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American Express Explorer $395 Fee 100,000 Bonus Member Rewards Points + $400 Travel Credit

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American Express Explorer $395 Fee 100,000 Bonus Member Rewards Points + $400 Travel Credit
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LApplesmfc on 30/01/2018 - 13:46 americanexpress.com (4840 clicks)
Last edited 07/02/2018 - 09:25 by 1 other user

Amex today increased their sign up bonus from 60,000 bonus points to 100,000.

You will receive 100,000 bonus Membership Rewards points (in the Amex Gateway Program) when you apply online, are approved and spend $3,000 on your Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership. Please note, you must not hold an Amex (apart from bank-issued ones), or have held one in the last 18 months.

Membership Rewards points are well recognised for the great value they have when transferred to airline and hotel programs. For example, each MR point in the Gateway program converts to 0.75 points in the Virgin Australia Velocity, Cathay Pacific or Singapore Airlines Krisflyer programs.

It's especially good value to transfer to Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) at a rate of 2 MR points to 1 SPG point. Once in SPG they can be converted to many airline programs or used to book hotels - some great savings!

Benefits:

$400 Travel Credit every year to use on flights, hotels, experiences or car hire booked online with American Express Travel. You can use this credit to book travel for anyone you choose.

Earn up to 2 Membership Rewards points for every $1 spent on eligible purchases.

Smartphone Screen Insurance for up to $500 for screen repairs to your Smartphone when you pay for your phone or contract with your card.

Travel insurance, buyers advantage, purchase protection, and refund protection.

2 entries per year to the American Express Lounge at Sydney International (Kingsford Smith) Airport T1.

0% p.a. on balance transfers for the first 12 months — A one-off credit plan establishment fee of 1% applies to any balances transferred.

The $400 travel credit more than offsets the $395 annual fee.

PLEASE NOTE:
Referrals now also earning 100k for new card holders……Referrals below: Click show more and look for Explorer card

Referral Links

Business Explorer Card: random (3)

Referrer: 40,000 Reward Points

Centurion Personal Charge Card: random (7)

Referee gets 200,000 MR points. Referrer gets 150,000 MR points.

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closed Comments

      • wazza23 on 31/01/2018 - 18:09
        +1

        Did it few weeks ago - no issues at all

        • MementoMori on 01/02/2018 - 16:07

          I don't suppose anyone knows what would happen if you later dropped the Plat Edge?

          The extra point per $ on supermarket spend probably isn't worth the annual fee. If it caused the Explorer to revert back to the MR Gateway program that's a different story!

        • k2k8k5 on 07/02/2018 - 00:42

          Do you still get to keep both signup bonuses? I'm tempted by the Platinum Edge, and it has the $200 travel credit to offset the $195 fee.

          I don't think i'd go for the platinum edge unless I managed to get travel credits for both cards to effectively make them free.

          Also did you have to call multiple times to get it sorted? I read on other threads that users often had to call 4 or 5 times persistently.

          Thanks

  • hhbb555 on 31/01/2018 - 20:10

    If you ask for a supplementary card, would that card has a different card number than the primary one (and thus both can apply for amex offers separately)?

  • ycon on 31/01/2018 - 21:20
    +1

    If i have a CA (Chartered Accountant) Amex- will this make me exempt from getting this?

  • Uzb9811 on 01/02/2018 - 08:03
    +2

    The referral links are now updated:

    100,000 Membership Rewards points when you apply by 11 April 2018, are approved and spend $3,000 in the first 3 months of Card Membership.

    • kati on 01/02/2018 - 14:10

      Great, thanks for the update. Just to confirm, can a Plat Edge card holder refer a customer to this Explorer card?

      • Uzb9811 on 01/02/2018 - 14:25

        I don’t think so but am happy to be corrected. I think you need the same card you are referring someone to.

        • kati on 01/02/2018 - 16:34

          Thanks. I remember reading you can now refer to other cards in the same 'card family', will try it out and report back.

          This page seems to suggest you can: https://www.pointhacks.com.au/american-express-referral-prog…

          'Amex has opened up the program to allow you to refer a different card from the one you hold is possible now with this program, with referrers able to refer new cardholders to a card within the same card family.

