Are you a frequent hotel guest or only infrequently visiting a city with your preferred hotel chain? Is it too difficult and frustrating to keep up?
It can be frustrating and difficult to maintain hotel loyalty, especially with all the red tape involved in booking your stays. However, it does not have to be this way.
One program is more rewarding than the others, but it's also easier than the other. Hotels.com Rewards is a simple loyalty program that can be very useful for travelers. You can get 10 coffees for one, just like hotels.
Hotels.com Rewards Program is Different
You must stay at the hotels within their chains in order to earn points for most of the traditional hotel loyalty programs like World Of Hyatt and Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors or IHG Rewards. This can restrict where you can stay in any given city or limit your ability to choose the hotel you want.
These traditional loyalty programs require that you book directly with the hotel to receive points. Points can be used to unlock free nights or night credit towards elite status perks like free breakfast or room upgrades. You will miss out if you don't.
This can make it even more frustrating because bookings with online travel agencies (OTAs) such as Hotels.com and Expedia may offer lower rates. You are forced to choose between saving money or earning points.
This is also true for bookings through Chase Travel. The Sapphire Reserve Card earns 10X points but will not allow you to earn elite status perks and hotel points.
It seems unfair to have to make a choice!
You have to make a choice. Traditional hotel reward programs pay a higher commission than airlines, so they cannot fund commission to Expedia. It's either one or the other.
Hotels.com Rewards is all about where you book and not what you book. You can book with Hotels.com and stay at a Marriott, Hilton, or boutique hotel one night and earn points and nights towards a single goal.
Hilton, Hyatt or Marriott do not offer points, but you can still earn free nights with Hotels.com by moving from one brand to another. You can earn points by using other loyalty programs. Each night would work towards a different program.
How to Earn Rewards with Hotels.com
Hotels.com Rewards is like a coffee shop card punch.
If you come in 10 times, the 11th time is free. It's almost exactly the same for hotel nights. You can book hotels via Hotels.com Rewards by creating a free account. Once you have created an account, you will receive a night in your account. Your 11th night is yours for free after 10 nights.
The best part is that you get credit and perks for every night and room booked. You would have 10 rooms if you booked five rooms for two nights. Two rooms for five nights will give you the same. Other loyalty programs give credit only for the first or second room. You lose out if you have more!
Do not Forget 2X Nights
Double nights is a fun feature of the Hotels.com Rewards Program. For a limited period, you can earn credit up to two nights for every night that you stay at Hotels.com. You can earn a night free if you stay 5 nights or book 5 rooms instead of the usual 10.
What is the value of a Hotels.com complimentary night?
It is equal to the cost of 10 nights. Only taxes and fees are charged. If you book 10 nights at $100 per night, you will get $100 toward a free night. The average amount paid for each night is the sum of the nights paid, divided by 10.
Once, I was extremely lucky and my work covered $1700 for me. This really helped my average 10 night price. The night I averaged 300, which earned me a $440 night voucher.
Hotels.com Rewards is the best loyalty program for hotel stays if you don't already have elite status like Platinum or Gold. It's not exaggerated, it's a mathematical fact.
General guests are most likely to be rewarded by hotel loyalty programs that offer a best-in-class rebate of 7% via points, which can often have restrictions. Hotels.com Rewards gives you a rebate of between 8-10%, and no restrictions on how often you cash in.
Hotels.com: What to do if you don't earn rewards
Hotels.com has a few exceptions that may prevent you from earning rewards nights. These are worth noting. You don't want to cancel a vacation just to discover that your trip did not count. This is why you won't be able to earn Rewards Nights towards a hotel.com reward night.
Book a package, such as flight and hotel or flight and rental car.
To book a hotel stay, use a promo code.
You don't want to lose any rewards that you have earned. Make sure you use your free night within 12 month of earning it. Or, book more stays. Hotels.com states that any reward nights or stamps you collect will expire if your Hotels.com Rewards account has not been used for bookings in the past 12 months.
What if the stay you want to book is more expensive than your reward night?
You don't have to worry if the price of the hotel you wish to book is higher than the value your reward night earned for your 11th-night free. You can still use your credit for any booking if the hotel you wish to book is more expensive than the credit that you earned for your 11th Night Free.
Let's say you booked 10 nights at $200 each and have a $200 voucher. The room you choose for your free night is $300. You can use $200 towards the $300 and only pay $100
This is especially useful if you book multiple nights and want to just use the money for the 11th night to offset the cost. You can even bill work nights and pay with your Hotels.com account. This will give you free nights on work travel.
Hotels.com Rewards Elite Status & Perks
Hotels.com Rewards offers elite status tiers that are easy to use. If you book 10 nights within a year, your status is silver, and if you book 30, you will earn gold. The Hotels.com Rewards program offers elite statuses that include price guarantees, exclusive prices, and priority customer service.
The Hotels.com Rewards program offers the best benefits, but Gold is the place where the real benefits begin. Gold guests get room upgrades and VIP access to certain hotels. Learn more about elite status.
Hotels.com Rewards: Should you use them instead of other hotel loyalty programs?
It's entirely up to you. You will likely earn more perks if you stay at least 30 nights per year and stick with one chain.
Hotels.com Rewards is the best way to receive a solid rebate on hotel stays if you don't stay as many nights per year or do not care about small perks. You can choose your rewards, which can be very good.
Hotels.com Rewards can be joined and you can book here.
