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20 of the best Hilton hotels in the US bookable for 20k points or less per night
Katie Genter is a digital nomad who has traveled full time since June 2017. She writes and edits stories about points and miles, and loyalty programs, often letting her personal experiences color these stories.
October 7, 2020 • 12 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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Quick summary
Hilton Honors points can be redeemed for award nights at U.S. properties ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 points per night, though most are not in major tourist destinations.
TPG values Hilton Honors points at 0.6 cents each as of June 2024, making lower-cost redemptions a good way to stretch points for longer stays.
Elite members receive every fifth night free on award stays of five nights or more, increasing the value of points for extended trips.
The article highlights specific U.S. Hilton hotels where points can be maximized, including options near outdoor attractions, cities and airports.
What to consider
Award night pricing varies by date and location and may differ from historical data in Hilton's Points Explorer tool.
Most U.S. properties bookable for 20,000 points or less per night are outside popular tourist areas, making them better suited for road trips or visits to friends and family.
Elite status is required to access the fifth-night-free benefit on award stays.
What you'll miss from the article
A curated list of specific Hilton properties in the U.S. where you can maximize your points for affordable award nights.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Each traveler uses their hotel points differently. Some redeem large amounts of points to unlock aspirational hotel stays while others redeem their points slowly on modest redemptions.
In the Hilton Honors program, award night prices vary based on your dates and location. But, you can expect to pay between 5,000 and 120,000 points per night when redeeming Hilton Honors points for a standard room reward.
Sure, you could use most or all of the bonus on one night through a luxury Hilton Honors redemption. But, today, I'll focus on my preference: redeeming Hilton Honors points at hotels that allow me to stretch my Hilton points across many nights. Specifically, I'll describe just how many Hilton Honors nights you can get from the current welcome bonuses on several travel rewards cards. I'll also discuss some of my favorite domestic Hilton Hilton properties that cost 20,000 points or less per night.
Redeeming for a standard room at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island will usually cost you 95,000 points per night. (Photo by Tom Grahsler/The Points Guy)
The Hilton Honors program doesn't have award charts. But, you can use the Hilton Points Explorer tool to see the minimum and maximum point values that Hilton Honors members have redeemed at each property for a one-night stay in a standard room. Unfortunately, the Points Explorer tool uses historical values instead of current values. So, you may see a different award night cost when you go to book a particular property.
As I mentioned above, standard room award nights in the Hilton Honors program range from 5,000 points per night to 120,000 points per night. However, I didn't find any properties in the U.S. for less than 10,000 points per night. And, most properties cost 20,000 points or more per night.
In this guide, I focus on Hilton Honors hotels with a maximum point value of 20,000 points per night or less according to the Points Explorer tool. TPG's most recent valuation pegs the value of Hilton points at 0.6 cents each, so 20,000 points are worth about $120, 15,000 points are worth about $90 and 10,000 points are worth about $60.
Finally, Hilton offers every fifth night free on award stays of five nights or longer to Hilton Honors Silver, Gold and Diamond elites. You only need four stays, 10 nights or 25,000 base points per year with Hilton to earn Silver status. Hilton Honors elite status also comes as a perk of some Hilton Honors credit cards, The Platinum Card® from American Express and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express.
Now, let's look at the current welcome bonuses and the minimum number of award nights these bonuses can get you.
Card
Welcome bonus
Annual fee
Elite status provided by the card
Maximum 10k award nights from bonus
Maximum 15k award nights from bonus
Maximum 20k award nights from bonus
Hilton Honors American Express Card
Earn 80,000 bonus points after you spend $1,000 in purchases on the card in the first three months of card membership.
$0 (see rates & fees)
Silver
10
6
4
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after you spend $2,000 in purchases on the card in the first three months of card membership.
$95 (see rates & fees).
Gold
16
10
7
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the card in the first three months of card membership.
$95 (see rates & fees)
Gold
16
10
7
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
150,000 Hilton bonus points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within your first 3 months
$450 (see rates & fees)
Diamond
18
12
8
The Platinum Card from American Express
100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on purchases on the Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
$695 (see rates & fees)
Gold
15
10
7
The Business Platinum Card from American Express
120,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Platinum Card within the first three months of card membership.
