New Yorkers: Spend $200, Get $50 Back with American Express!!

This offer is for all my New Yorkers out there (or those coming to visit NYC) with an American Express credit card!

Between February 1 and February 29, 2012, American Express is offering a $50 statement credit when spending $200 at 2 or more participating New York City merchants (stores/restaurants/museum/broadway shows, etc.) You can register starting today and is limited to the first 10,000 people, so do not delay!

While I haven’t looked through the entire list yet, (see entire list of 300 participating merchants here), I did notice that my local Costco is a participating merchant. I can easily spend $200 there and find another store to charge a dollar at (to meet my 2 participating merchant minimum). Many Ricky’s NYC locations are participating along with Dylan’s Candy Bar where I can make a quick  and easy inexpensive purchase.

I personally am psyched over this and between me and my husband we have four American Express cards. My parents are visiting in February and they have two more cards to add to the mix as well.

My quick strategy is the following: Since I will not be able to purchase $800 worth of items at Costco during this one month time frame, my gut assumption is that purchasing gift cards from these merchants will trigger the statement credit as well. This will essentially give me 25% off my Costco shopping for the next few months.

For those that are not Costco shoppers, I’ll do some thinking “outside of the box” for you and report back on how to fully maximize this promotion. I need to fully go through the merchant list, but wanted to get this promotion out pronto.

American Express has really outdone themselves recently and the yearly fee has more than paid off. For example, my Starwood American Express card comes with a  $65 annual fee. In just the past 6 or so months, I’ve been able to get the following benefits with it:

• Link, Like, Love Promotion: $40 statement credit for a Starwood stay
• Small Business Saturday: $25 statement credit for spending $25 at a participating merchant
• Gift Chain Promotion: $29.50 statement credit, $180 worth of American Express gift cards, $8 in Dunkin Donuts gift cards, and $20 in Starbucks gift cards all for purchasing $225 worth of gift cards at a participating merchant

All in all, this credit card with it’s $65 annual fee has already earned me $296.50. And now on top of that, I am going to get another $50 statement credit just for shopping at Costcos, which I do anyways! Unfortunately corporate cards are excluded, which has been typical for the American Express promotions. If you’re now on the market for an American Express card, you can see all the travel related ones and their current promotions here.

Keep up the good work American Express!  Make sure to register today.

Also, thank you so much to my reader Steelsnow for sending this promotion my way!

Details from the site:

To be eligible for this offer, you must register any eligible American Express Card at amexnetwork.com/getmorenyc between January 18, 2012 and February 29, 2012. Registration is limited to the first 10,000 enrollees. You may only register one Card for this offer. Using the same registered Card for each transaction, you must make purchase(s) in store at over 300 participating merchants between February 1, 2012 and February 29, 2012. Offer not valid on online purchases, except for purchases at ticketmaster.com or telecharge.com. Using the same registered Card for each transaction, you must transact at least two times and spend a combined $200 at participating merchants that accept American Express Cards. Prepaid and corporate cards, and ExpressPay transactions are not eligible. Statement credits are generally issued within five business days after your qualifying purchase(s), but may take up to two billing cycles to post to your account. Limit one statement credit per Cardmember. If your Card is replaced during the promotional period, please call the customer service number on the back of your Card for assistance. Additional terms apply. See registration site for details. ©2012 American Express Company. All rights reserved.

Full Disclosure: I do receive a commission if you are approved for the Starwood Preferred Guest by American Express card by using my affiliate links. As always, I appreciate you using my links and will always include only the best promotions out there. On a side note, I really am a personal fan of this card and the Starwood program for so many reasons!