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Hilton updating how you earn points on hotel stays

Victoria M. Walker
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Victoria M. Walker is a former TPG senior travel reporter. She previously taught multimedia journalism at Howard University and was the breaking news video editor at The Washington Post.
Jan. 09, 2020
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3 min read
The Waldorf Hilton London-high category hilton
Hilton updating how you earn points on hotel stays
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Hilton yesterday announced that it would be rolling out a few positive changes on how Hilton Honors members earn points on room stays, as posted by Hilton's William Sanders on Flyer Talk.

Here are some of the changes and what they mean for you.

Sanders says members will now be able to earn Base Points on up to four rooms on eligible multi-room reservations. Previously, the program allowed you to earn base points on two rooms only.

Related: How to Get Points When Booking Multiple Hotel Rooms

For airlines, miles that are earned are generally called “butt-in-seat” miles, meaning the person who is flying is the one who gets the miles. With hotels, however, you can book a hotel for someone else, and in many cases, you can still earn points and/or elite credit for booking multiple hotel rooms.

There will no longer be a limit on the number of base points a member can earn per stay. Previously, Hilton Honors members were unable to accrue more than 100,000 base points per stay at certain brands.

Hilton Honors members will now be able to earn points on eligible hotel incidental spend at all of Hilton Portfolio brands. Previously, Hilton Honors members only earned 10 points per dollar on room rates only (not other charges) at Hampton Inns and Homewood Suites. At Home2 Suites and Tru by Hilton, they only earned 5 base points per dollar spent.

Sanders said the hotel will release the updated terms and conditions on Jan. 9, and we will update this post when they're live.

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If you're thinking about adding a Hilton co-branded credit card to your wallet to earn even more points, you have several options including:

  • Hilton Honors American Express Card
  • Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
  • Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
  • Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express

Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express will net you 150,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of opening your account. You also earn 14 points per dollar spent at participating Hilton hotels, 7 points per dollar spent at U.S. restaurants, flights booked directly with airlines or through amextravel.com and car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies and 3 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases.

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.

While the Aspire is arguably the “best bang for your buck”, be sure to look at the full portfolio of cards to see which card works best for you.

You can also use transferable points, as American Express Membership Rewards transfer to Hilton Honors at a 1:2 ratio. The program does run transfer bonuses from time to time, but since TPG values Amex points at 2 cents per point and Hilton Honors points at 0.6 cents per point, even transferring during a bonus period likely won’t make sense.

Featured image by (Photo courtesy Hilton)
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.