FHR Detailed Explanation (1) Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts American Express Luxury Hotels & Resorts Privileges

｜Contents｜
1. Foreword 2. Who can enjoy the services of FHR 3. Contents of the courtesy of FHR 4. Which hotels are in the list of FHR 5. The superimposed effect with the hotel membership is overwhelming 6. The booking steps and skills of FHR 7. Conclusion

I. Introduction

FHR, Fine Hotels & Resorts, American Express's global selection of luxury hotels and resorts, maximize the traveler's accommodation experience and CP value, including early check-in/late check-out, room upgrade, free breakfast, special experience quota, etc. The privileges that can only be enjoyed by the hotel's high-level membership, as long as you book through FHR, you will get all the privileges and enjoy the benefits.

Today, when OTA (Online Travel Agency) dominates most of the travel booking market, major hotels are fighting with the strategy of "booking through the official website is the cheapest" to gain channel advantages, and most of them will also use BRG (Best Rate Guarantee) and other means to meet the needs of customers. Guests offer the Best Rate Guarantee. But on the other hand, in addition to price wars, travel modes and mechanisms that pay attention to comfort and privileges have already flourished and have been around for a long time, especially in the field of luxury hotels.

You don’t have to stay for dozens of nights every year and exchange loyalty for elite membership. You can have the same benefits as elite membership every time you visit different luxury hotels. This form can usually be discounted on higher-level credit cards. Among them, those obtained with " specific bank credit cards ", such as: Citi Prestige's travel butler Aspire Lifestyles service, The Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection service that can be used with specific Chase cards ; For example, the " Advanced Cards " can be obtained: Visa Luxury Hotel Collection services that can be used by Infinite and Signature cards in Visa cards, Mastercard Travel & Lifestyle Services that can be used by Mastercard high-level cards, etc.; Travel consultants " such as Virtuoso offer similar services.

The FHR introduced in this article is a courtesy exclusively for American Express high-card users. According to statistics, the average value of the American Express FHR courtesy is about $550 each time. You can enjoy extraordinary benefits in luxury hotels and resorts.” So of course, friends who hold American Fortune High Cards should get to know them well, and those who are interested in such topics can also master the relevant methods before traveling.

2. Who can enjoy the services of FHR

Valid only for new Fine Hotels + Resorts bookings made through Platinum Travel service, Centurion Travel service, American Express Travel Online (where available) or any American Express Travel location. Payment must be made in full with an American Express Card in the Platinum Card Member and Centurion Member's or Centurion Member's name. Available for Platinum Charge Cardmembers and Centurion Members only, and excludes Platinum Credit Cardmembers who are not also Platinum Charge Cardmembers. (official website original)

In short, other cardholders with American Express "Platinum Debit Cards" and "Centurion" cards can book and use them through FHR, excluding Platinum Credit Cards. Take the American Express issued cards in Taiwan as an example, including the American Express Platinum Charge Card, the American Express EVA Air Charge Platinum Card, and the American Express Centurion Card (commonly known as the black card), as shown in the figure:

The American Express Platinum card or above is a high card. It seems that the application threshold has been relaxed in recent years (if you are interested, you can click me to apply, or contact me to ask a specialist for explanation). It's so worth it, because FHR can book up to three rooms in the same hotel at a time to share the benefits with relatives and friends (the supplementary card is also eligible), and can stack the room nights and points accumulation of the hotel membership (with SNP) .

3. The content of the FHR courtesy

Enjoy the following benefits when you book an FHR Global Luxury Hotels & Resorts Offer:

1. Check in early at noon

Depending on room availability at the time, check in at noon for an early start to your vacation. This is especially valuable for travelers who depart on a red-eye flight and arrive in the morning, because the hotel check-in time is usually around 3 or 4 in the afternoon, so this benefit is equivalent to earning a good night's sleep. However, when you book a resort-type hotel in the peak season, check-in at noon becomes a bit more rare, and everyone has not checked out when you arrive! But in any case, for FHR travelers, the hotel will try its best to fulfill the promised benefits. I have been invited to the executive lounge to be fed and then presented with the room card.

