It looks like Amex updated their Gold card back in February, and I have been getting spammed with advertisements for it every time I watch a video on YouTube. All those ads seemed to have worked on me, apparently, as I am now considering applying for this card.
Some of the perks that look good to me:
- 120,000 points for signing up and spending ¥1M in six months
- 3% rewards at target shops (Amazon, Yodobashi, JAL, Uber Eats, and Apple are the ones I would use)
- ¥10,000 travel credit on Amex's travel site
- Free night stay at a domestic hotel (requires ¥2M spend in a year)
- Priority pass membership (only two free visits per year, and $35 USD per visit thereafter. It looks like family card holders also get their own priority pass membership + 2 visits).
- Free baggage delivery service between home and the airport
- Travel insurance, purchase insurance, smartphone inurance
- 20% cash back when refilling a starbucks card (up to ¥5,000/year)
- Some discounts on dining (not sure if we would actually use these… but could be nice depending on which restaurants in our area apply)
- Fancy metal card (yes I am that shallow)
It seems like it would be pretty easy to recoup the ¥39,600 fee in a year, especially with ¥2M spend and qualifying for the free night.
What do people think of this updated offering from Amex? Are there other cards that I should be considering?
And a couple of questions I had about Amex cards in Japan:
- Does Amex Japan have English-speaking customer support?
- Do they charge a foreign transaction fee if you use the card abroad?
by Guregory