Amex Adds New Transfer Partner, But Redemptions Come With Hidden Costs

The American Express Membership Rewards program has added Leading Hotels of the World's Leaders Club loyalty program as a new transfer partner. This means that Amex points can be transferred to the Leaders Club account at a ratio of 4:1, with redemption rates starting below 3,000 points per night.

However, there is a catch - redemptions through Leaders Club require paying any applicable taxes and fees, which may not be immediately clear. To find out what these costs are, users can select the standard paid rate for their stay instead of the redemption rate.

This can be done by searching for paid stays on the Leading Hotels of the World website and selecting the best available or standard rate. The taxes and fees will then be displayed along with the room rate.

It's worth noting that the amount of taxes and fees varies significantly across LHW properties, even within the same city. For example, some hotels bundle city tax into their room rate, while others charge it as a separate item.

The occupancy tax in New York City is particularly high, ranging from 13% to 15% of the standard rate. On the other hand, some resorts like Bairro Alto Hotel in Lisbon do not charge any additional taxes or fees.