Before 2020, hotel loyalty program promotions had become unnecessary for hotels to fill rooms. People were traveling at never seen before levels and hotels were full.
I believe that the major chains still offered hotel promotions to keep loyal customers from straying to other brands. The bonuses provided were enough to keep people stuck to one chain to keep your benefits. Very rarely did you see a promotion so lucrative that it would cause you to move stays to a different brand, save for a one-off trip where your preferred chain wasn’t convenient or affordable.
Hotel promotions were mostly geared to business travelers offering the biggest bonuses for multiple stays over the promotion period. For example, you’d earn a bonus on every 5th stay or bonus points wouldn’t be awarded until your 3rd stay. Of course, that’s not worth anything if you’re only going to stay at a hotel chain once or twice during the promo.
Here’s where Hilton Honors have changed things up with its Summer “More Nights, More Points” promotion which started on May 3rd and runs through September 6th, 2021.
Instead of giving more points for multiple stays, Hilton is rewarding members for longer stays.
- Double Bonus Points for stays of up to two (2) Nights.
- Triple Bonus Points for stays of three (3) nights or more.
Once registered for the promotion, you’ll earn at least double points for all stays. This has been a mainstay for many of the recent Hilton promotions. The main difference with this one is that stays of three nights or more earn triple points.
This is a huge shift in a promotion structure as previously Hilton, and other chains, have rewarded members for the NUMBER of stays, not the LENGTH of the stay.
For example, the previously offered Points Unlimited promotion only provided 2,000 bonus points PER STAY, regardless of length.
Here’s how much of a difference in bonus points earned this makes if you’re staying 6-nights at a Hilton property that costs $150 per night before taxes and fees.
- More points, More nights. $150 x 10 base points/dollar x 6 nights = 9000 points + 18000 bonus points = 27000
- Points Unlimited (2020 promo) $150 x 10 base points/dollar x 6 nights = 9000 points + 2000 bonus points = 11000
That’s a massive difference in points earned. If you’re a family that only takes one or two trips a year, it might even make sense to move to a Hilton property if you’re considering equivalent Marriott or IHG hotels.
Some things to remember:
- You need to register before you check out of your hotel. Reservations made before the promotion are eligible for the bonus.
- Bonus points are rewarded on the base earning level of 10 points per dollar. Any extra points earned because of status or having a co-brand credit card are not eligible to earn double points.
If you have any other questions, like how they will handle stays that start before the promotion or if you check out after the end date, along with many other things are answered at this FAQ page.
Like other hotel promotions, it doesn’t hurt to register even if you don’t have any Hilton stays planned this summer. It’s nice that Hilton cares for procrastinators by allowing members to register for promotions until check out instead of the other chains that make you register before you check-in.
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
