I downgraded my AMEX Platinum card to Gold card before the annual fee renews. It is a great card for travel. Unfortunately, I won’t travel as much for 2019. The plan is to upgrade again in 2020 when my travel picks up again. Without travel, it’s difficult to justify the $750 annual fee. That is, we could not extract enough value to offset the fee. With two AMEX Gold card accounts, it is only $250 for the annual fee each. It’s not ideal. However, it preserves the age of the account and gives me a path for upgrading back in 2020. Another benefit is that the account numbers remain the same, which takes care of items that are auto-billing. I would miss the Gold status at Hilton and Marriott hotels if I were to travel like this past year. Same for the Priority Pass and Centurion Lounge access. I can forego these for a year. #amex #travel