How much is Radisson Rewards Americas elite status worth in 2022?
Earning hotel elite status is one of the best ways to make your travel experience more rewarding and enjoyable. There can be a massive difference between staying as an elite versus a non-elite member — from upgrades to bonus points to free breakfast.
But how can you actually quantify the value that this status brings?
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Radisson Rewards doesn't benefit from the ubiquity of properties offered by other hotel chains such as Marriott and Hilton. In the U.S., the program is relatively unknown, and due to changing data privacy regulations, the program recently split into two: one for customers in the Americas, and one for customers elsewhere. Radisson Rewards Americas covers the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America.
I'll give you an overview of the benefits included with each Radisson Rewards Americas elite status tier and assign a cash value based on metrics I've laid out below. Use this guide to help you decide if it's worth chasing Radisson Rewards Americas status in 2022.
How we developed these valuations
Let me begin with the usual disclaimer: The calculations that follow represent just one way to estimate the value of elite status with Radisson Rewards.
You may not value free breakfast. Your primary motive for travel could be work-related and therefore fancy room upgrades at check-in might not matter very much. Feel free to adjust the numbers based on your own personal travel patterns and how much value you'd enjoy from each applicable benefit.
Another key difference is the level of complexity that many hotel loyalty programs provide. Airline elite status benefits are more consistent; they generally don't change based on the departure city or arrival city. Hotels are the opposite. You may earn the same number of points when you stay at a Radisson Blu or a Country Inn & Suites, but the on-property benefits (and thus the value you get from each night's stay) can vary widely.
We'll be making a number of assumptions as we analyze the value of hotel elite status. For Radisson Rewards, we've assumed the following:
- You complete 20% more nights than the minimum required for the given level.
- You spend an average of $150 per night on eligible charges.
- Your average stay is two nights.
Your stay and spending patterns may be quite different, so feel free to adjust these numbers up or down. There's no single right way to conduct this type of analysis; running the numbers for yourself is an important step in determining whether it's worth going for the next level.
Two final reminders: For the sake of this analysis, I'm basing the value of any bonus points you earn on TPG's most recent valuations, which value Radisson points at 0.4 cents apiece. To simplify the numbers, I'm also rounding all valuations to the nearest $5.
Related: Your complete guide to earning Radisson Rewards points
Radisson Rewards Americas elite status tiers
Radisson offers three elite status tiers, with its top-notch Platinum status offering suite upgrades when available, free breakfast and tons of bonus points on Radisson stays.
| Member | Silver | Gold | Platinum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifications | 0-8 nights or 0-5 stays. | 9 nights or 6 stays. | 30 nights or 20 stays. | 60 nights or 30 stays. |
| Points for hotel stays | 20 per dollar. | 22 per dollar. | 25 per dollar. | 35 per dollar. |
| Discounts on food and beverage | 5%. | 10%. | 15%. | 20%. |
| Rollover nights | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Complimentary room upgrades | ✓ | ✓ | ✓(including suites) | |
| Early check-in and late checkout | Up to two extra hours on both ends of the reservation. | Up to two extra hours on both ends of the reservation. | Up to two extra hours on both ends of the reservation. | |
| In-room welcome gift | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Room availability guarantee | Eligible when booking 72 hours in advance. | Eligible when booking 48 hours in advance. | ||
| Free breakfast | ✓ | |||
| Platinum Member Services line | ✓ |
So, how much value does Radisson Rewards offer its faithful elite members?
Radisson Silver: $70
Silver status is granted after just six stays or nine nights, making it one of the easiest hotel statuses to earn. It's nominally better than having no status at all — through its ability to receive complimentary upgrades at check-in and potential early check-in and late check-out.
| Benefit details | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Points for hotel stays | You'll earn 22 Radisson points per dollar for Radisson hotel stays. This is 2 points higher than non-elite members earn.
With 11 nights at $150 per night, you'll spend a total of $1,650, earning 3,300 extra points. | $15. |
| Discounts on food and beverage | You'll receive a 10% discount for on-property food and drink. This is just a 5% discount beyond what non-elite members receive. Also, the discount may not apply to all properties and it doesn't apply to things like tax/tip, alcohol, room service or in-room dining.
Our valuation is assuming you spend $100 on food throughout 11 nights. | $5. |
| Complimentary room upgrades | If there are available rooms, you're eligible to be upgraded to a room with a preferred location or a preferred view, or a recently renovated room. | $25. |
| Early check-in and late checkout | You can potentially receive check-in two hours early and checkout two hours late, both dependent upon availability. This can be a big deal, especially if you're staying at an aspirational property. | $25. |
| Total | $70. |
Related: Mistakes to avoid when redeeming hotel points
Radisson Gold: $365
To earn Gold status in the Radisson Rewards program, you would typically need 30 nights or 20 stays in a calendar year. We'll assume 36 nights split evenly between full-service and discount locations for this valuation.
| Benefit details | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Points for hotel stays | You'll earn 25 Radisson points per dollar for Radisson hotel stays. This is 5 points higher than non-elite members earn.
With 36 nights at $150 per night, you'll spend a total of $5,400, earning 27,000 extra points. | $110. |
| Discounts on food and beverage | You'll receive a 15% discount for on-property food and drink — a 10% increase over the discount non-elite members receive. Again, this perk may not apply to all Radisson properties, and it doesn't apply to tax/tip, alcohol, room service or in-room dining. | $30. |
| Complimentary room upgrades | You'll receive space-available upgrades, presumably with a better success rate than a lower status level. You may be upgraded to a room with a preferred location or a preferred view, or a recently renovated room. | $100. |
| Early check-in and late checkout | Same benefit, more frequent utilization. | $75. |
| In-room welcome gift | This benefit varies widely — and you'll only receive it at check-in. In other words, this benefit is worth the same whether your stay lasts one night or one week. | $50. |
| Total | $365. |
Related: Painting the town red: A review of the Radisson RED in Cape Town, South Africa
Radisson Platinum: $1,705
As the top tier in the Radisson Rewards program, you can earn Platinum status by completing 60 nights or 30 stays in a calendar year. There aren't a ton of additional published benefits beyond those offered to Gold members, but you'll be able to utilize them more frequently.
