For years, booking travel through American Express meant logging into a desktop browser and clicking through the Amex Travel portal. It worked, but in a world where travelers have grown used to sleek apps from airlines and hotel chains, the experience often felt clunky.
Thankfully, American Express has finally launched a new, dedicated Amex Travel App, a mobile hub designed to help card members plan, book, and manage their trips in one place. The rollout comes as travel loyalty programs and credit card issuers are racing to win the attention (and spend) of travelers who increasingly expect seamless digital tools alongside premium perks.
The app is currently available for download on iOS devices; Android smartphones will be able to download it in the coming weeks.
Here’s a closer look at what the new app offers—and the features that will likely be most useful for travelers.
A single hub for booking flights, hotels, and cars
The headline function of the new Amex app is all-in-one booking. Instead of toggling among airline apps, hotel sites, and third-party platforms, travelers can now book flights, hotels, and car rentals through a single mobile interface.
The app also includes a wish-list option where users can bookmark hotels or itineraries to revisit later. For indecisive planners—or anyone comparing destinations or property options while waiting for PTO approval—this means fewer open browser tabs and more organized decision-making.
Currently, all hotels that are available to book are pulled from Amex’s Fine Hotels + Resorts and the Hotel Collection programs. No new inventory for hotels has been added. Note that the booking app is separate from the regular Amex app, which allows cardholders to check their transactions and make credit card payments.
Find unique stays like Warren Street Hotel in New York City through the new Amex Travel app.
Courtesy of Warren Street Hotel
Seamless rewards bookings and benefits
Crucially, the app integrates Amex’s existing ecosystem of rewards into the booking process. Members can pay with cash, points, or a mix of the two. That flexibility makes it easier to maximize points by allowing users to compare the cost in points versus cash.
Cardholders should make sure to identify any extra perks automatically attached to certain bookings—like complimentary breakfasts or guaranteed late checkout at Fine Hotels + Resorts properties—that could tip the scales when deciding where to stay.
Centurion lounge wait times
If you’ve ever hustled across airport terminals only to find the lounge at capacity, the new app offers some serious relief. Real-time lounge wait times are now displayed, letting travelers decide whether it’s worth heading to the lounge—or whether they should join a digital waiting list before leaving their gate area.
This update underscores how crowded airport lounges have become in the postpandemic travel surge. Both Delta and Capital One have faced backlash for long lines outside their lounges, and Amex’s move signals an effort to ease friction for loyal cardholders who’ve grown frustrated with the lounge squeeze.
Curated inspiration
The app is about more than logistics—it also aims to spark ideas for where to go next. A new inspiration feed blends destination guides, hotel spotlights, and themed itineraries drawn from Amex’s network of travel partners.
Instead of starting from scratch with a search bar, travelers can browse these curated options for things like hotels worth planning a trip around, and trending destinations, the way they might flip through a magazine or scroll social media.
A digital travel keepsake
One of the more playful features is Amex Passport, a type of digital stamp book that allows cardholders to collect virtual stamps tied to destinations they visit.
These aren’t just icons—they can be personalized with highlights (a memorable dinner, a favorite museum) and saved as a digital souvenir that’s shareable via social media or text. While it may not appeal to every traveler and hinges on making international purchases through Amex (something not every traveler does regularly), for those looking for a modern riff on paper passport stamps in an era when physical passport stamps are disappearing, it could be a fun offering.