          Here’s a list of the card families (note that not all of these cards are available to new cardholders):

          Qantas: Qantas Discovery, Premium and Ultimate
          Velocity: Velocity Escape, Gold and Platinum
          Membership Rewards: Platinum Edge, Platinum Charge, Centuion, Gold Charge, Platinum Rewards, Platinum Reserve, Green Charge, Rewards Advantage in Membership Rewards Ascent, plus Explorer and Essential in Membership Rewards Gateway
          David Jones: David Jones and David Jones Platinum'

        • Killerbala on 12/02/2018 - 16:25

          Update: It works and my mate ( gold card ) got 30k and refer to my comments for more detail.

      • Killerbala on 02/02/2018 - 15:20

        Just asked my mate who has a gold card ( which is no longer available ) to send me a referral link and while creating his referral link he had only Amex platinum that he can refer too. But Once we clicked on that link he created for Amex platinum there is an option to the right ( other cards ) which had explorer in it. Still not sure if he will get the points though as we just applied and will update after the results.

        • kati on 04/02/2018 - 10:18

          Yes, exactly the same experience with me - having a Plat Edge card, by default it only offered my friend a Plat Edge card - thanks for pointing out the 'other cards', now I can see the explorer link with the 100,000 pts!!

  • krnjoejoe on 01/02/2018 - 21:24

    Does anyone know if having a DJ amex disqualifies me from this offer?

    • coolsteps on 07/02/2018 - 12:35

      no you while still get points

  • Baghern on 01/02/2018 - 22:56

    How does Amex points work, is it a seperate account like Qantas points ie it exists outside of the card itself? Does it expire?

  • isudiro on 02/02/2018 - 07:30

    Anyone tried applying both explorer and ultimate card and get 100,000 points for both?

    • isudiro on 02/02/2018 - 09:00
      +1

      Ok just called them and they said No. You only get from the first one that you applied (or maybe approved not sure)

  • cocomelon on 02/02/2018 - 14:35

    "to get the bonus 100k need to apply online by 9th April 2018" does this date means the application has to approved by the 9th April as well?

  • Killerbala on 02/02/2018 - 15:16

    Thanks OP - Both me and Wifey had applied ( have to find ways to spend $6000 without actually spending $6000 ^^__^^)

    • link90 on 02/02/2018 - 15:38

      easy way to do this is to prepay your utilities and rates

      • JuryWheel on 02/02/2018 - 16:03
        +1

        I’m always surprised this is an issue for people. $6000 on 3 months is pretty low spending even for a frugal ish married couple I would have thought.

        • link90 on 02/02/2018 - 16:10

          It's an issue for me because I'm 100x more inclined to spend money when there's a spending goal….I'm also on OzB everyday so that doesn't help. I just prepay something, wait for the points then cancel the card and the itch to spend goes away.

        • Killerbala on 05/02/2018 - 11:23

          we are renting ( so cant pay using a credit card ) and the utilities(elec & gas ) wont be more than $500 in a quarter. Our car is on novated lease so we use petrol cards to avoid the hassle of reapplying for refund.

          so other things are just groceries and daily needs which wont be more than $1000 per month. Please share if I'm missing something.

        • Uzb9811 on 10/02/2018 - 21:45

          @Killerbala:

          Gift cards are also a way to bring spending forward (e.g Woolworths Wish gift cards).

  • JuryWheel on 02/02/2018 - 16:03

    I assume if my wife and I are going to sign up seperately, we are best to do one, wait till it’s gone through, then use the first one to refer the second to get extra points?

    • JuryWheel on 02/02/2018 - 16:15

      also, are Amex points valued at the same 1c per point as qantas points with people such as Tuvz?

      • lilkid28 on 03/02/2018 - 19:16

        Yes, just apply one first. Then one of you refer the other. You get 230k points bonus, not including the points from minimum spend.

  • donbot on 02/02/2018 - 18:06
    +2

    I love this card. It has made my upcoming honeymoon possible! 3 weeks away, First & Business Class flights, true 5 star accommodation… so good I paid the annual fee again to keep it another year.

    SPG points & Marriott packages are the bomb-diggity.