2. Room upgrade

Depending on the room availability at the time, you can enjoy room upgrade privileges when you check in. Usually, you will definitely be upgraded. For example, if you book a basic room type, you will be upgraded to a lake view, sea view, or mountain view room. In my experience, hotels that cooperate with FHR are often upgraded quite generously. There are not a few people who are upgraded to an executive floor room (entitled to the treatment of the executive lounge) or directly upgraded to a suite. It should be considered a great fortune in the journey. And if in order to celebrate a special day, if you mention it to the FHR service staff first, he will ask the hotel to note it, then the probability of upgrading to a suite is actually improved. In addition, if the holder of the Centurion card makes a reservation, the upgrade may be confirmed as soon as the reservation is made.

3. Daily free breakfast

Breakfast is the most anticipated luxury hotel must-have for many, and FHR's benefits include free breakfast for up to 2 people per room, and a guaranteed minimum continental breakfast . Having said that, all the hotels and resorts I have encountered so far are all buffet-style deluxe breakfasts in the hotel's all-day dining restaurant, and I have never encountered a continental breakfast only, so this courtesy is very worth looking forward to, after all, breakfast It is not uncommon for luxury hotels to ask for more than 1,000 yuan per person, and the cost of breakfast in island resorts is even more exaggerated. FHR has solved this trouble very well.

4. Free Wi-Fi in the room

You may take it for granted that you can surf the Internet freely in your room, but in fact, some top hotels only provide Wi-Fi in public spaces such as hotel lobbies and bars, while in-room Wi-Fi requires additional charges. This is also one of the important revenue of the hotel. FHR guarantees that Wi-Fi is available in the room booked, and in the event that the hotel lists the Wi-Fi fee as part of the mandatory resort fee, the cardholder will receive a daily credit for the Wi-Fi amount charged by the hotel .

5. Late check out

My favorite perk is that you can usually check out until 4pm instead of having to pull your luggage out of the hotel at 11 or 12 in the morning. This means that you can arrange another travel itinerary in the morning, visit the unfinished attractions again, use the time to buy some famous products, or simply stay in the hotel to enjoy the spa facilities, and you can take a lazy nap and then leave comfortably, the time is Money, late check out is the essence of FHR. I have encountered a situation where I took a late flight back to Taiwan. The hotel generously extended the check-out time to 5:00 pm, and with the early check-in courtesy, it was almost an extra day.

6. Special benefits for individual hotels

The special courtesy given by different hotels is different. The most common one is a hotel consumption deduction of 100 US dollars (of course, excluding the deduction of room charges), which can be used in restaurants, spas, room service, souvenir shops, etc. This 100 dollars is quite enough. It is enough to eat a lunch for two at the Michelin restaurant in the hotel. If you get up too late to eat the breakfast provided by the hotel, then there is no pressure to order a room service meal. I have traveled to Singapore for two days. Tian completely stayed in the hotel without leaving home, just living on a consumption quota.

In addition to the $100 credit, some hotels offer set lunches and dinners with local culinary experiences, free spa services during certain hours, golf experiences for two with green fees and carts, or, quite literally, private limousine rides from Free transfers from hotels to airports and more, but see what the hotel offers.

7. Other benefits

In addition to the above benefits when booking FHR, the hotel may also sign a marketing promotion agreement with AMEX. It may be a special hotel that offers two-for-one, three-for-one, and four-for-two for a specific hotel, which can save a lot of money. So pay more attention to whether there are related discounts when booking FHR. In addition, if the holder of the Centurion card book certain hotels, there will be additional benefits, such as a $200 credit.

