I checked out Bilt's new Home Away from Home hotel collection — here's what you need to know
Editor's Note
Many credit card issuers have their own luxury hotel program — think American Express' Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Edit by Chase Travel℠. These programs are available to only the most premium cardholders and come with benefits such as free breakfast and complimentary room upgrades.
Bilt shook things up in July when it announced its new Home Away from Home hotel collection, which is available to members with Gold status and above — whether or not they have the Bilt Mastercard®.
I booked a stay at the Ritz-Carlton in Portland, Oregon, through Home Away from Home to test out the benefits.
The information for the Bilt Mastercard has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Booking through Bilt Home Away from Home
Before I booked my stay, I compared the prices and benefits among four booking platforms: Bilt Home Away from Home, Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts, Chase's The Edit and directly with Marriott.
| Program | Cash price | Points price | Benefits |
|---|---|---|---|
Bilt Home Away from Home | $667 | Not available for this booking, but would be 53,300 for this price if available |
|
Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts | $667 | 66,700 |
|
Chase's The Edit | $667 | 33,350 (thanks to a Points Boost deal at time of booking) |
|
Marriott | $654 | 110,500 |
|
*If available
The cash price through the three issuer collections was the same at $667 per night. Even though this is $13 more than booking directly with Marriott, each collection includes more than $100 in added value, so booking through one of these programs was a no-brainer.
It is worth noting that not all properties in Bilt Home Away from Home are available to book with points. Bilt has told us that it's working to increase the number of properties available to book with points, but be sure to check the property you want to book if you're hoping to use points.
To book, simply search in Bilt's travel portal (either through bilt.com or the Bilt app) for hotels in a given destination and date range. If you have Gold status or above, Home Away from Home properties will be flagged within your search. You can also add a filter in your search so that only Home Away from Home properties show up.
Related: A comparison of luxury hotel programs from credit card issuers
Bilt Home Away from Home benefits
Early check-in
Home Away from Home stays include early check-in and late checkout when available. My flight got in early, so I alerted my travel concierge (more on that below) that I was hoping to score an early check-in. I was thrilled to learn that my room was ready for me as soon as I arrived — no leaving my bags behind and needing to kill time before check-in.
Daily breakfast
Home Away from Home stays include a daily breakfast credit for up to two people, but the amount of the credit and ways it can be used vary among properties.
The daily breakfast for two at this property came in the form of an $80 breakfast credit to use either in the hotel restaurant or for a room service order, but did not apply to tax, tip, alcohol purchases or service fees.
$100 property credit
As with other hotel programs, you'll receive a $100 property credit as part of your booking. Once again, the exact things covered by the credit will vary among properties.
I was able to use mine toward food and drinks at the hotel bar or restaurant, which was perfect for grabbing appetizers and drinks before heading out for the evening.
Room upgrade
I booked a deluxe king room, but I was upgraded to a room on a high floor with a mountain view. While not necessarily a huge monetary difference, the higher floor made for some great views, making the experience even better.
Bonus points
You'll earn 2 Bilt Points per dollar spent when booking any travel through Bilt's portal, plus the 2 Bilt points per dollar spent on a travel purchase if you book with your Bilt Mastercard, for a total of 4 Bilt points per dollar spent if you book with your Bilt card. You must use your card five times each statement period to earn points.
Even better — I also earned Marriott Bonvoy points for my stay, which isn't always a given when booking through a third party.
Related: What you need to know about direct vs. third-party travel bookings
Dedicated Bilt travel concierge
After booking my stay through Home Away from Home, I was given a dedicated travel concierge through Virtuoso to help with anything I needed. Right away, she gave me some general recommendations for things to do during my stay.
She also made sure my room was ready for early check-in, recommended a restaurant for dinner that was part of Bilt Dining (so I earned even more Bilt points!) and made dinner reservations for me. Even better, messaging her was easy — I had a chat feature as a part of my travel details in my Bilt app and on the homepage of my Bilt account.
Bilt has also announced that personalized neighborhood guides will be available later this year. These guides will include local recommendations to help you make even better decisions about where to go and what to do while you're traveling.
Bottom line
Bilt's Home Away from Home collection is an excellent addition to the Bilt Rewards program, especially for anyone who wants access to a premium property collection without being tied to one premium credit card. The benefits of the property credit, daily breakfast and dedicated concierge made it an easy decision to book through the collection — with the added benefit of earning bonus Bilt points on my stay. Home Away from Home is certainly a collection to keep on your radar, especially as Bilt continues to make it even better.
Related reading:
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