    • MathNerd on 02/02/2018 - 22:10

      What a success story.

    • Samsungnote10 on 07/02/2018 - 22:29

      how many points did you need? just a rough indication if you dont wnat to reveal personal info :)

      • donbot on 08/02/2018 - 06:42

        Circa 1mil points. About 9months of planning went into 'preparing' this many points in advance of booking 12months out, and timing of AAdvantage 25% bonus points on hotel point conversions certainly helped.

  • MatthewSoul on 03/02/2018 - 00:15

    Has anyone recieved the bonus while holding another amex card?

    • lilkid28 on 03/02/2018 - 19:17

      In recent times, not really. But YMMV.

      • MatthewSoul on 04/02/2018 - 01:13

        Cancelled my explorer without it even hitting my mailbox lol…someday maybe i will get it. im good with essential atm lols.

  • Craze on 04/02/2018 - 21:12

    Will I still be eligible if I have a corporate AMEX (i.e. company credit card but under my name)?

    Also possibly a silly question- the $395 annual fee doesn't count towards the $3k spend criteria, correct?

    • coolsteps on 05/02/2018 - 01:07

      i think it depends weather you are a director or own the business then you might not get the bonus 100k but if you are just an employee then the business account isnt in your name thus you should get the 100k and i dont think the annual fee counts as you dont earn points by pay it. best to ask amex by calling them though

      • Craze on 06/02/2018 - 21:06

        Rang AMEX and they confirmed that I'm still eligible as corporate AMEX is treated differently altogether- glad I didn't apply for Essentials during Xmas!

  • lilkid28 on 05/02/2018 - 20:50
    +2

    Best American Express Card to sign up as your first card, considering the bonus points offered.

    The annual fee of $395 is (almost) offset by the $400 travel credit/

    With an Amex card, you can redeem the multiple cashback offers (statement credit offers) throughout the year.

    You also get to have up to 4 free supplementary cardholders, and each cardholder can claim the cashback also. So if you would have spend on those shops, you save more money and in my opinion, you actually 'earn' more after getting all these cashbacks.

    For the 100,000 (or slightly more) Membership Rewards points, you can:

    1) Convert 106,667 MR points to 80,000 points and redeem for a return flight from Melbourne to Hong Kong in Cathay Pacific Business Class , or Sydney to Tokyo in Japan Airlines Business Class, or so much more.
    2) At least $700 Woolies/Coles/Myer/David Jones/etc Gift cards. (13500 pts for $100). This makes your first year holding this card better than FREE.

    Also as some say, you could also accumulate to 180,000 MR points, and convert to 90,000 SPG Points, and then to 270,000 Marriott Points, and redeem for more Airline Miles and a 7 night Marriott Hotel Stay.

    This card is well worth it even if you want to hold it just for 1 year. My recommendation is to get this card for the first year, if you feel its good value, you can keep it after. If not you can cancel it, or downgrade to one of the free Amex cards.

    • CI on 16/02/2018 - 23:54

      How do you convention Marriott points for airline miles ?

      • lilkid28 on 17/02/2018 - 01:10

        You can search the web for Marriott Travel Packages for more information

    • k2k8k5 on 14/03/2018 - 19:26

      hey mate, i just had a question regarding the travel credit and lounge access.

      Must you be a Amex cardholder at the time of your travel or lounge access? E.g. if I book a flight for end of the year using travel credit, but cancel it tomorrow:

      1) Will my flight tickets still be valid?

      2) Can I access the lounge at the end of the year? E.g. is it like those Qantas lounge passes that are issued? Or do you actually have to present your card to the lounge. In which case I'm guessing i won't be able to get to the lounge.

      Cheers

      • daft009 on 14/03/2018 - 19:50

        Yes you need to show your card at the lounge to gain entry to the amex lounge

        • k2k8k5 on 14/03/2018 - 22:20

          Cheers, looks like i'll have to sacrifice the lounge access then. good to know i can still make use of the travel credit.

      • lilkid28 on 14/03/2018 - 22:06

        1) Yes

        2) No, you need the card.

        • k2k8k5 on 14/03/2018 - 22:20

          Cheers, looks like i'll have to sacrifice the lounge access then. good to know i can still make use of the travel credit.

