1 April 2026 · TravelLux.be

Black Friday Amex Belgium: Why the Welcome Bonus Won't Get Any Better

Last November I did something stupid. I waited. I had been on the fence about the Amex Platinum card for months, had studied all the benefits, done the maths. But somewhere in the back of my mind a little voice whispered: "Wait for Black Friday. There's bound to be a better Amex Black Friday deal in Belgium. More points, lower fee, something." So I waited. October. First week of November. Second week.

Black Friday came. And absolutely nothing happened.

No special Amex Platinum promotion. No increased welcome bonus. No secret deal that only surfaces in November. Nada. And meanwhile I had missed two months of benefits: two rounds of lounge access at Brussels Airport, a Dining for 2 experience at a top restaurant in Brussels, and the Fast Lane security I desperately needed for my flight BRU to LIS with a tight connection time. I'll never make that mistake again. And I don't want you to make it either.

Why Amex Belgium does NOT run a Black Friday promotion

Let me clear up a misconception I keep encountering in Belgian forums and Facebook groups. People assume that American Express in Belgium does the same thing as in the US. In America you do indeed occasionally get increased sign-up bonuses, limited-time offers, that sort of thing. But the Belgian market works differently. Completely differently.

American Express Belgium offers the Platinum card through a fairly stable model: €65 per month (€780 per year), with a welcome bonus that reaches up to 150,000 Membership Rewards points via a referral link. That bonus is already the maximum. There is no hidden tier above those 150,000 points that suddenly unlocks if you apply in November. It simply doesn't work that way in the Belgian market.

Honestly, I understand the confusion. If you read about Amex deals on Reddit or American blogs, it seems as though you'd be foolish not to wait. But the Belgian Amex Platinum is a different product, with its own bonus structure, and that structure doesn't change with the seasons. The welcome bonus of 150,000 points via referral is available year-round. Period.

What can change are the Amex Offers that appear on your card: temporary discounts at certain brands or shops. But those are benefits you only receive once you're already a cardholder. Waiting to apply in the hope of a better deal? That only costs you benefits you're missing in the meantime.

The real cost of waiting: a calculation from Brussels

I love concrete maths. No vague promises, just numbers. Suppose you're considering applying for the card in September but decide to wait until Black Friday at the end of November. That's roughly three months. What do you lose?

First of all: lounge access. The Amex Platinum gives you Priority Pass Prestige, good for 1,550+ airport lounges worldwide. You plus one guest, unlimited. The market value of that Priority Pass is around €500 per year. Waiting three months means you're leaving approximately €125 in lounge value on the table. And if you fly through Brussels Airport twice during that period (which isn't unrealistic for most Belgian travellers), you also miss Fast Lane security, which normally costs €169 per year if purchased separately.

Then there's Dining for 2: three times a year a complimentary 2-course menu for two at top restaurants in Belgium. Value up to €300 per year. One of those three occasions almost always falls in the autumn. Missed.

And the Membership Rewards points themselves? Every euro you spend during those three months without the card earns you zero points. With the Booster option (4 points per euro for an extra €10/month), at average spending of €2,000 per month you could have earned 24,000 points in three months. That's enough for a domestic flight with Brussels Airlines, or a solid contribution towards that business class upgrade to Dubai.

Add it all up and you're easily over €500 in missed value. And for what? For a Black Friday Amex promotion that doesn't exist in Belgium.

150,000 points: what can you actually do with them as a Belgian traveller?

Right, 150,000 Membership Rewards points sounds like a big number. But what does it mean in concrete terms? I'll give you a few scenarios I've calculated myself or actually booked.

Transfers to Brussels Airlines Miles&Smiles (via the Lufthansa network) give you the opportunity to book a business class return flight BRU to JFK for approximately 112,000 points. You'd still have 38,000 left. Enough for a weekend return to Barcelona or Rome in economy. Two flights from one welcome bonus.

Prefer the Middle East? Via Emirates Skywards you can book a business class return BRU, via DXB, to the Maldives. The points requirement varies by season, but 150,000 points take you seriously far. And in the Maldives you can book stays through the Fine Hotels + Resorts programme with a complimentary room upgrade, daily breakfast for two, early check-in, late check-out and a welcome gift of approximately €100. The total added value per FHR stay runs up to €650.

Other popular transfer partners from Belgium: Air France-KLM Flying Blue (ideal for short European flights), Qatar Airways Privilege Club (Doha and beyond), Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (if you want to experience the world's longest flights), and British Airways Avios (great for short hops from London). The points never expire as long as your card is active, so you can also save them up at your leisure until you plan a dream trip.

The benefits you notice every month from Belgium

I notice that many people are so focused on the welcome bonus that they forget what the card delivers on a daily basis. And honestly: it's those daily benefits that justify the €65 per month for me. Not the points.

Take Brussels Airport. I fly from there at least six times a year. Every time I walk through the Fast Lane at security, which has saved me from missing a flight on multiple occasions. Then into the lounge: a quiet breakfast, wifi, charging, sometimes a shower after an early morning flight. My wife joins me as a guest, free of charge. That alone makes the card worth it for us.

The Dining Experience at Black Pearls at Brussels Airport is also a surprisingly enjoyable extra. Twice a month you can pick up a meal. And with Lounge On the Go you get premium takeaway twice a month. It may sound like a small benefit, but if you regularly travel through Zaventem, you really notice it.

Abroad? No foreign transaction fees. Last year I paid with the Platinum in Sweden, Japan and Morocco, and every time the exchange rate was sharp with no extra charges. Compare that to your regular Belgian bank card which charges 1.5% to 2% in foreign transaction fees. On a two-week trip to Tokyo with €3,000 in spending, that easily saves you €45 to €60.

And then the travel insurance, via Chubb and Europ Assistance: trip cancellation, flight insurance for delays or missed connections, baggage insurance and medical expenses abroad. Everything automatically active when you pay with the Amex. I had to use it last year when a flight from Lisbon to Brussels was delayed by three hours and I missed my train to Antwerp. The claim was handled without any issues.

The 24/7 concierge service I honestly use less often than I expected, but when I need it, it's worth its weight in gold. Restaurant reservations in cities where I don't speak the language, last-minute theatre tickets, that sort of thing. It feels like a personal assistant that never sleeps.

When is it actually smart to wait a little?

I want to be honest. There are situations where it's wise not to apply today, and it has nothing to do with Black Friday.

If you're planning a large purchase in the coming month (a new kitchen, a car down payment, an expensive trip), it can be smart to hold off briefly. Why? Because the welcome bonus is tied to a spending threshold in the first months. You want to hit that threshold with expenses you would have had anyway. Don't make extra purchases purely for the points — just time your natural spending.

Also, if your income is just below €30,000 gross per year (the minimum requirement for the application), it's better to wait until you can demonstrate that. A rejection is a waste, because then you have to wait a while before you can apply again.

But waiting for a seasonal promotion? Waiting for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, New Year, Valentine's Day or any other commercial date? That makes absolutely no sense in Belgium. The best Amex Platinum offer in Belgium is available year-round. Via the TravelLux.be referral link you receive the maximum welcome bonus of 150,000 points. Not more in November, not more in January. Always the same maximum.

Frequently asked questions about Black Friday and the Amex Platinum in Belgium