4. Which hotels are on the FHR list?

First, the 68 global luxury brand hotels and resorts :

It can be seen that almost all luxury hotel brands are covered, including Marriott, Hilton, InterContinental, and Hyatt Hotel Group luxury brands. Taiwanese may be familiar with AMAN (Aman Hotel), FOUS SEASONS (Four Seasons Hotel), MANDARIN ORIENTAL (Mandarin Oriental Hotel), THE PENINSULA (Peninsula Hotel), SHANGRI-LA (Shangri-La Hotel) are also among them. But in fact not all hotels of the brand will be included. The FHR hotel list of American Express is carefully selected, and the staff will actually visit and experience the world's top hotels and resorts every year to ensure that the quality of accommodation is up to standard.

Carefully Curated: Our collection is carefully curated so that you can rest easy. Properties are hand-picked and visited every year to ensure that your stay meets our standards. (Original website)

So in fact, the number of FHR partner hotels or resorts fluctuates every year, so it's no surprise that JW Marriott Hotel Nara is on the list, but JW Marriott Hotel Seoul is missing. .

There are a total of 1,254 partner hotels of FHR in 2021. Below I have sorted out the Marriott, Hilton, InterContinental, and Hyatt hotel brands that are on the list. First, the membership of these hotel groups is more popular, and second, FHR can The hotel membership is superimposed to calculate room nights and points accumulation (with SNP). Friends who are working on membership can refer to it.

1. MARRIOTT Marriott Hotel Group series of brands

There are many hotels belonging to the Marriott series, including [Classic Luxury Series] THE RITZ-CARLTON (Ritz-Carlton Hotel), ST. REGIS (St. Regis Hotel), JW MARRIOTT (JW Marriott Hotel), EDITION (EDITION Hotel) ), as well as [featured luxury series] BVLGARI (Bulgari Hotel) RITZ-CARLTON RESERVE (Ritz-Carlton Hidden Boutique Hotel), THE LUXURY COLLECTION (Luxury Collection Hotel), W Hotel (W Hotel) all did not make the list Absent, and also includes a [featured high-end series] WESTIN (Westin hotel) and two [selected collection series] AUTOGRAPH COLLECTION HOTELS (Autograph Collection Hotel), DESIGN HOTEL (design hotel).

2. HYATT Hyatt Hotels Group series brands

The Hyatt brands with the highest rate on the list include [Timeless Classic Series] PARK HYATT (Park Hyatt Hotel), GRAND HYATT (Grand Hyatt Hotel), HYATT REGENCY (Hyatt Hotel), [Creative Unlimited Series] ANdAZ (Andaz Hotel) , AlilA (Alila Hotel), THOMPSON (Thompson Hotel) and [independent brand series] THE UNBOUND COLLECTION (Hyatt Collection Hotel).

3. HILTON Hilton Hotel Group series of brands

The Hilton hotel brand includes the famous [Luxury Series] WALDORF ASTORIA (Waldorf Astoria), CONRAD (Conrad Hotel), and [Luxury Series] HILTON (Hilton Hotel).

4. IHG InterContinental Hotels Group series of brands

The InterContinental series is also the top four brands, including SIX SENSES (Six Senses Hotel), REGENT (Regent Hotel), INTERCONTINENTAL (InterContinental Hotel), KIMPTON (Kimpton Hotel). Among them, Six Senses is a luxury resort recently added to IHG, and the location is perfect and fascinating.

5. The superimposed effect with the hotel membership is overwhelming

Another very good advantage of FHR is that it does not conflict with the accumulation of hotel memberships and benefits at all, and can be superimposed. In short, if the benefits are different, the best one will prevail. Below I have compiled the high card membership benefits of Marriott Bonvoy (Marriott Bonvoy), World of Hyatt (World of Hyatt) and Hilton Honors (Hilton Honors) for comparison with FHR. As for why not The comparison of IHG Rewards Club, because IHG... There is nothing to compare, if you can book FHR, you can book it directly.