  • Jared17 on 06/02/2018 - 05:07

    Whenever this offer comes up again, I always feel like hitting myself for signing up for the essential card first. Stupid stupid move.

  • langford28 on 06/02/2018 - 10:41

    sorry if this has been asked already, difficult to go through all the comments :(
    I'm looking to get this for the points but don't see myself using it year on year with the annual fee charge (the travel credit doesn't appeal to me)
    so after getting the card, is there a minimum term restriction to when you can cancel the card ? I'm looking at once I get the bonus points use it up, I'll cancel the card.

    thanks in advance

    • coolsteps on 07/02/2018 - 11:31

      you can cancel anytime. best use your travel credit and 100k points before doing so. also best ask them if they can downgrade it to the essentials free card.

      I'm not sure if they allow product downgrade over the phone with out having to make a new application any longer? best call and ask.

      • langford28 on 07/02/2018 - 11:58

        thanks, if i can cancel anytime why would i downgrade may i ask?

        • lilkid28 on 08/02/2018 - 10:36

          Because with an Amex card, you will still be eligible for Amex statement credit offers.

  • k2k8k5 on 06/02/2018 - 11:20

    Anyone know what type of fares you get with Amex Travel? I'm trying to compare how useful the $400 credit is by looking up flights then seeing what the cash cost if booked directly with the airline.

    But they only show the standard Economy, Premium, Business classes.

    I want to know if say on Qantas economy, do they give you the Sale fare (no seat selection) or Saver / Flex fares (seat selection allowed).

    I'm assuming its just the basic sale fare? Since the prices on both Qantas website and Amex for the same route on the same day were quite similar?

    Cheers

  • Baghern on 06/02/2018 - 11:30

    Going on a tanget here…

    But I wonder/curious to know if anyone has gone all the way with the Platinum Business Card for personal use/cash rebate

    https://www.ausbt.com.au/amex-platinum-business-card-packs-1…

    $1,200 fee, 150,000 points, Ascent Program (better point transfers)… but 99 supplementary cards…

    A lot of cash rebating if you can figure out how to maximise it… there is only so much you can buy/need

  • amiski on 06/02/2018 - 23:52

    If I add someone as a supplementary card holder - will all their spendings be counted towards the $3000 in 3 months?

  • Samsungnote10 on 07/02/2018 - 22:26

    love this card, ive had it for 12 months, and want to cancel so that I can wait the exclusion period and sing up again,

    but the card is sooooo damn good,
    and I dont have a partner who can apply for me :(

    • tanksinatra on 09/02/2018 - 12:42

      Yeah that exclusion period is rough. Especially when they extended/backdated the exclusion period to include me :'(

  • Sydboyz on 09/02/2018 - 17:10

    My card was approved and added my wife as secondary.
    Would she be able apply on her own to get the 100k?

    • daft009 on 14/02/2018 - 12:25
      +1

      yes, supp cards don't count.
      refer her and get her to apply, you get 30k for referral and she gets the 100k bonus if she meets the spending

      • Sydboyz on 20/02/2018 - 19:53

        Thx

  • yoyo6 on 09/02/2018 - 21:38
    +1

    Yes, I have done this back and forth with my husband every 18 months.

  • hhbb555 on 11/02/2018 - 20:47

    I'd suggest that everyone that has an amex card before to call the call centre to check if you're eligible to get the bonus points or not. My wife got a cancellation letter on 2016, but turns out they never closed the account, until today, after she called them to check…

  • Baghern on 12/02/2018 - 10:41

    hmm just got my card with a letter.

    I expected a big bulky welcome pack.

    Is this the norm?

  • Baghern on 14/02/2018 - 21:55

    Can't find a detailed description of what the $3000 spend entails/allows, anyone got a link, ie bpay allowed? Council bills 0.5points, but does it contribute to full spend?

    • daft009 on 14/02/2018 - 23:12

      Stay away from bpay, rest should be fine to meet the minimum.

      • sugardumpling on 08/03/2018 - 15:50

        Hi there, I signed up on Friday and got my card on Tuesday. Now I'd like to start spending but I'm unsure. Just had a chat online with AMEX Team and they mentioned that Opal/buying Woolies gift cards are not considered eligible transactions. Can someone please enlighten me? what kind of transactions that are eligible to get the 100k bonus point? Thank yoU!

