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Hey, everyone, and welcome back to Smart with Points.

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I'm Jack, and today I'm coming at you with what might be the most delicious episode we've done in a while because we're talking about the American Express Platinum card's four hundred pound dining credit.

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And yes, I promise this is relevant to your points strategy, not just an excuse for me to talk about fancy meals, though there will be some of that too.

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Now, before we dive into the Wagyu and Sunday roasts, I need to mention that if you've been on the fence about getting the Platinum card from American Express, you've literally got until tomorrow night to decide.

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The enhanced welcome bonus of seventy-five thousand Membership Rewards points, which transfer one-to-one to Avios, plus two hundred and fifty pounds in travel credit, ends on the thirteenth of January, twenty twenty-six.

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That's tomorrow. After that, it drops back to the standard fifty thousand points with no travel credit. So, you know, no pressure or anything. Right.

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Let's talk about this dining credit because I'll be completely honest with you, when I first got my Amex Platinum, the dining credit felt like a nice-to-have rather than a must-use benefit.

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I was much more excited about the lounge access and the elite status perks.

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But after actually putting it to work over the past year, I've come to see it as one of the genuinely valuable perks that helps justify that six hundred and fifty pound annual fee. Let me explain how it works.

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You get two hundred pounds per year for UK restaurants and two hundred pounds per year for international restaurants, so that's four hundred pounds total. Each allocation is split into two halves.

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You get one hundred pounds for January to June and another one hundred pounds for July to December. The credit is cumulative, which means you don't need to blow it all in one massive meal.

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You can spread it across multiple visits, which is how I've found it most useful. Now, here's the crucial bit that trips people up. This is an opt-in benefit.

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You need to register for both the UK and international offers separately in the Offers section of your Amex app or online account.

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If you miss this step, you won't receive any cashback, no matter how many eligible restaurants you visit. So please, if you get the card, do this immediately.

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Don't be that person who complains about not getting the credit because you forgot to press a button.

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There are over two thousand participating restaurants across twenty countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, Thailand, Singapore, Australia, the US, and more. It's quite an extensive list.

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Rather than just explaining this benefit theoretically, let me share how I've actually used it because I think real examples are way more useful than just reading terms and conditions at you.

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One of my favorite uses was a Sunday roast at The Ivy in Guildford, Surrey.

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Now, The Ivy restaurants across the UK are participating venues for the UK credit, which makes them an accessible option whether you're in London or elsewhere around the country.

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And let me tell you, there's something particularly satisfying about having what would otherwise be a fairly pricey Sunday lunch effectively subsidized by a credit you might have otherwise forgotten about.

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The experience reminded me that the dining credit doesn't need to be saved for some mythical special occasion in the distant future. Sometimes the best use is simply making an ordinary weekend feel a bit more special.

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You know, treating yourself to that nice roast you've been eyeing without feeling guilty about the price tag. For the international credit, I used a chunk of it on a Wagyu tasting menu whilst visiting Tokyo.

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Japan is one of the participating countries, and there are some genuinely excellent restaurants on the list there.

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If you're planning any travel to Asia in twenty twenty-six, it's absolutely worth checking what's available in your destination before you go.

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The beauty of using the credit abroad is that it effectively becomes a travel perk, subsidizing what would otherwise be a splurge meal that you might talk yourself out of.

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When you know you've got one hundred pounds of credit to use, you're more likely to treat yourself to something memorable. And honestly, isn't that what travel should be about?

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Thailand is also a participating country, and I'm planning to use another allocation of the credit there on an upcoming trip to Bangkok.

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The city has some fantastic dining options, and knowing I've got credit to burn makes the trip feel even more worthwhile. I'll report back on that one in a future episode.

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So why does this matter for the card's overall value proposition? Well, the Amex Platinum has a six hundred and fifty pound annual fee, which understandably puts many people off. It's not a small amount of money.

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But when you factor in four hundred pounds of dining credit that you'll genuinely use, you're effectively paying two hundred and fifty pounds for everything else the card offers. And what's everything else?

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You get Priority Pass lounge access worldwide with pre-booking credits for UK lounges. You get Hilton Gold status, which comes with complimentary breakfast and room upgrades. You get Marriott Gold status.

