We’re finally seeing the dawn of a new generation who may work most, if not all, of their lives untethered to an office desk or even a fixed address. Today’s youth are eschewing the “standard” path — the typical 9-to-5 day job, 2-bedroom condo, and a BMW in the driveway — to instead live a life of experiences. For many, traveling the world is the ideal embodiment of that lifestyle. Free to go, at any time, to work and live anywhere.
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Photo © Cole Rise
With this growing generation of travelers — these “citizens of the world” — setting out over the last few years, there’s renewed demand for financial tools that work better and smarter. Websites like Mint tackle your budget, Dashlane locks down your passwords, and IPVanish cloaks and encrypts your digital identity no matter where you are. In technical terms, I’m talking about traveling the world like a boss.
That includes the plastic in your wallet. Which is why American Express is rebooting its Premier Rewards Gold Card. The Card has always been about cache and aspirational living and now it features a host of new benefits of particular interest to modern travelers. The ones that you should care about most include:
- 2x Membership Rewards points for purchases at U.S. restaurants and gas stations
- $100 fee credit with one airline for incidental charges such as baggage fees
- Personalized travel service
- 3x Membership Rewards points on airfare purchased directly from airlines
- Access to The Hotel Collection, a roster of more than 350 Card Members’ favorite properties around the world where they are eligible for a $75 hotel amenities credit and a room upgrade if available
- A number of flexible and convenient ways to use points with the Membership Rewards program, featuring more than 20 airline and hotel point transfer partners, as well as the ability to redeem points at point of sale with Amazon, Uber, NYC taxis
- No annual fee for the first year
- Card Members will also no longer pay foreign transaction fees when spending abroad
Photo © Cole Rise
You can check out the full list of new features here. But, if you’re a frequent credit card user abroad, you’ll especially love the last point above – no more foreign transaction fees. This was previously the realm of Capital One, but thankfully Amex has gotten hip to the fact that we don’t want to pay an additional 1-3% on top of everything we’re already buying abroad.
Whether you’re a credit card points-hoarder (purely for the free and copious frequent flyer miles or hotel points) or you’re cool with just one or two pieces of plastic, the new Premier Rewards Gold Card offers just about anything a modern traveler could ask for in a credit card.
P.S. The awesome photos in this post are from Cole Rise — travel photographer, founder of Litely, and an Amex Gold Ambassador — who embodies the new generation of traveler who has eschewed standard in favor of the #GoldStandard. He’s become a wildly successful, world-traveling entrepreneur who’s living and working from everywhere. To celebrate the refresh of the Amex Premier Rewards Gold Card, Cole curated this beautiful set of original, inspirational images:
Photo © Cole Rise
Photo © Cole Rise
Photo © Cole Rise
Photo © Cole Rise