        • daft009 on 08/03/2018 - 18:52
          +1

          ive bought woolies gift cards and that will be fine.
          opal should be fine too, or just recharge at woolies

        • Baghern on 09/03/2018 - 11:04

          not sure how they can check if its opal or gift cards.

          especially if you buy other items.

          ie bought itune card at woolies, added in a small item… just appears as officeworks on statement

        • sugardumpling on 13/03/2018 - 20:07

          @Baghern: Hi I was buying woolworths giftcard from cashrewards and it showed up on my Amex as 'EVERYDAY GIFT CARD 6673 BELLA VISTA' so I am not sure if this is an eligible transaction or not?

          On a side note, I referred my friend to join, she signed up yesterday and today I got the bonus points already. How awesome they are! :)

        • daft009 on 13/03/2018 - 21:14

          @sugardumpling:
          Yes it'll be eligible

  • teeshiu on 15/02/2018 - 10:43

    do they charge you the annual fee straight away? still deciding whether to get the explorer card or the qantas card. I've been using qantas frequent flyer for quite a while and already have some points stacked. any suggestions?

    • daft009 on 15/02/2018 - 10:47

      imho, unless you are qantas gold or above its very hard to redeem award seats.

      yes, pretty much straight away and then you also get your travel credit to use at the same time.

      • teeshiu on 15/02/2018 - 10:55

        in that case I will probably try out the explorer card since i'm not a frequent flyer.

        is there any ways that you can waive the fee? thanks

        • daft009 on 15/02/2018 - 11:07

          no, but you can use the $400 travel credit to book any family/friends flights if you don't fly at least once a year

        • JuryWheel on 15/02/2018 - 11:14

          @daft009:

          New to amex, how do i actually use the credit……any airline, any seat?

        • daft009 on 15/02/2018 - 11:17

          @cjb:

          login to your account and goto the travel tab.
          yes most full service airlines (no tiger, jetstar etc)

          you can use your amex without surcharge on there and you get 1 bonus point per dollar as well.

          I've compared some Singapore air, qantas & virgin flights all were the same exact price as the airline's own pricing down to the cent. not sure what happens during sales etc though

  • imaxsameer on 16/02/2018 - 18:54

    How do I refer someone? I am a David Jones Platinum Amex holder and want to refer another family member.

    • daft009 on 16/02/2018 - 18:56

      login to your account and you should see a banner near the points area, refer a friend etc

  • gwsampso on 19/02/2018 - 08:46
    +1

    Thanks signed up & approved - I need to purchase flights for 2, return flights to London so thought it was an easy way to get the spend requirement plus the included travel insurance made sense.

    Enjoy the referral points somebody

  • yoyo6 on 20/02/2018 - 09:33

    Be very careful with the insurance, in my experience it wasn't very good and didn't cover anyone but the primary cardholder. Use the ANZ black card for much better insurance and just buy some wish cards with the amex to get your $3000 points. Or you can just pay $500 on the ANZ (assuming you have one and if you don't you should get it quick!) and put the rest on your amex that is what I just did with a flight I purchased.

  • Baghern on 23/02/2018 - 15:32

    Anyone know when you get charged the fee, I havent received mine yet… but the travel credit is available

    Also is there a list if exclusions for the $3000 spend like Bpay? I can't find anything anywhere.

    1 more thing was there a welcome pack with say a terms and conditions booklet?

    I only received a welcome letter and the card

    • daft009 on 23/02/2018 - 16:08

      i would stay away from bpay just to be safe.
      annual fee won't be far behind if you have your TC now.

      • Baghern on 23/02/2018 - 18:51

        k, thanks

  • Craze on 24/02/2018 - 10:19

    Signed up 2 weeks ago and received my card within a week.

    I looked through the thread but don't think this was covered- does bills and ATO payment count towards the min spend criteria?

  • McBanny on 27/02/2018 - 01:55

    Used to own Amex Qantas Ultimate, cancelled couple month ago.

