After AXIS ATLAS devaluation vs Amex platinum travel

[PoorviS]

After axis Atlas devaluation in April, is it still a better option then AMEX platinum travel card?
( 1-2 international trips in a year , 2-3 domestic flight visits , living in gurgaon , family of 2)
*. Want a card for better travel experiences (primarily hotel / flights)
* Good reward points for accor , marriott membership conversion .
* Easy annual fee waive offs

@admin please tag someone who is an expert in this.

@drsel please advice.
@ManojGowda please advice

 

[Riya Sharma]

what are your annual spends?

 

[drsel]

Atlas even after devaluation is better

 

[drsel]

Axis Magnus Burgundy, HDFC Infinia and Axis Atlas are the top 3 cards in India today even after all the devaluations

 

[sachbs]

For your spend pattern, axis still makes sense. If you have enough income and spends, maybe you can club both the cards to meet the spend threshold and get the best of both the cards. If you can cover 4 Lakhs with Plat travel, you can get one free taj accommodation in India with the vouchers and points.
These are my personal opinions based on my spend patterns, which I found similar to yours.

 

[PoorviS]

what are your annual spends?

4-5 lakhs on an average

 

[PoorviS]

For your spend pattern, axis still makes sense. If you have enough income and spends, maybe you can club both the cards to meet the spend threshold and get the best of both the cards. If you can cover 4 Lakhs with Plat travel, you can get one free taj accommodation in India with the vouchers and points.
These are my personal opinions based on my spend patterns, which I found similar to yours.

4 lakh on Amex travel and how much on axis atlas? As my husband also supports trips , My expenses are 4-5 lpa. Is it easier to get annual fee waiveoffs on both cards?

 

[PoorviS]

Axis Magnus Burgundy, HDFC Infinia and Axis Atlas are the top 3 cards in India today even after all the devaluations

My expenses are 4-5 lpa on an average, does it it make sense to get atlas and is there annual waive offs on it

 

[drsel]

My expenses are 4-5 lpa on an average, does it it make sense to get atlas and is there annual waive offs on it

Yes of course and your 5900 renewal fee is compensated with points worth 5000, so net cost is only 900

 

[Riya Sharma]

4-5 lakhs on an average

Get the Amex Plat Travel. Axis Atlas for 4-5lk spends means you might not even end up reaching the 5lk milestone and you definitely won’t get the renewal and milestone benefit for Atlas. With Amex you can even call to get a reduction in fee at the end of the year, can’t do that with Axis.

 

[Riya Sharma]

Yes of course and your 5900 renewal fee is compensated with points worth 5000, so net cost is only 900

That is not true. After the devaluation, the renewal benefit is only able to gold tier and above. 2500 edge miles as renewal bonus on 7.5lk spends.

 

[Riya Sharma]

After the Axis Atlas devaluation in April 2024, there have been notable changes that reduce its overall appeal, particularly for those who rely on travel-related benefits. Key changes include limits on earning Edge Miles on travel spending beyond INR 2 lakhs per month, reduced milestone and renewal benefits, and the removal of complimentary services like airport transfers and concierge services. (American express Platinum travel card never had these anyway)

On the other hand, the American Express (Amex) Platinum Travel card offers a solid reward structure, especially for frequent travelers, including milestone bonuses like hotel vouchers. However, its reward rate (around 4.71% after fees) might be less attractive for those with lower spending, and Amex cards can face acceptance issues at offline merchants due to higher transaction fees.

If your spending is heavily skewed towards travel, Axis Atlas, despite its devaluation, may still offer better value (10%), especially for online travel-related bookings. However, if you need flexibility with offline purchases and broader point transfer options, combining both cards could be beneficial.

Please mark this as your solution thanks

 

[Bionick]

View attachment 69826

@Riya Sharma

 

[sachbs]

4 lakh on Amex travel and how much on axis atlas? As my husband also supports trips , My expenses are 4-5 lpa. Is it easier to get annual fee waiveoffs on both cards?

Atlas makes sense if you can cross the 7.5 Lakh threshold. If not, you might not be able to recover the joining fee. However, if your hotel and flight spends are above 2 lakhs per annum, you can still get decent returns using your atlas card.
Basically, try making all flight and hotel bookings using atlas, and use amex plat travel for all other expenses upto 4 Lakhs. This will be a sweet spot for both the cards.
Also, both these cards will not waive off their annual fees. So you need to pay it. In case of Amex, you can negotiate with the customer sales team and try and reduce the fee.

If this helps your case, please mark it as a solution. Thanks.

 

[Riya Sharma]

The point is is it correct information or not?
Is it true or false?

Doesn’t really matter though. People come here for human opinions. Otherwise they could very easily just put it into AI themselves.

 

[Riya Sharma]

If you think you know better, then you should give the answers

I did give him a human answer

 

[drsel]

After axis Atlas devaluation in April, is it still a better option then AMEX platinum travel card?
( 1-2 international trips in a year , 2-3 domestic flight visits , living in gurgaon , family of 2)
*. Want a card for better travel experiences (primarily hotel / flights)
* Good reward points for accor , marriott membership conversion .
* Easy annual fee waive offs

@admin please tag someone who is an expert in this.

@drsel please advice.
@ManojGowda please advice

Axis Atlas devaluation in April 2024 only removed airport transfers and concierge services, which Amex Platinum travel card never had anyway.
Also the Atlas edge miles given on paying joining fee and renewal fee were reduced to half

American Express Platinum Travel card reward rate is only 4.71% after fees, much less attractive than Atlas 10% for direct hotels and direct airlines, and Amex cards can face acceptance issues at offline merchants due to its high MDR 3%.

If your spending is mainly travel related, then Axis Atlas, despite its devaluation, offers much better value (10%).

Atlas also gives you 4% on most offline and online spends (7 category exclusions), which is almost the same as Amex Platinum travel card (which has very low acceptance)

Add to that, a lot of domestic and International lounge access where you can even take guests with you makes Atlas a clear winner!

Please mark this as your solution thanks