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UPDATE: Some or All of the offer(s) mentioned in this post have now expired
Historically Hilton has had its co-branded credit cards issued by both Citi and American Express but, towards the end of 2017, we found out that Hilton was ending its relationship with Citi and moving all of its credit card business over to Amex.
Alongside that announcement came news that Amex would be overhauling the Hilton credit cards it offers and issuing a new, premium, Hilton American Express card – the Aspire card.
We’ve known for a while what the new Amex Hilton credit card line up will look like and what the benefits of each card will be but, until now, we haven’t had any insight into what the welcome bonuses would be like (and let’s face it…that’s what people care about most!) – now we know.
The new American Express Hilton co-branded cards are being released today (18 January) and Doctor of Credit has noted that the welcome bonuses have now being revealed.
Here’s a rundown of what we know so far.
Hilton Honors American Express Card – Annual Fee $0
Welcome Bonus (Offer Expired):
- 50,000 Hilton Honors Points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of card membership
Card Benefits:
- 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points at hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- 5X Hilton Honors Bonus Points at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. restaurants, and U.S. gas stations
- 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Silver status; Earn Gold status after spending $20,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- No foreign transaction fees
The fact that this card comes with no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees is a huge positive in my book (I’ve written about this here) and is a nice upgrade from the card it replaces.
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card – Annual Fee $95 (Was Ascend Card)
Welcome Bonus (Offer Expired):
- 75,000 Hilton Honors Points after spending $2,000 in the first 3 months of card membership
- An additional 25,000 Hilton Honors Points after spending a further $1,000 within the first 6 months of card membership.
Card Benefits:
- 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points at hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. restaurants, and U.S. gas stations
- 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status; Earn Diamond status after spending $40,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort in the Hilton portfolio after spending $15,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- 10 free Priority Pass™ Lounge passes
- No foreign transaction fees
This is the credit card that is taking the place of the Surpass credit card so holders of that card should be receiving this in the mail any day now (if it hasn’t already arrived).
Note: Amex has confirmed that this is not considered to be a new product so, if you’ve had the Surpass card in the past, you’re probably not eligible to receive a welcome bonus again.
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card – Annual Fee $450
Welcome Bonus (Offer Expired):
- 100,000 Hilton Honors Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of card membership
Card Benefits:
- 14X Hilton Honors Bonus Points at hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies and at U.S. restaurants
- 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on other purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Diamond status
- One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort in the Hilton portfolio with your new Card and each year of Card Membership
- A second Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort in the Hilton portfolio after spending $60,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- Unlimited Priority Pass™Lounge passes to ease the airport experience
- $250 Airline incidental fee statement credit
- $250 Hilton resort statement credit
- $100 on-property credit at Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts and Conrad Hotels & Resorts when booking the exclusive Aspire Card package
- Access to 24/7 American Express concierge
- No foreign transaction fees
This is Amex’s first foray into the realm of premium hotel cards and, considering it comes with Hilton Diamond status and a host of other tempting benefits, I expect it to be the card that generates the most interest.
Hilton Honors American Express Business Card – Annual Fee $95
Welcome Bonus(Offer Expired):
- 75,000 Hilton Honors Points after spending $2,000 in the first 3 months of card membership
- An additional 25,000 Hilton Honors Points after spending a further $1,000 within the first 6 months of card membership.
Card Benefits:
- 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points at hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on U.S. gas stations, wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and U.S. purchases for shipping
- 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on U.S. restaurants, flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, and car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies
- 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status; Earn Diamond status after spending $40,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort in the Hilton portfolio after spending $15,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- A second Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort in the Hilton portfolio after spending $60,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year
- 10 free Priority Pass™Lounge passes to ease the airport experience and get work done more easily and comfortably while waiting for a flight
- No foreign transaction fees
Considering this card has the same annual fee as the new Amex Hilton Surpass card this may be the better option (if basing your decision purely on the headline benefits)….but I’ll look into this further in a future post.
Bottom Line
The surprise here appears to be how uninspiring the welcome bonus is for the new high-end Aspire credit card.
When Chase launched the Sapphire Reserve credit card (which costs the same as the Aspire card) it blew everyone away with its welcome bonus of 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points while the offer of 100,000 Hilton Honors points (worth a lot less than Ultimate Rewards points) just feels bland.
I get that the Aspire Card should “sell itself” thanks to all the benefits it offers but I was still expecting more from Amex if just to make a big splash.
As for the other cards….I’m not sure I’m convinced of the value the two mid-level cards offer for the $95 annual fee they charge but, if you spend a lot of time at Hilton properties, I can see they may have some attraction. The 100,000 point welcome bonuses on these cards looks easy enough to hit so at least you know you’ll get at least one free night at an aspirational Hilton property somewhere in the world.
As a non-regular at Hilton properties I still think the basic card is my favorite.
What do you guys think of what we’ve seen so far?
