American Express Membership Rewards: Airline and Hotel Points Transfer Bonuses, Up to 40%

If you have collected a nice stash of Membership Rewards (MR) points from American Express, you may want to log into your account and check out the many new transfer bonuses available to their airline and hotel partners. Waiting for one of these limited-time transfer promotions is a good way to maximize the value of your AmEx MR points. Note that these transfers are not reversible. Some offers expire September 30th, while others are marked October 31st.

Airlines

• British Airways: 40% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,400 Avios.
• Hawaiian Airlines: 25% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,300 Virgin points.
• Aer Lingus: 40% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,400 Avios.
• Iberia: 40% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,400 Avios.
• Air Canada: 20% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,200 Aeroplan points.
• Aeromexico: 25% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 2,000 Premier points.
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue: 25% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,250 Flying Blue miles.
• Avianca / Lifemiles: 15% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,150 LifeMiles.
• Virgin Atlantic: 30% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,300 Virgin points.
• Qantas: 30% Bonus. 500 MR points = 600 Qantas points.

Hotels

• Hilton Honors: 30% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 2,600 Hilton points.
• Marriott Bonvoy: 30% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,300 Bonvoy points.

Airlines that are currently NOT offering a transfer bonus include Delta, ANA, Emirates, Etihad, and Singapore Airlines. Choice hotels are also not offering any bonuses at this time.

I’m not a big traveler these days, so I don’t have any of the Gold or Platinum cards right now, even though they are offering big bonuses. I do keep one consumer AmEx and one business AmEx that earns Membership Rewards points, both with no annual fee.

• The Amex EveryDay Card doesn’t see a lot of use, but it keeps my Membership Rewards points active with no annual fee and helps qualify for various Amazon promotions.
• The Blue Business Plus from American Express does see a lot of action as my primary small business card, as it earns 2X Membership Rewards points on all purchases on up to $50,000/year with no annual fee. I can always transfer to Delta Skymiles which at least knock off 1 cent per mile off a Delta ticket, which means a MR points is at least worth 1 cent minimum for my situation. Too bad Delta is not participating this time.