The Starwood Preferred Guest American Express……..Yes, I have this American Express as well and have had this one for a very long time. It is the American Express that I consistently take out of my wallet when making a purchase where the vendor takes American Express but…..
-the purchase is not at a supermarket or gas station because instead at supermarkets and gas stations, I am using my American Express Premier Rewards Gold Card and now my Amex Everyday Preferred Card.
-the purchase is not for a big ticket item (big ticket items for me would be electronics, event tickets, etc), or I am purchasing from a “non-traditional” vendor because instead I am using my American Express Platinum card.
-the purchase is not for a restaurant, parking, or travel because instead I am using my Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.
-the purchase is not one that qualifies as a the Chase Freedom Card quarterly bonus category because instead I am using my Chase Freedom Card.
So just as an example, I use this card when buying clothes! You can imagine with 3 growing kids, how often their wardrobes need to be updated, not to mention the occasional (ok maybe not so occasional) treat for myself…….
In any event, I use my Starwood American Express card frequently because I love earning Starwood points, BECAUSE I LOVE STARWOOD RESORTS!!!! The number of Starwood Resorts that we have stayed at for free over the years is countless.
Each time I use my Starwood American Express card, I earn one Starpoint per dollar spent. Using the card when staying at a Starwood Resort (which I always do—at a Starwood Resort, my Starwood American Express trumps my Chase Sapphire Preferred Card), I earn 2 Starpoints per dollar spent.
You may be wondering why I use this card as often as I do in that it merely has a 1 to 1 ratio on most purchases. The answer is simple. I personally think that Starwood has amazing redemption options—many free night awards require what I believe to be very little Starpoints. For example, the Snowmass Westin that we stayed at required only 12,000 Starpoints per night. And, wait, I am forgetting the best part. Almost every time you book a room at a Starwood resort, if you book four nights, the 5th night is free. So our five night stay in Colorado, cost us 48,000 Starpoints for 5 nights or just 9,600 Starpoints per night. WOW!!!!
You can apply here: Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express Application