Hotel Redemptions

[Anonymous]

Hi guys,

My parents are going to Europe in mid April 2015 and I'm trying to get them to apply for some new cards so they can get some sweet CC bonuses on hotels. Assuming they can hit the spending requirements in the first month or two of having the card do you think it's feasible to get the rewards and book hotels before they go?

Cards I'm looking at for them:

Hyatt

Marriott

Citi Hilton

Any and all recommendations are welcome!

[Anonymous]

Ritz-Carlton and Marriott would be a great combo.

[jsucool76]

Hinton is kinda bleh. Every room costs a bazillion points because they're so devalued.

Marriott and Ritz will definitely be the most profitable bonus combo for their trip (as right now you can get 50k from Marriott and 140k from Ritz)

Hyatt offers a great rewards program with a pretty good card. However I don't think there is a point sign up bonus, it is 2 free night certificates but those can also be valuable. Also Hyatt's version of cash+points is a fantastic way to book rooms.

[dilettante]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hi guys,

My parents are going to Europe in mid April 2015 and I'm trying to get them to apply for some new cards so they can get some sweet CC bonuses on hotels. Assuming they can hit the spending requirements in the first month or two of having the card do you think it's feasible to get the rewards and book hotels before they go?

Cards I'm looking at for them:

Hyatt

Marriott

Citi Hilton

Any and all recommendations are welcome!

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Depending on where in Europe, hotels with points or cash can be very expensive.  With that being said, in general, there are advantages to each of these cards, so depending on where, how your parents like to travel, what the budget is going to be, etc.:

Hyatt: sign up bonus will allow 2 free nights at ANY tier hotel - best value is usually at one of the Park Hyatt's like Park Hyatt Vendome Paris. Comes with mid-tier status so free internet, possible upgrades, etc.  Only downside is the possiblility of not being able to use certs at the hotel of choice but in April, should be no problem.

Citi Hilton: for the AF version, get 2 free weekend nights at any Hilton, including Waldorf Astoria properites, mid-tier status (upgrades, free wi-fi, breakfast, etc.). Downside: certs have to be used for weekend stay.

Marriott: Need lots of points to stay in popular cities, sign up bonus will only get you one night in decently located properties (even then some of their basic rooms are tiny, especially in Europe).  Ritz card might be a better choice with 140k bonus and mid-tier status (Gold). Marriott does have quite a few properties at different levels at popular European destinations so you will have more choices of how to use points.  For example, in Paris, with 160-180k points, you would be able to stay at centrally located property for 5 nights with points(5th night with points are always free) or they have option to use points plus cash.

There are a lot of factors to consider in deciding which card would be best: what cities, where are the hotel chain's properties are located within the city and what are your parents style of travel (inside or outside of main attractions, budget, big vs. boutique size, want extras like free breakfast, etc).  So I would begin by looking at what hotels are available in the cities they will be traveling to and look at the points/cost, relative location to what they want to do.

I have around 200k leftover Marriott/Ritz points but won't be using them for my trip to Paris because couldn't find any properties that would work for me (location, room size. level of hotel and service).  So instead, I will be using the Citi Prestige card for the free 4th night benefit in one city and the Amex Plat for the FHR benefits in another, etc. There's always some way to get hotel value from credit cards

[sillykitty1]

Totally depends on where in Europe your parents are going.  Once outside of capital and very large cities, US chains are few and far between.

Speaking to Marriott specifically, they are often not well located for a tourist.  They are often in business districts, or near the airport.  I put high value on being well located.  Vacation time is precious, and I don't want to spend it communting from my hotel to Tourist sites.

I would suggest your parents setting their itnerary, and then seeing what hotels work for the cities they are visiting.  Also check out Club Carlson and IHG ... both have a significant presence in Europe, and good sign up bonuses. 

[Chaselover]

Think of the csp also, ul gt 40k points which cn b transfrd to many different hotel progs.

[Anonymous]

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@Chaselover wrote:
Think of the csp also, ul gt 40k points which cn b transfrd to many different hotel progs.

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49,000-53,000 pts if you maximize.

[Anonymous]

Love the Wyndham Rewards by Barclay. It's a visa sig. Good luck!

[B335is]

My vote is Hilton just because I've been able to churn so many of their (Citi) cards. Coupled with the Amex version the points can add up fast, which they need to since redemption is high. But what hotel redemption isn't high these days?

For 200k points I was able to get a $300/night room in Australia for 5 nights but it also depends on the category and length of award stay. If i remember correctly i did 2 Citi cards plus an Amex card plus some moderate spend to get there.