Amex Platinum Cardholders, Listen Up: 2-for-1 Domestic Tix Ends

One of the perks of carrying the American Express Platinum Card is the ability to buy two tickets for (roughly) the price of one for domestic flights on major US carriers. Cardholders can purchase up to eight ticket pairs a year under the "Domestic Companion Airfare Program" as long as they fly round trip together with a companion on the same itinerary.   

I think the program should be called the "Companion Domestic Airfare Program," since the "domestic" refers to the kind of airline ticket and is not a descriptor of the word "companion"; two people related or not, living together or not, can take advantage of the 2-for-1 offer.

Be that as it may, here's the important news: Amex is quietly discontinuing that program as of Nov. 15, 2008, though you may purchase future reservations beyond that date as long as you reserve by mid-November.

I will tell you that although I've carried a platinum Amex card for years, I didn't even know about the twofer program until a few months ago when a friend mentioned it to me.  I pay the pricey $300+ annual fee for the silver card because I value the access it provides to Northwest, Continental, American, and Delta airport lounges when I fly those airlines.  To join each of those airlines' lounge programs separately would cost more than $1,200 a year.

After learning about the twofer program, I tried three times to take advantage of it; I succeeded once. The downside: You must book weeks in advance, and there's no guarantee there will be seats available under the program.  I tried to buy two tickets for travel between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Boston more than six weeks ahead of time and was told no tickets by any routing were available.  And Amex also extracts a fee for booking each ticket pair.

However, I recently succeeded in buying two tickets between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Chicago through Amex.  The tickets cost me about $100 more than if I'd purchased them individually through the usual channels, but even so, I saved a couple of hundred dollars. 

My guess is that the program was a terrible hassle for Amex.  I'm sure I wasn't the only one who got cranky with telephone agents when I first called and learned I had to book weeks ahead and, even then, I couldn't be sure I could be accommodated.  The airlines only made a certain number of tickets available to Amex for this program, and I'm betting inventory was a constant headache.

Bottom line: If you're an Amex "member" with a platinum card and you know two of you want to travel together within the US in the coming months, make your move now to try to secure tickets before Nov. 15th when this particular card benefit evaporates.