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You get Radisson Premium status. There's comprehensive travel insurance included. You get two hundred pounds per year in Amex travel credit.

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You get up to four hundred pounds per year in that dining credit we've been talking about. And you get access to various Amex offers throughout the year.

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That's before we even get to the welcome bonus, which is currently sitting at an enhanced seventy-five thousand Membership Rewards points plus two hundred and fifty pounds in travel credit.

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Remember, those Membership Rewards points transfer one to one to Avios, so that's seventy-five thousand Avios right there. Now, here's that urgency I mentioned earlier.

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The enhanced Amex Platinum offer ends tomorrow night. After the thirteenth of January, twenty twenty-six, the bonus drops back to the standard fifty thousand points with no travel credit.

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That's a difference of twenty-five thousand points and two hundred and fifty pounds. Not insignificant. The Amex Gold offer also ends tomorrow, currently at forty thousand points with the first year free.

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This is a great starting point if the Platinum's six hundred and fifty pound fee feels too steep, though you won't get the dining credit perk with the Gold. So who should consider the Platinum?

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I'd say the card makes most sense if you travel internationally several times per year to use the lounge access and insurance, if you stay at Hilton or Marriott hotels to benefit from the complimentary elite status,

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if you dine out regularly at higher end restaurants to maximize the dining credit, and if you want a substantial points boost to kickstart your twenty twenty-six travel plans. One important note,

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if you hold British Airways American Express cards, you can still qualify for the Platinum welcome bonus.

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It's only previous holders of membership rewards earning cards like Platinum, Gold, or Amex Rewards who are excluded from the welcome bonus.

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If you do decide to get the card, here are my tips for maximizing the dining credit. First, register immediately. Don't wait until you're about to dine.

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Add both offers, UK and international, to your card as soon as you're approved. Second, check the restaurant list before booking. Not every restaurant participates, so verify before you go.

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There's nothing worse than having a lovely meal and then realizing it doesn't count. Third, plan around your travels. If you're visiting a participating country, check what's available in advance.

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I actually keep a little note on my phone of participating restaurants in cities I'm planning to visit. Fourth, don't let it expire. The credit doesn't roll over between half years, so use it or lose it.

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If you're coming up to the end of June or the end of December and you haven't used your allocation, book something. And finally, remember it's cumulative.

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You can use the credit across multiple smaller meals rather than one big blowout. Sometimes three nice dinners are better than one extremely fancy one. Now, let me be clear about something.

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The Amex Platinum isn't for everyone. The six hundred and fifty pound annual fee is substantial, and you need to be really honest with yourself about whether you'll actually use the benefits.

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There's no point getting the card for the welcome bonus if you're going to feel buyer's remorse about the fee. But if you travel regularly and dine out with any frequency, the maths can work strongly in your favor.

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The dining credit has become one of my favorite perks precisely because it's so tangible. Unlike lounge access, which requires being at an airport or insurance, which you hope never to actually use,

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the dining credit delivers immediate visible value every time you use it. You can literally taste the benefit, if you'll forgive the pun.

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If you're considering the card, tomorrow is your last chance to get the enhanced offer.

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Those seventy-five thousand points alone are worth around three hundred and seventy-five pounds if transferred to Avios at a conservative zero point five pence valuation, and considerably more if you redeem them well.

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Add the two hundred and fifty pound travel credit and the dining credits, and you're looking at close to one thousand pounds of value before you even start using the ongoing benefits like lounge access and elite status.

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For those looking at business credit card options, the Amex Business Platinum also offers dining credit as part of its benefits package. It's worth considering alongside the personal card depending on your circumstances.

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You can find links to both cards in the show notes. All right, that's it for today's episode. I hope this has been helpful in thinking through whether the Amex Platinum makes sense for you.

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And if you already have it, maybe I've inspired you to actually use that dining credit instead of letting it expire.

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If you enjoyed this episode, please do subscribe to Smart with Points on all major podcast platforms, or head over to our website at smartwithpoints.co.uk.

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We've got new episodes every week covering everything from award flight sweet spots to credit card strategies and travel tips. Thanks so much for listening and happy dining. Looking for the best award flights?

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Use awardtravelfinder.com to search availability across Qatar Airways, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and more. Try it for free with our link in the show notes.