$595 ($695 if application is received on or after 01/13/2022) (see rates and fees)
Gold
18
12
8
The information for the Hilton Aspire Amex card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
The number of nights you can get from just one welcome bonus is pretty exciting. But, let's be honest: most of the Hilton properties bookable for 20,000 points or less in the U.S. aren't aspirational. And, most aren't in popular tourist destinations.
So, many of these properties are better suited for visiting friends and family or taking a road trip. But, if you set your expectations appropriately, you may find some hidden gems. With this mindset, let's take a closer look at some of my favorite options for stretching your Hilton Honors points in the U.S.
You could stay at a 10,000-point Hilton hotel while driving historic Route 66. (Photo by Bill Dickinson/Getty Images)
There are only 14 properties in the U.S. with a maximum nightly rate of 10,000 Hilton points in the Points Explorer tool. Here are a few of the best-located properties.
Hampton Inn Miami, Oklahoma: Located on Route 66 near historic Ribbon Road (an original section of scenic Route 66)
Hampton Inn Deming, New Mexico: Located just off I-10 but there are two local wineries within five miles of the hotel and Deming hosts the Great American Duck Race during the third weekend of August each year
Hilton Garden Inn Tulsa South, Oklahoma: Located in southeast Tulsa
Hampton Inn & Suites Center, Texas: Located just off Highway 96 in Texas’ Piney Woods area
Hampton Inn La Junta, Colorado: Located on Highway 50, just an 11-minute walk from the Arkansas River
If you visit White Sands National Monument, consider staying at the Hampton Inn Alamogordo. (Photo by Seth K. Hughes/Getty Images)
230 Hilton properties in the U.S. have a maximum nightly rate of 20,000 Hilton points in the Points Explorer tool. There are also two properties with a maximum nightly rate of 15,000 points. So, now let's take a look at some of the best domestic Hilton hotels bookable for 20,000 points per night.
Hotels for outdoor trips
Especially as socially distinct outdoor trips grow in popularity, hotels near outdoor destinations may have high cash rates but low award night rates. This is the case for the properties below, which offered relatively good award availability for the dates I checked.
There are a lot of inexpensive award stay opportunities with Hilton near Atlanta, Georgia (Photo by Sean Pavone/Getty Images)
You can't stay centrally located in most popular tourist destinations with 20,000 Hilton points or less per night. But, you can sometimes find properties on the outskirts of large cities, or in the heart of less popular cities, that won't break the bank. Here are a few examples I found:
Hampton Inn Atlanta/Stone Mountain, Georgia: Located near Stone Mountain just east of Atlanta
DoubleTree by Hilton Decatur Riverfront, Alabama: Located on the edge of Historic Downtown Decatur overlooking the Tennessee River and Steamboat Bill Memorial Bridge. The property is west of Huntsville, so the U.S. Space & Rocket Center is only 20 minutes away. Plus, you can book river view rooms for no surcharge.
Homewood Suites by Hilton Atlanta-Peachtree, Georgia: Located in Peachtree Corners just 30 minutes from downtown Atlanta
Home2 Suites by Hilton Atlanta Norcross, Georgia: Located northeast of downtown Atlanta
Home2 Suites by Hilton Knoxville West, Tennessee: Located just off interstate 40 west of Knoxville
Hampton Inn Bowling Green, Ohio: Located across from Bowling Green State University
Hotel prices around some airports can be sky-high. So, using hotel points for these stays can be incredibly valuable. Here are a few hotels near airports that may also be attractive for a more extended stay if you're visiting any of these cities. Plus, all of these hotels offer a free airport shuttle.
DoubleTree by Hilton Columbus, Georgia: Located just off interstate 85 right across from Columbus Airport
Hilton Kansas City-Airport, Missouri: Located about 15 minutes outside downtown Kansas City; the free airport shuttle will also take you anywhere within five miles of the hotel, including Zona Rosa
Hampton Inn Dulles/Cascades, Virginia: Located on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., near Washington's wine country and Dulles (IAD) airport
Unfortunately, there aren't any amazing Hilton sweet spots in the U.S. that cost 20,000 points or less per night. However, this doesn't mean that Hilton points aren't useful if you want to stretch your points while traveling domestically. Using the hotels in this guide, and some of the other Hilton hotels costing 20,000 points per night or less that didn't make the list, could easily facilitate a cross-country road trip.
For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Amex, please click here. For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Surpass Card, click here. For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Business Amex, click here. For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Aspire Amex, click here. For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum card, click here. For rates and fees of the Amex Business Platinum card, click here.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