1. Benefit comparison between FHR and Marriott Bonvoy

2. Comparing benefits between FHR and World of Hyatt

3. Comparing the benefits of FHR and Hilton Honors

4. Comprehensive analysis

• Regarding "early check-in" and "late check-out", FHR's regulations are more clear and clear, and the delay is also directly given to the highest 4:00 p.m. for each membership. There is a discount at 2:00 in the afternoon of the family membership, and if you use it together, you can check out at 4:00 at the same rate.
• Regarding the "room upgrade", FHR includes the upgrade to a suite, which is a privilege only for high card members among the three major memberships. In addition, if you book a room with FHR and have a high card membership, the probability of upgrading to a suite is based on my own measurements. Every corner and every decoration is worth pondering and enjoying.
• Regarding "free breakfast", FHR also clearly stipulates that it is included, only Marriott Platinum, Hilton Gold and above, and Hyatt Regency only provides breakfast to the highest-level global guests. The breakfast of Marriott Platinum or above is selected from one of the three benefits, so if it is superimposed with FHR, you can not only enjoy the breakfast benefits of FHR, but also get the points or welcome gift provided by the membership.
• Regarding the "Executive Lounge", FHR does not provide it. This is the most prominent advantage of the three major memberships. Marriott Platinum or above, Hyatt Global guests, and Hilton Diamond cards can enter the Executive Lounge. Most of the lounges provide "Lounge". "Breakfast" and "Happy Hour", which provides free alcoholic beverages and snacks in the evening, and drinks and snacks at other times, as well as administrative services such as photocopying and faxing, meeting room rental, etc., so there are many benefits to stacking.
• Regarding the FHR consumption quota in "Special Privileges", it is not available in the three major memberships. The restaurants, room service and SPA of luxury hotels are relatively inexpensive, and the $100 credit provided by most FHR hotels can make you happy to spend in the hotel, which is one of the most popular features of FHR.
• FHR itself cannot accumulate points alone, but if it is paired with a hotel membership, it can be accumulated freely according to the membership regulations. Since this is a paid room night after all, the accumulated room night will be a tiered room that can calculate the annual membership. In the evening, SNPs are all available.

5. About the price

As for the room price that many people care about, most of the prices provided by FHR are the so-called BAR prices, namely Best Available Rate, the best price guarantee for group hotels, which is equal to the best original price provided by each hotel group that can be cancelled at the latest one day before. This is of course incomparable with the lowest member price, special event price, negotiated price, long-term stay price, etc. launched by various groups. I use the following picture as an example. This is the room price of JW Marriott Hotel Nara (Nara JW Marriott Hotel) on a certain day. List excerpt:

As can be seen from the figure, the price of the middle FHR is 40,000 yen, which is slightly higher than the flexibly canceled membership price in the left column by 800 yen, but the price on the left does not include all the benefits of FHR (in the JW Marriott in Nara, it includes two guests Breakfast, $100 credit, early check-in, late check-out, room upgrade, high-speed Wi-Fi, small welcome gifts, general manager's welcome letter, etc.), these benefits are more obvious compared to the items in the column on the right, members include breakfast The asking price is 44,100 yen, non-members include breakfast at 45,000 yen, and the bottom right corner includes breakfast, drinks, and late check-out until 1 pm The price is 52,000 yen. It can be clearly observed that FHR is not the lowest price, but it is definitely The lowest among the same courtesy, the CP value is also the relatively highest.

6. Predetermined steps and skills of FHR

1. Confirm travel destination

This is not difficult for those who have a clear travel plan, but if you only have preliminary ideas, such as "I want to go to a place with sunshine and beaches", "I want to visit interesting museums to enrich myself", "I want to visit a well-equipped museum" Ski resorts”, “I want to take my children to the resort to discharge”, “I want to disappear temporarily from the world”, “I want to go to Europe, anywhere”, then the Hotel Finder or Destinations functions on the FHR official website are very suitable for browsing, doing Do your homework.

If you are a hotel brand controller like me and like to collect your favorite hotel brands from all over the world, then the Our Brands function on the FHR official website will definitely satisfy you, choose the brand first, and then consider the destination.

2. Choose the hotel you want to stay in

After determining the destination, choose a suitable hotel, close to the place of business trip, close to public transportation, with a view to a specific scenic spot, with a sea view, away from the city center, or choose a different hotel system for membership And enough, but it depends on the demand.

