How I Got More Than $1,200 of Perks by Booking an American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts Stay

Updated: July 7, 2025, 8:30am CDT

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Booking an American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts Stay
Unleashing More Than $1,200 in Benefits
Final Thoughts

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If I’m flying, I like to do it in style whenever possible. As for accommodation, I’m usually an Airbnb guy.

I will stay at a nice hotel now and then for a treat, or if I’m staying with the purpose of reviewing the property.

Airbnbs have become my home since I left the U.K. to live out of a suitcase in December, so I was keen to enjoy a few days of luxury on a recent trip to Rio de Janeiro in April with my dad. For the first 10 days of traveling together, we stayed in Airbnbs and 2 pretty great Hilton Hotels: the Double Tree by Hilton Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, and the Palmaroga Hotel Asunción, Tapestry Collection by Hilton.

For the last 3 nights of our time in Rio, we decided to treat ourselves to a stay at the 5-star Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro. Or should I say, I sales-pitched my dad into splashing out. This was no easy feat, as he’s a real stickler for getting value for his money. At a cool $2,435 for 3 nights, this would really be pushing the limits.

I was confident that the Fasano would sufficiently wow me. Dad, on the other hand, I wasn’t so sure.

Booking an American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts Stay

You can’t use Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, World of Hyatt, or any other hotel loyalty program points to book a Fasano hotel, as it’s an independent Brazilian brand. With only 10 hotels — 8 in Brazil, 1 in Punta del Este in Uruguay, and 1 in New York — Fasano is a classic boutique brand.

While researching booking options (and putting together a pitch for my dad), I compared prices from various third-party sites and Fasano’s website. Prices were high across the board, with no clear leader.

View of Ipanema Beach from roof of Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro — This view from the roof of the Fasano was a huge part of why I wanted to stay here.

As I was about to give up on the idea, the shine of my U.K. version of The Platinum Card^® from American Express caught my eye. That’s when I realized I hadn’t checked American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts. While I wasn’t expecting lower prices, I wanted to check out what extra perks and benefits we’d get for booking via the platform.

Since I usually stay in Airbnbs or book stays at other chain hotels, it had been a while since I’d checked out Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the list of benefits included when paying for the Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro via the platform:

Early check-in (subject to availability)
Room upgrade (subject to availability)
Complimentary daily breakfast for 2
Spa credit of $150
Guaranteed late checkout at 4 p.m.

I thought these perks and benefits would strengthen my pitch enough that I was confident I’d get Dad’s approval. I broke down the costs and sent him a message, thinking I’d have some convincing to do. Minutes later, he replied, “Let’s do it.”

For $2,435, we spent 3 nights at a hotel I’ve had on my bucket list since my first trip to Rio in 2009. My U.K. version of the Amex Platinum card earned 1 point per £1 spent on the stay. The U.S. version earns an elevated rate of 5 points per $1 spent when booking stays like this through AmexTravel.com. What a shame I missed out on about 12,000 Membership Rewards points.

We split the cost of the stay and spent roughly $1,217 each.

Sunset from the roof of the Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro.

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Unleashing More Than $1,200 in Benefits

Being able to check in early and check out late certainly added value to our stay. It afforded us more time in the room and extra time soaking up the views from the rooftop pool on our last day. Dad’s flight back to the U.K. wasn’t until 8 p.m., so he maximized his final hours in the city by taking it in from above.

Dad enjoying the view from Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro — Dad was seriously thinking about “losing” his passport at this point.

While these benefits were greatly appreciated, I’ll focus on the tangible monetary benefits we enjoyed, like the room upgrade, complimentary breakfast, and spa credit.

Room Upgrade: Approximately $844

We originally booked the cheapest room in Fasano’s inventory: a superior twin room with an internal view. Upgrading to a twin room with a sea view would have cost an extra 4,800 Reais (~$844). Expecting to spend most of our time by the hotel’s rooftop pool, we didn’t see the value in spending this much extra for a sea view we’d barely be in the room to appreciate.

Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro exterior — Sea view rooms are at the front of the property.

