the other hand if you use air miles to upgrade to business class flights it makes sense to use a credit card that gives you them, which is what we do.

[hubofhockey]

Host Jazzbeau’s point here is very incisive.  The AMEX Platinum cruise benefit can be great, but it also might not be as good as the Costco Citi Card. If you are an executive costco member and book with them, always consider their gift card, 3X cash back and the 2% rewards.  It adds up.  The AMEX $300, alone may not offset that without an agency refundable OBC,  The higher the cruise fare, the less value that $300 has.  You need to book at least a V3 to get the 300.  10 days on the Journey through Panama Canal just worked perfectly for us.  For Japan on X, used the Costco Citi and much better results.  Flights will be a different story.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Yes, Amex Platinum at 5% on flights (no matter where you book them) is the best.  That's the major benefit we get from them – now that Centurion lounge guest access is $50 a shot.

[hubofhockey]

16 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Yes, Amex Platinum at 5% on flights (no matter where you book them) is the best.  That's the major benefit we get from them – now that Centurion lounge guest access is $50 a shot.

 

I sucked it up and paid the $175 to get the three authorized users in my family for the Platinum benefits.  Not sure of the value, but I also get AMEX to give me a retention incentive to offset that ridiculous $695 per year.  I'm using the $20 per month in streaming, the Saks $100 (meh), $200 airlines benefits, TSA Global for 4, and the occasional Uber.  I use the Blue preferred for supermarket shopping and Costco for restaurants, gas, and most other things.  I love lounge access, but wondering how much is that worth, especially now that I use RSW (Ft Myers) as much as BOS (Logan).  The Azamara $300,  in my case, is probably worth $150, what I would have gotten if I had used Costco Citi Visa.  American Express has always been good to me.  Customer service is great and I feel like they always have my backs and I can't say that about the banks.  

[Host Jazzbeau]

To clarify this discussion:  the Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi is a credit card that is offered to Costco members which provides 3% cash back on all travel purchases made through any agency, cruise line, hotel, restaurant, etc.  It has nothing to do with using any particular travel agency.

[hubofhockey]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

To clarify this discussion:  the Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi is a credit card that is offered to Costco members which provides 3% cash back on all travel purchases made through any agency, cruise line, hotel, restaurant, etc.  It has nothing to do with using any particular travel agency.

Didn’t realize this, but no foreign transaction fees for the card either.  

[Los_Pepes]

On 2/23/2023 at 11:54 PM, hubofhockey said:

The cruise I used it on was $5700 for a 10-day cruise, so the Platinum card use 300 on 5700 made a lot of sense.  I have the Costco Cit Visa.  It just made no sense here.

With the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which gives you essentially 4.5% back on all travel purchases, your $5700 cruise is right at the break even point with the Amex $300 credit. My upcoming Azamara cruise was $9100 and I got back $410. We also use a non-Amex agency which gives us 1/2 of their commission as a reduced fare or OBC. 

[hubofhockey]

2 hours ago, Los_Pepes said:

With the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which gives you essentially 4.5% back on all travel purchases, your $5700 cruise is right at the break even point with the Amex $300 credit. My upcoming Azamara cruise was $9100 and I got back $410. We also use a non-Amex agency which gives us 1/2 of their commission as a reduced fare or OBC. 

It's not breakeven point, but closer.  4.5% is $256, but AMEX still give you 1% or $57, so about $100 less than AMEX.    Also, I got $475 back in refundable OBC from my AMEX consortium agency.  Sometimes AMEX works well.  Sometimes it doesn't.  

[Los_Pepes]

47 minutes ago, hubofhockey said:

It's not breakeven point, but closer.  4.5% is $256, but AMEX still give you 1% or $57, so about $100 less than AMEX.    Also, I got $475 back in refundable OBC from my AMEX consortium agency.  Sometimes AMEX works well.  Sometimes it doesn't.  

The key to my equation is the 9% back on every cruise from my TA. Along with my 4.5% from Chase I got back $1,229 on my $9100 cruise 

Edited February 27, 2023 by Los_Pepes