Gift cards have been around for about 30 years. Neiman Marcus introduced them in 1994, but Blockbuster Video was the first company to offer them on a nationwide scale, about two years later. They’ve taken off since, and with good reason – they’re easy to find, easy to gift wrap and easy to mail. Plus, you may get a discount on them, depending on where and how you get them. They’re kinda like the old Hallmark greeting card commercial, “When you care enough to send the very best” (but don’t want to put a whole lot of thought or effort into the gift LOL).
Anyway, Hilton sells gift cards that can be purchased in a variety of denominations, although increments of $25, $50, $100, $250 and $500 are the most popular. They can be used for most purchases at Hilton-branded hotels, including dining, room service, recreational activities and paying for a room at checkout (note: you can’t use a Hilton gift card to book or hold a room).
Difficulties using Hilton gift cards
People Couldn’t use them.
Anyway, over the years, people have expressed some difficulties using Hilton gift cards. More often than not, the hotel’s front desk person didn’t know how to use the gift card.
Here’s a typical problem, as described by YoLeonard, a Redditor who tried to get assistance on the Hilton subReddit about 2 years ago:
…We just had a one night stay this last weekend at a Home2 Suites. The staff was very understanding and really went out of their way to try and figure out how to apply the gift card balance since the gift card had almost double the total cost for the stay. The on-duty manager called the Amex number on my behalf to figure out the issue, and after we both talked to them, I was told by the Amex representative that the gift card will not work at a Hilton location due to the pre-authorization and will need to be used elsewhere. I was dumbfounded that I couldn’t use my Hilton gift card to pay for the cost of my room.
And from UserMark in a Flyertalk forum from September, 2023:
After many successful uses, last month I ran into 2 cases where Hilton gift cards did not work (Hilton Windhoek, Hampton Concord NC). When I called the number on the back of the card they told me that in each case, the cards were declined due to fraud/security concerns. Now, I’m not too sure how using a Hilton gift card at a Hilton could possibly be a fraud concern. The people at the gift card call center were completely unconcerned about this issue and cheerfully informed me that the balance on the card was intact and that I should try to use it at another hotel. But it really is a significant problem. Here I am, happily running up charges and expecting them to be covered by the gift card, and all of a sudden I have to come up with the money myself at checkout.
Surcharges and/or fees
Other people have reported inappropriate charges for using Hilton gift cards, including $6.95 in fees to use the card, hold fees of up to 20% of the card’s value, and other issues as well.
Doctor of Credit wrote an entire post about the problems people have had with Hilton gift cards in Sept. 2024 (Spoilers from Doctor of Credit:
it seems that if you have the front desk run the gift card as a credit card, not as a gift card, that would obviate the processing issues.
It’s a roundabout way of doing things, but it’s a fix, so that’s one issue solved—that’s good to know!
Update: shortage of cards
But then another issue popped up – as early as last month, buyhiltongiftcards.com recently had a notification on their website that there was a “shortage” of Hilton gift cards.
Dear Hilton Gift Card Purchasing Consumer – due to an unforeseen inventory shortage of Hilton Gift Cards, RPG has been instructed to temporarily suspend the sales of Hilton gift cards until card inventory is replenished, by the Hilton Program Management Team. We are expecting replenished inventory to be available within the next eight weeks. RPG, along with the Hilton Gift Card Management Team, apologizes for this unexpected delay, and appreciates your understanding as we work closely with all relevant parties to resolve this shortage as expediently as possible.
But here’s the weird thing – anecdotally, several people have said they’ve been able to place an order for Hilton gift cards from the site and got notification that they were shipped. Others have said they tried to order from the site but could not.
Normally, a gift card shortage wouldn’t be a big deal. But it was for those trying to order the gift cards to use their quarterly credit from their Hilton Business, Hilton Honors American Express Surpass and, most recently, American Express Platinum Business cards. They’ll have to sit and wait or find another way to use the credit.
But if you’re trying to order a Hilton gift card for another reason, especially in light of their frequent difficulty of use, you may be better off buying a Visa or Mastercard gift card. 😉
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