Having experienced hit-and-miss upgrades using hotel elite status over the years, I was eager to find out if things would be different with an FHR booking. It’s common knowledge that even if there is availability to upgrade a guest with status, it’s at the hotel receptionist’s discretion whether they honor this. Upgrades for bookings made via FHR are supposed to always be honored if there’s availability. I was hopeful.

Nearing the end of the brief check-in procedure, no mention had been made of an upgrade. I’m not too shy to speak up, so I asked if anything was available, referencing that the booking was made via FHR. We were told they would look into it, but couldn’t promise anything.

Given the torrential rain outside and our rumbling bellies, we decided to grab lunch. We popped back to reception afterwards to be told we’d been upgraded to a sea view room, but it would be on the first floor.

At this point, I didn’t mind how high up our room was. I was just over the moon we’d managed to get the upgrade.

Our first-floor twin room with a sea view didn’t disappoint. The fact that the main road passed right in front of our window didn’t bother us. I think it added to Dad’s enjoyment being able to people-watch from the balcony.

Sea view room at the FHotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro — Dad was in his element on the balcony: people watching or napping.

Daily Breakfast for 2: At Least $225

In a place like Brazil, where food is relatively cheap and of excellent quality, I wouldn’t necessarily pay extra to eat breakfast in a hotel. When breakfast is included in the rate or with hotel elite status, that’s another story.

We were happy to be told that we could take what we’d like from the buffet and order anything from the à la carte section of the menu. For guests whose breakfast wasn’t included, there were 3 pricing structures: continental for 120 Reais ($21), the Fasano Breakfast for 180 Reais ($32), and regular à la carte dishes.

A simple omelet, for example, cost 33 Reais ($5.85), an excellent value for a luxury 5-star hotel. For comparison, I recently stayed in a hotel in the U.S. that charged $26 for a breakfast burrito.

Breakfast menu at the Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro — You’d struggle not to find something you like on this menu.

Dad and I thoroughly enjoyed our breakfast each morning. I stuck to my usual fruit bowl, followed by an egg white omelette with some fillings.

Fruit platter at the Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro — Brazilian fruit is juicier, sweeter, fresher.

Dad loves a breakfast buffet, so he filled his plate a couple of times. He also ordered a dish (or 2) from the à la carte menu each morning.

The Fasano Breakfast included eggs either scrambled, fried, or as an omelet, so my order each morning fell into that category. Extras like Dad’s eggs Benedict and the pancakes I ordered on the last day would have been an extra charge. It’s safe to say we got our money’s worth.

The breakfast area at the Fasano Rio de Janeiro — When the breakfast lighting hits just right.

At the bare minimum, we ate our way through a Fasano Breakfast each morning. That’s 3 days of 2 people eating a $32 meal, which comes to $192. I’ll value that at about $225 to account for some of the extra dishes we ordered.

Spa Credit: $150

When I saw that a $150 spa credit was included as one of the perks of booking through FHR, the deal was sealed. I’m a sucker for a massage.

I’m used to sky-high hotel massage prices, so I figured that $150 might be enough to cover most of the cost of a single massage. On this occasion, I decided that Dad deserved a massage more than I did. He’s probably one of a handful of people I’d forgo a massage for.

Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro spa form — The spa menu at Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro.

While perusing the spa menu, I realized that prices were around half what I expected. I was delighted. After a quick calculation, I realized that $150 of spa credit would almost cover a 50-minute relaxing massage for Dad and me.

Without thinking twice, I booked us both in for the following day.

This was hands down one of the best massages I’ve ever had. I’ll be back, for sure.

Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro spa — I need to pay this spa another visit.

Final Thoughts

Thanks to Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts, our unforgettable stay at the Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro was made even better.

Daniel and his dad — Enjoying the rooftop view at Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro.

The perks and benefits we enjoyed just because we booked via the platform totaled at least $1,200. Whether you prefer to view that as taking $1,200 off the cost of the stay or as $1,200 worth of complimentary benefits, it’s a tremendous amount of value to get solely because of booking via a particular channel.

Our stay here was the perfect end to our time in Rio and our fourth father-son trip to Brazil. I look forward to my next FHR booking, wherever in the world that might be.