    Explorers is on different program, any chance I will be able to get bonus points if I apply? Or don't even think about it?

    With banks getting rid of Amex it's not worth it to earn points on them anymore… :(

    By the way, if I use referal code, will the referee still get referral points even I'm not eligible for bonus sign up points?

    • daft009 on 27/02/2018 - 06:29

      No you will not get bonus points.
      Yes referrer will still get bonus points

  • Craze on 28/02/2018 - 10:08

    I might be struggling to hit the minimum spend- can't use AMEX to pay council rate and Vicroads rego…. any other suggestions fellow OzB mates?

    • daft009 on 28/02/2018 - 10:09

      for council tried postbillpay?

      • Craze on 28/02/2018 - 11:49

        Yeap didn't work either: only accepts Visa and Mastercard!

        • daft009 on 28/02/2018 - 11:51

          select paypal!

        • Craze on 01/03/2018 - 18:37

          @daft009:

          No Paypal option :(

  • lonewolf on 28/02/2018 - 11:21

    A couple of queries as the Westpac Black Altitude Amex i have is going :(. The options Westpac have supplied dont seem that great, what do you guys think of them? So I am probably looking around for a new Amex. I have never had a Amex direct issued card before and i see so many types of deals and points bonuses as well as different types of amex cards

    My partner has a CPA Amex card (does that still count as amex direct issued) and also can she refer me to this card? or if it doesnt count as a amex issued card, then can she sign up onto this card and get bonus points also?

    I noticed this card has 2 free amex lounges, is that all it has. The qantas equivalent seems to have 2 free amex lounges as well as 2 free Qantas club lounge passes? Is that right? So this card doesnt have priority pass or anything else like that?

    If I wanted to use the Ascent points reward system, Can i still get this card first and then the Plat Edge card and link them still?

    • daft009 on 28/02/2018 - 11:38
      +1

      yes CPA amex card is directly issued.
      try her referral link and see if it gives you the option to apply for this card on her referral link page.

      the explorer has no priority pass. if you need that then the plantinum (not edge) with $1200 annual fee is the one to get or get your partner to get that one with CPA reduced annual fee

      the linking still seems to work however it does take a few phone calls.
      I linked back in March 2017 and it took me 5 attempts
      I have the explorer and the platinum edge

      • lonewolf on 28/02/2018 - 12:18

        Cool thanks for the information. I have priority pass lounges access from a couple of other non amex cards, so i might just stick with them for the priority pass part. And use the Amex cards for the amex lounges.
        She has a CPA Amex Gold card, hopefully she can still refer me to this card.

        So with the linking, does it matter which card i get first? As I wanted to get this card first for the bonus points…

        • daft009 on 28/02/2018 - 12:20

          No, order is not important

  • lonewolf on 28/02/2018 - 12:19

    How come everyone keeps talking about the ANZ black cards, are they a special card compared to the other banks cards? I am currently on the Westpac Black Altitude Mastercard, i dont have to pay annual fee due to a home loan, is it worth still changing to the ANZ, or is it only because the ANZ seems to have better sign on bonuses right now in comparison to the other banks?

    • yoyo6 on 02/03/2018 - 12:16
      +2

      ANZ has $0 annual fee for the first year and earns one Qantas point per dollar spent. I have the altitude black also but I no longer use it because the effective earn rate is only .625 points per dollar for Virgin and .5 per dollar for Singapore airlines. Keep it if it is free because the travel insurance is good. You should sign up for the ANZ and also an amex card. Get the explorer if you need it mostly for general spend or the platinum edge if you will be using it mostly for supermarkets and petrol.

      • lonewolf on 02/03/2018 - 12:29

        oh, 1 : 1 from anz to qantas is pretty good, i didnt realise it had that, only think is since i get the altitude black for free, i probably cant keep the ANZ past the first free year, otherwise its quite pricey isnt it? So if i was going to cancel it after the first year, can i move all my points out before or do i have to use the points up before cancelling?

  • yoyo6 on 02/03/2018 - 12:46
    +1

    with anz, the points go directly to qantas so you can close it an any time. With amex, you will need to move the points before cancelling.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2018 - 15:27

      Hm that does sound very easy. Maybe I should get one

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