I'm assuming 72 nights split evenly between full-service and discount properties (36 nights and 18 stays in each).
| Benefit details | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Points for hotel stays | You'll earn 35 Radisson points per dollar for Radisson hotel stays. This is 15 points higher than non-elite members earn.
With 72 nights at $150 per night, you'll spend a total of $10,800, earning 162,000 extra points. | $650. |
| Discounts on food and beverage | You'll receive a 20% discount for on-property food and drink — a 15% increase over the discount non-elite members receive. This perk may not apply to all Radisson properties, and it doesn't apply to tax/tip, alcohol, room service or in-room dining.
Our valuation is assuming you spend $500 on food throughout 72 nights. | $75. |
| Complimentary room upgrades | You'll receive space-available upgrades with priority over lower status levels. This is the only status that entitles you to suite upgrades at check-in. | $350. |
| Early check-in and late checkout | Same benefit, more frequent utilization. | $150. |
| In-room welcome gift | Again, this benefit is wildly unpredictable, but as a Platinum member you'll receive more welcome gifts, potentially of higher quality. | $110. |
| Free breakfast | Many Radisson properties provide free breakfast, but Platinum status expands the benefit by offering complimentary continental breakfast at participating hotels (typically full-service locations). | $360. |
| Platinum Member Services line | This benefit exists for Platinum members who may need help at any time of day. Time is money, so if you need a quick answer to a problem, this benefit may be valuable to you. | $10. |
| Total | $1,705. |
Related: 7 jaw-dropping Radisson hotels and how to book them on points.
What if I'm starting from scratch?
As mentioned earlier, all these numbers represent values for those of you who have already earned these status levels. However, many of you may be starting from scratch without any status if you're new to the Radisson Rewards program.
If this is the case, you won't enjoy any benefits until you've spent nine nights and earned Silver status. After that, you won't enjoy additional benefits until you hit 30 nights to earn Gold status. How can you quantify this climb up the ranks? We've attempted to answer this by converting the above calculations into a value per night, as follows:
- Radisson Silver: $70 / 11 nights = $6.36 per night.
- Radisson Gold: $365 / 36 nights = $10.14 per night.
- Radisson Platinum: $1,705 / 72 nights = $23.68 per night.
For example, if you're starting from scratch, you'd get no benefits for the first nine nights. After that, you'd enjoy Silver benefits for the next 21 nights (a value of $6.36 per night). You'd then get Gold benefits for the next 30 nights (a value of $10.14 per night). Finally, you'd get Platinum benefits for any other nights you stay (a value of $23.68 per night). This means that if you're starting from no status and estimate that you'll spend 65 nights in Radisson hotels in 2022, you'd be able to get roughly $769 worth of perks from the program.
Again, you'll have to update each tier's numbers based on your own personal valuation.
Related: Should you buy hotel or airline elite status?
Is it worth pursuing Radisson elite status?
Given these values, is it worth pursuing elite status (or the next tier of elite status) with the Radisson Rewards program? As ever, it just depends entirely on your individual situation. However, here are a few overarching questions that can help you arrive at a decision:
How much will you travel in the future?
When you're pursuing elite status, it's critical to think about how much you'll be traveling in the future. If you push hard to earn Platinum, for example, the valuable perks outlined above only apply when you actually travel.
What's the incremental value of 1 tier over another?
Many of you may wind up within striking distance of the next tier, so be sure to consider whether the benefits are worth pushing for it. There's no sense in going out of your way for perks that don't matter to you.
How well does Radisson's geographical coverage match your typical travel patterns?
There's really no point in pursuing elite status with a hotel chain if you can't feasibly stay at one (or more) of its properties regularly. Be sure to consider the various Radisson hotels in and around your common destinations. Radisson's handicap is that it's not a well-represented brand anywhere in the U.S. except the East Coast. If that's where you do your traveling, Radisson status could be a boon for your travel goals.
Note that you can transfer points to and from Radisson Rewards Americas to the international Radisson Rewards program. Likewise, you can match your elite status between the programs. But, your elite nights only credit to one program. This can make it difficult for you to earn status if you split your stays between the Americas and other regions.
How sensitive are you to price and convenience?
There are many trade-offs in this hobby, and one of the most common is deciding whether to use your preferred airline or hotel chain when it's not the most convenient or cheapest.
Would you stay at a hotel under the Radisson umbrella if there was another cheaper and/or more convenient brand where you need to be?
If the answer is no, it may not be worth going out of your way to earn elite status with the Radisson Rewards program (or elite status with any hotel chain, for that matter).
Related: Promotions that will make your next hotel stay more rewarding
Bottom line
As you can see, each level of status carries some value. As always, you may feel differently about the above dollar amounts, and your stay patterns may vary significantly from the ones I used for this analysis. Feel free to adjust the numbers accordingly to help you decide whether to push for the next level of status this year.
Remember, the Radisson Rewards Americas program is unique in that it only covers Radisson properties in the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America. And if you only stay in these regions, its various elite status benefits could make a real difference in your travel experience. But if you travel elsewhere, you will have to match your elite status and transfer points earned from the standard Radisson Rewards program to/from Radisson Rewards Americas.
Additional reporting by Andrew Kunesh and Nick Ewen.