TPG exclusive: How to earn a free night if you're one of the first 1,000 new Omni Select Guest members

There's an argument to be made that the golden age of travel isn't in the rearview, but instead is just around the corner.

With every passing day, we get closer to a widespread vaccine rollout and you can almost hear the hum of the proverbial travel engine returning to life. In a bid to capture some of that momentum, travel providers are coming up with rewarding, creative promotions and deals. To that end, TPG has partnered with Omni to offer the first 1,000 readers that sign up for a new (free) Select Guest account the chance to quickly earn a promotional free night good at any Omni property in North America.

Omni Hotels & Resorts has a far too overlooked loyalty program, Select Guest. I investigated the program a bit last year to see if the hotel chain, and its multiple luxury properties, were worth some of my business. In short: yes.

I uncovered a ton of value and had an overall great hotel experience. The icing on the cake is that with any Omni Select Guest status, you'll also earn status in the larger Global Hotel Alliance Discovery loyalty program, giving you benefits at hotels located around the world. (Pro tip: Don't overlook the local experience credits).

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Earn a free night certificate in just two nights

To encourage new Select Guest members to try this all out for themselves, Omni has come up with a fun, new promotion exclusive to TPG readers.

Here are the details:

• Register here for a new Select Guest account. You must join Select Guest from this link in order to take advantage of this promotion.
• Stay two nights at any Omni Hotels & Resorts in December and January (check out by Jan. 31). It can be two one-night stays or a single two-night stay. This promotion is flexible.
• The Monday following your check-out, you'll receive a promotional free night certificate in your Select Guest account.
• The free night certificate is good at any Omni Resorts & Hotels property in January or February 2021 (check in by Feb. 28).

Stack the savings

Obviously, the ideal scenario here is to have two very inexpensive paid nights in December or January and then redeem the free promotional night for an otherwise much more expensive stay or Omni property in early 2021.

You can use any of the current Omni specials to save on your two paid nights. There is currently a winter special of 20% off the best available rates. This lowered rates at the Omni Atlanta Hotel at CNN Center near us to $87 per night:

Factor on top of that another promotion that awards a $25 digital bonus on every $100 in purchased Omni gift cards and the deal gets even sweeter. If I purchase $200 in Omni gift cards under that bonus, I'll get a total of $250 in return to spend at Omni.

Related: What your hotel stay will look like after the pandemic

Maximize your free night

There are some Omni properties best described as diamonds in the rough, because you have to get off the beaten path to reach them -- which these days, really is a good thing.

I'm already an Omni Select Guest member, but I plan to use my wife's free promotional night that we'll earn with two inexpensive nights at the Omni Atlanta Hotel at CNN Center at a property that will deliver incredible value compared to what we paid to earn it.

Asheville, North Carolina, is home to the Omni Grove Park Inn, an incredible hotel in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains.

During peak season, which is almost the entire year, easily go for upwards of $300 per night. This is a great destination accessible by car for residents of the Southeast and is serviced by Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) with nonstop flights from 24 different cities.

If it's a bit too cold up north or east, consider the Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia. Just north of Camelback Mountain, the desert oasis is set in prime real estate to take advantage of outdoor activities in the Scottsdale area.

And in northern New Hampshire, you'll find a winter retreat that many travelers in the Northeast know and love. The Omni Mount Washington Resort is located at the Bretton Woods ski resort, and the landmark property is considered one of the most luxurious hotels in the area.

Related: What it's like to ski in a pandemic-era

There's also the historic Omni Homestead Resort in Virginia and even the all-inclusive Omni Cancun Hotels & Villas. Whether you want mountains, beach, desert or city, there are over 40 Omni properties to choose from.

Bottom line

I plan to do a staycation here in Atlanta with the aforementioned rates of just over $100 per night all-in, paid for with my $250 in Omni gift cards (including that $50 bonus). We'll then redeem the promotional night for a room at least double the cost of my $200 investment at the Omni Grove Park Inn.

But, those nights spent at the Omni in Atlanta aren't a waste of time or money. Given how little we get out right now, that should be a nice staycation in its own right.

In terms of safety, the Omni Safe & Clean program has procedures in place that call out precautions for every aspect of an Omni stay to prevent COVID-19 transmissions as much as possible.

Register now for Omni Select Guest and earn your free night after just two paid nights.

As an added bonus on top of this promotion, tune in to TPG's Night of Giveaways on Thursday, Dec. 17 at 6:30 p.m. ET for your chance to win one of four Omni Select Guest' top-tier Black Statuses that will be awarded on that night.