Hotel credit cards offer all kinds of fantastic perks, ranging from elite status to free night awards. In the case of Hilton Honors, there are four co-branded American Express cards, with annual fees ranging from $0 to $550. Two of these cards offer the opportunity to earn one or more free night rewards per year…
Continue reading: How To Earn & Redeem Hilton Honors Free Night Awards, Get The Best Value
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Hilton is outstanding when it comes to Free Night Awards, if you can find Standard Awards available, as opposed to Premium, at high-value properties, resulting in +3x value. Think a 150K night for a $1,500 room, just for the FNC. This is one reason why I have and keep my Hilton Aspire Amex, literally for the annual FNC upon anniversary. The only issue is that you have to call it in to use. They should make it easier to use online. If they ever turn it into Marriott's 85K certificate with max 15K added, that'd be hella-lame. IHG Premier is just a 40K off. Hyatt Cat 1-4 is super limited to low-cost properties, unless you have a stay at the Park Hyatt in Doha or something.
I earned my first FNC last year when I got the Aspire card. I had already booked the Conrad Bora Bora for 4 nights to get the 5th night free and then added a FNC for the 6th night. Headed there in August!
You can generally justify the AF if stay at Hilton even infrequently and visit at least 1 resort per year. The annual cert puts you into the black.
Huge fan of getting put “into the black.” Also, if you can manage to stagger two resorts per year, one Jan-June, and the other July-Dec, using those $200 semi-annual resort credits, wowza, it’s a super-“into-the-black” card!
Awesome. PH Doha is dope, especially for a Cat 4. Kinda surprised it isn’t higher (shhh, don’t tell ‘em). Cash rates aren’t ‘cheap’ either, like $500+/night. Still relatively new (2019). Great location (in the more traditional area, near the Souq and the Corniche waterfront area, within 15 minutes of Hamad International airport). It’s got several decent restaurants (rooftop with epic views) and a spa. Yup, huge fan, especially if you got the free night, have an overnight layover at DOH, and don’t wanna pay $330+ on the Oryx airport hotel or spend 12 hours in a lounge. (Of course, with ‘tensions’ in the region, could get ‘interesting’ over there in the coming weeks/months. Be safe!)
I have the Aspire and so does my spouse. Last year we used them at WA Beverly Hills for a combined two night stay. Love that hotel. I also earned two additional nights from spend on the card last year. Since we are headed to Copenhagen in June anyway, YOU inspired us to book two nights at Nimb Hotel. The nights we snagged a{pear to go for over $1000/ night. We are very pleased with this card and we routinely get value from it.
Agreed. 2x200 + 200 for flight credits (easy to use). The cert easily worth 500-1000. We have 2 cards and use them for same trips (split charges).
My kingdom in exchange for the ability to redeem free night certificates online. Will HH ever do this?
Seriously, in this day and age, online redemptions should be a given. Hilton still living in the mid-2000s in that regard.
Oh, friends, that is 100% by-design; it’s not that they don’t have the capability, it’s that they want to slow-down your ability to redeem these, and also to pitch you on a time-share…
@Ben... I tried using my certificate for my parents this weekend, since they are staying in the Conrad Bali. My mom was gonna use hers for one night, and I was gonna book the other with mine. Apparently they have changed the policy or are enforcing it, so you can't use yours for someone else. They'll put your name on it and they could be an additional guest. However, I won't be in country and it will be my mom and dad.
I also tried two different agent, and got the same result. The first one told me that management had a talking to and training to make sure that people weren't doing this. Take that for what it is.