 Hello everyone, this is Ahmed Dan and on this channel, you'll find financial travel and more videos. If you like what you see, please do the thumbs up and consider subscribing. Thank you. Hello everyone, this is Ahmed Dan of AhmedDan.com. Today I'll talk about SPG American Express Great Card, which will be offering a free Marriott Hotel Night. Just a little bit background, when Chase Marriott Visa Rewards Great Card closed in Canada, I didn't feel good about that because that Great Card had $120 annual fee. However, each year it would give you a free Marriott Night, which could be anywhere from $200 to $400 depending on in which country or which Marriott you redeem your free night. Since they closed that card, the SPG American Express or Star Route Preferred Guest Great Card, it never gave any free night. So that's why it was not hopeful about that credit card. But since the merger between Marriott and Sheraton, they're combining everything into one. I just received this letter today from American Express mentioning that the SPG or a Starwood preferred case-crate card will be offering free night from now on so that's what I'm going to Update you today. So let's go through this letter and I will give you some other information for from the Marger which will be coming to an end very shortly combining the Marriott and share points on other aspects. So here this is the letter you're looking at here. So they are mentioning here that the combining upcoming combining of SPG and Marriott yours into one program will resulting change to your Starwood preferred case-crate card from American Express and here are some changes coming from August 2018. So that's another two months, June, July, August right another two months. So in August you earn points in the new loyalty program They will no longer be considered star points. So the crate card SPG American Express generates star points however from August There's no longer star points because they are going to be a creating a new loyalty program We don't know the name yet, but you'll be getting the new points from August no more SPG points. Now the earn rate is going to be five points per dollar for eligible purchases if you are at Participating share from our Marriott properties right now for each dollar you get one start point but starting August you'll get two points for every dollar and Five points if you are using your SPG crate card in Marriott properties So at the time of the program change the number of points needed to redeem in the loyalty program will have corresponding changes as determined by SPG and Marriott Rewards The free weekend night award will be replaced with an annual free night hour and will have no spend requirement. So this is the This is what I was looking for. Before the SPG Mx crate card wouldn't give you any free nights in order to get a free nights you'd have to actually Spend a lot of money, which is not realistic. So from starting August You'd be receiving a annual free night and there's no more free weekend night Which was you know based on your spending Limit or spend requirement. So it will be redeemable any night of the week at eligible SPG and Marriott properties with the redemption value of up to 35,000 points and will be awarded automatically each year after your anniversary date So whenever you applied for the crate card or whenever your account is started is your anniversary date So every year you're going to be free Marriott night as long as you hold a card So that's where is The interesting thing comes in because the only reason I'm going to be holding the SPG American Express or a Starwood American Express crate card to get the Marriott free night So as an SPG card member you receive an automatic complimentary upgrade to Silver Elite status If you do not have this card SPG American Express card in order to get Silver Elite status You need to spend two hotel nights at Marriott or Sheraton properties So without spending a single night you're automatically granted Silver Elite status and then this will entitle you to prior to Priority let check out if available and 10% bonus points on stays and more So here they're saying what I just told you that usually In general you need to spend 10 nights a year However, you don't need to spend any night if you have the Starwood preferred American Express guest card on top of that you will be eligible for a complimentary gold elite status after spending $30,000 and eligible purchases for on the card each year Okay, so basically what it means that this card has $120 annual fee It doesn't have lots of good features You know, it doesn't have any concierge services. It doesn't have like your trip cancellation insurance Trip interruption insurance or other types of travel insurances. It doesn't have zero foreign currency conversion fee So it doesn't have lots of features But the only reason I'll be holding this card and like me many others will be holding this card because of the free Marriott night Which is basically free Marriott Sheraton and all other properties covered by Marriott After the Marcher. So that free night can come Come in handy if you're like, you know traveling in other countries because you can redeem it for let's say like, you know $300 $400 it could be even more or At the very least It can be or more than hundred twenty dollars. That's the main point. So although you're paying hundred twenty dollars That free night is giving you back more than your annual spend hundred twenty dollars. So that's why I'll be holding this card Before I received this letter. I was thinking that, you know, if the SPG American Express great car Doesn't give any free night after the Marcher Then I'm not going to be holding this card paying hundred twenty dollars for any reason because in the past I had the Marriott viewers premier visa credit card just for The free hotel night, but since they closed it I was just holding on to this card to see, you know, what they do with the with this great card So the good thing is that, you know, I just got this letter and they confirmed that I'll be getting a free night every year and That's the good news and also I'll be given silver elite status as long as I hold the car So each year for hundred twenty dollars. I'll be getting a free night And I'll be getting silver elite status and that makes sense for me because the free night is going to cover my annual fee So that's what I wanted to update you about If you like what you see, please give it a thumbs up and consider subscribing because there will be more videos coming up Just like this and on this channel I do a financial travel and other videos So please subscribe and like and I'll see you shortly. Thank you