Wyndham Rewards members have less than three weeks to lock in the current award rates at the program’s most expensive hotels.
Wyndham announced earlier this summer that it will introduce a new award chart on September 15, 2026. Although the program will retain fixed redemption prices, the current three tiers will expand to four:
- 5,000 points
- 15,000 points
- 30,000 points
- 45,000 points
The current tiers are 7,500, 15,000 and 30,000 points per bedroom per night. Wyndham is promoting the reduction of its lowest tier from 7,500 to 5,000 points, while saying only a “small number” of its “most elevated hotels” will move to the new 45,000-point level.
That makes the change sound relatively balanced. Some inexpensive hotels will cost fewer points, while a handful of luxury properties will cost more.
However, that doesn’t tell the whole story.
Why This Is Still a Wyndham Rewards Devaluation
Wyndham Rewards has an enormous hotel portfolio, but much of it is made up of economy and midscale brands. The current 7,500-point tier includes plenty of Days Inn, Super 8, Microtel and Travelodge properties. Even at 15,000 points, you’ll find numerous La Quinta, Wingate, Baymont and Ramada hotels.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with using points for those properties, particularly when cash prices are unusually high. However, they aren’t generally the reason people get excited about collecting Wyndham Rewards points.
The real appeal has been the program’s relatively small number of upscale resorts, all-inclusive properties and hotels in expensive cities. Because Wyndham’s highest award tier tops out at 30,000 points, these hotels can provide considerably more value than redeeming the same points at an ordinary roadside property.
Starting September 15, some of those hotels will cost 45,000 points. That’s a 50% increase.
Wyndham says hotels will be “redistributed across all tiers,” with some moving higher, some moving lower, and many remaining where they are. Unfortunately, it hasn’t released a list of which hotels are changing.
That leaves members with less than three weeks to decide which current 30,000-point properties are most likely to become 45,000-point hotels.
Which Wyndham Hotels Could Increase?
The Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek is one of the most obvious possibilities. Located adjacent to Walt Disney World, it’s a popular choice for families who want to remain close to the parks without staying at a Disney-owned hotel.
Award nights currently cost 30,000 points. It’s also one of the relatively few Wyndham properties where we’d seriously consider redeeming a large number of points. That is, if we didn’t live 15 minutes away.
Another likely group includes Wyndham’s better resort properties, such as:
- Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach
- Wyndham Grand Rio Mar Rainforest, Beach and Golf Resort
- Wyndham Grand Cancun All-Inclusive Resort & Villas
- Wyndham Grand Barbados Sam Lords Castle All-Inclusive Resort
- Wyndham Grand Crete Mirabello Bay
Interestingly, Wyndham’s official page explaining the changes displays both Bonnet Creek and the Wyndham Grand Rio Mar beneath the announcement. That doesn’t confirm either hotel will increase, but their placement on the page certainly makes them worth watching.
Wyndham’s Registry Collection could provide even more candidates. This is the company’s luxury and distinctive hotel brand, with properties including:
- The Mining Exchange in Colorado Springs
- Balfour Miami Beach
- Bristol Panama
- TRS Coral Costa Mujeres
- TRS Yucatan Riviera Maya
- Grand Palladium Costa Mujeres
- Grand Palladium Punta Cana
Several Registry Collection properties are all-inclusive resorts where an award booking includes accommodations, meals, drinks and other benefits for two guests. These appear to be prime candidates for a higher redemption tier, especially since Wyndham cited growth in its “luxury, lifestyle, and all-inclusive” portfolio when explaining the changes.
Expensive Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Luxurious
Not every hotel that could increase is an upscale resort. Wyndham also has properties in expensive cities where the hotels themselves receive mixed reviews, but cash prices can still be high.
New York provides several examples, including the TRYP by Wyndham New York City Times Square/Midtown, The New Yorker and Wyndham Garden Chinatown. I wouldn’t necessarily describe these as Wyndham’s “most elevated hotels,” but they can be expensive because of their locations.
That raises an important question: Will Wyndham reserve the new tier for its genuinely best properties, or will some ordinary hotels move to 45,000 points because they’re located in high-cost markets?
That’s part of the problem. Wyndham doesn’t have an especially deep selection of desirable city hotels. If properties such as the TRYP in New York increase to 45,000 points, members may not get a luxury experience despite paying the program’s new luxury-level price.
Why Booking Now Makes Sense
Fortunately, Wyndham is handling existing reservations in a member-friendly way.
Award stays booked before September 15 will be honored at the current rate, even if the hotel subsequently moves from 30,000 to 45,000 points. Most Wyndham hotels can be reserved nearly a year in advance, although the exact booking window and cancellation rules vary by property.
Even better, Wyndham says that if a hotel moves to a lower tier, it will automatically refund the points difference for reservations made before the changes.
That makes a speculative reservation relatively low-risk:
- If the hotel increases, you keep the current award price.
- If the hotel decreases, Wyndham refunds the difference.
- If your plans change, you can cancel and have the points redeposited, subject to the hotel’s cancellation policy.
Wyndham credit cardholders should also consider how much larger the numbers become. With the cards’ 10% award discount, a 30,000-point hotel currently costs 27,000 points. A 45,000-point award would cost 40,500 points.
We currently have more than 100K Wyndham Rewards points. At 27,000 points per night, that’s enough for four nights at a top-tier hotel. At 40,500 points, the same balance wouldn’t even cover three nights.
The introduction of a 5,000-point tier may be good news for travelers who regularly stay at Wyndham’s least expensive properties. But it doesn’t offset a 50% increase at the relatively few Wyndham hotels where we’d most want to use our points.
Wyndham hasn’t told us which hotels will increase. With less than three weeks remaining, however, anyone considering Bonnet Creek, Rio Mar, a Registry Collection resort or another current 30,000-point property should seriously consider booking before September 15.
Once the new rates arrive, it will be too late to lock in the old price.
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