As the price will not appear on the FHR official website, you must call the travel service staff of American Express, but I usually open the hotel official website to confirm the price. FHR is usually the same as the price that can be flexibly cancelled, so that you can control it first. If you have a good budget, choose two or three hotels you like, and ask them all at once when you call. You can also listen to the recommendations of American Express travel consultants before making the final decision.

By the way, if you want to select a hotel that belongs to the Marriott Group, you can enter the code "L72" at the Corp/Promo Code (Corporate /Promo Code) on the Marriott Hotel's official website or APP, and there are hotels that appear under L72. It is FHR's partner Marriott series hotel, and you can also see the price. But we can't book directly at this price, we still have to go through American Express, otherwise the original price will be counted when we check in.

3. Call AMEX Travel Customer Service

After completing the above preparation procedures, you can call the travel service department of American Express. Taking Taiwan as an example, the dedicated line for the Platinum Debit Card is 0800-055-500, and the EVA Air Platinum Debit Card is 0800-511-811. The service line is +1-800-525-3355. It is recommended to open the website of the hotel you want to choose and tell the customer service the following information, including:

• Check-in passenger's English name
• Tourist destination
• Hotel name
• Check-in and check-out dates
• If there is any relevant hotel membership, it will also be notified at the same time.
• Other matters

In the end, this other matter can be said to be a package. With the services of the American Express commissioner, you can pass all the matters you want to communicate with the hotel to them, and let them communicate on their behalf. For example, the outgoing flight is a red-eye flight, and I want to be able to check in at ten in the morning; the return flight is an evening flight, I don’t know if it can be delayed until 5:00 p.m.; Please replace the pillow with a memory pillow or a buckwheat pillow; this trip is a birthday celebration, if possible, I hope to upgrade to a sea view suite on a high floor, etc. These things that usually cost overseas phone bills or waste writing email time can be handed over to American Express travel service specialists. Under the influence of FHR, hotels are usually very willing to cooperate, so that guests can have a good experience.

4. Take advantage of vacations

After the reservation is complete, American Express will send a confirmation letter, so just look forward to the day of travel! Payment is generally made at check-out (there may be a deposit at check-in) and can be used with any American Express card, not the one with FHR benefits. For example, at a hotel in the Marriott system, you can use the FHR of the debited platinum card to book, but pay with the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant of American Express, and enjoy the benefits of accumulating 6x points.

During the stay, if the courtesy provided by the hotel is different from the one listed on the FHR official website, you can kindly remind the staff that "I booked through American Express FHR (Fine Hotels and Resorts) Program, ..." I believe it will be resolved quickly.

7. Conclusion

After reading the above explanation, I believe that everyone has a certain degree of understanding of all kinds of FHR. In fact, it is not only FHR, many hotel benefit programs (such as the specific bank, specific card issuer credit card or travel consultant company provider introduced at the beginning) are similar in content, precautions and booking techniques, so even if there is no use of FHR at the moment Qualification does not prevent understanding of this well-established and continuously optimized and updated courtesy model.

FHR has always been an important criterion for luxury hotels due to its strict confidential guest review mechanism and is one of the reasons why I continue to hold an American Express Platinum card. That's why FHR partner hotels aren't cheap, and the focus is on the value they can provide. In this regard, FHR provides several core benefits that can make the experience more perfect, and can be used in conjunction with hotel memberships, greatly enhancing and improving travelers' imagination and expectations of luxury hotels.

Finally, let's talk about why hotels value FHR so much that they can make such a big profit, and often travelers who use FHR are more likely to get room upgrades? In fact, the threshold for FHR is not low, which means that travelers who can use FHR to book are regarded as a group with high spending power. Their spending power in the hotel is several times that of ordinary travelers, so in addition to the hotel's own membership In addition to the high-card VIPs cultivated by the system, the booking channels that can bring selected high-consumption groups will of course be highly regarded. So FHR is actually a win-win system. Luxury hotels get travelers with high spending levels, American Express gets a certain percentage of the room rate rake, and we get the favor.