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I didn’t set out to plan one epic month of travel redemptions, but just as I am frugal with my money I am just as frugal with my points. When I’m deciding when to use points I consider the value of the points and also the overall costs in that destination. Let me tell you, traveling in New England and the northeast in May and June is pricey!!

It was the perfect time to make use of some points, free night awards (FNAs), and cash back offers to get some serious bang for my buck. Or how we say it in the miles and points world, bang for my point! If it sounds like I am speaking in a foreign language, read my miles and points post before continuing with this post.

I have had countless debates about the benefits of credit cards and learning the world of miles & points. If you pay your card in full there is no reason not to use a credit card. Even if it is only a few cents, you earn a little money back on every purchase. The potential benefits are so much more than that though. It’s one of the many reasons that full-time travel can actually be cheaper than a traditional stationary lifestyle in the US.

I’m going to walk you through how to save money on hotels with the different ways I did and could have used points and free night awards. Whether you’re a full-time traveler or looking for the best way to save on hotels for your annual trip, follow along so you can save thousands of dollars as well!

How To Save Money on Hotels: I Saved $5,885.17 in One Month!

Booking.com

Acadia Park Inn Best Western in Bar Harbor, Maine – $662.93

Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, and Marriott are known as the big four US hotel brands. While Best Western (BW) is considered a more budget friendly hotel brand, a lot of their properties are just as nice if not nicer than the “big four” brands, but with lower rates!

There are many other perks of staying at a Best Western. Almost all of the BW’s include a hot breakfast buffet. With locations in over 100 countries it is easy to find a BW worldwide. Whereas the “big four” are often lacking near US national parks, BW has a property near most. It’s my go to chain when visiting the parks.

The Acadia Park Inn, located just outside of Bar Harbor, is in a great location for visiting Acadia National Park in Maine. The hot breakfast fueled me each morning for long days of hiking. Rooms were clean and faced the parking lot which made it very easy to unload and load my stuff (I have never been known to be a light packer!). We had three separate reservations that needed to be combined. I really appreciated that the front desk combined them on arrival without any need to come back to the front desk every morning.

From redeeming free night awards and nights paid for in points we saved $662.93.

How to Save Money at Hotels by Earning Points and Free Night Awards at Best Westerns

Staying at Best Western Hotels

The most straightforward way to earn points at any hotel brand is staying at that hotel brand. To earn Best Western points on stays you need to book directly through BW. As a Blue member, the first status level, you’ll earn 10 points per dollar spent at BW before taxes. Part of this stay was paid for with points earned from previous stays at BW.

Having Status at Best Western

Every hotel brand has status levels. You need to stay a certain number of nights (elite nights) and/or spend a set amount of money to reach different status levels. Sometimes credit cards also give you access to a higher status level.

It can be fun to share your status with those in the know, but status is much more than a vanity metric. Different perks, depending on the brand, come at each status level.

Best Western has Blue, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Diamond Select Levels. One of the biggest perks of BW status is receiving more points per dollar spent at each level.

A lot of people chase hotel status at the other four brands, but as BW isn’t used for corporate business travel as much it seems not as many people reach the higher-tier BW status levels. We didn’t receive any upgrades on this trip, but during our Arizona road-trip we got upgraded to the cutest king suite casita because of diamond status.

Redeeming Best Western Promos

One of the reasons I really like Best Western is that they have some of the best promos. Some hotel brands take a very long time to accumulate points, but BW has a lot of very good promos that make earning points or free night awards simple.

One of the nights in this stay was a free night award. All I needed to do was stay two nights to receive it. I had two nights in Houston before the furnished apartment I wanted to stay in was available. After staying and paying $160.38 for that two night stay I received the FNA. I redeemed it for one night at the Acadia Inn for a $259.47 value.

Whether you consider it as $53.46 a night for three nights or as saving $259.47 one night……you can’t argue that this isn’t good value! As I explained in my post about how traveling full-time can be cheaper, not many people would spend less than $53.46 a night on their home if they consider all the expenses. Not to mention breakfast was included…….I’m just as big of fan of free food as I am of free accommodations!

Using Best Western Credit Cards

Best Western has two credit cards. If you are consistently staying in Best Westerns you may want to consider one of the cards for additional point earnings, but you can receive a lot of bonus points through the bonus point offers. Click below to find out more about each card.

#1: Best Western Rewards® Mastercard®

#2: Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®

Earning Best Western Points in Other Ways

Unlike the other programs, Best Western doesn’t have a lot of other ways to earn points. You can’t transfer from any of the big credit card travel portals.

Currently you can earn Best Western points when shopping online at Teleflora or Vinesse Wine Club.

There are several rental car partners where you can earn BW points. You’ll either earn a set amount of BW points per booking or an amount based on the dollar amount spent. Typically you will not receive points for the rental car’s rewards system if choosing to receive BW points.

AC Hotel Portland Downtown/Waterfront in Portland, Maine – $1,345

Marriott is a favorite hotel brand for many people. With over 10,000 properties across 30 different hotel brands, you can find a Marriott almost anywhere in the world. Properties vary greatly between brands and even within brands at different locations. With no chat option their overall customer service leaves a lot to be desired, but property specific customer service is usually excellent.

AC hotels aren’t the highest end of Marriott properties, but they are an upscale brand with sleek and modern, minimalist decor. I loved my stay at the AC Hotel Portland along the waterfront. In cities, in order to save money, I typically don’t stay downtown as the prices are so high. It was such a treat to stay right along the water, only minutes from all the top things to do in Portland. It’s one of the many perks of booking with points and free night awards.

We had incredible savings from this stay that was booked with points and one FNA. A regular guest room was booked, but with titanium status we were upgraded to a luxury two room suite. For our dates this would have cost $1,285!! The additional $60 savings came from free breakfast credits.

How to Save Money at Hotels by Earning Points and Free Night Awards at Marriotts

Staying at Marriott Hotels

Booking directly through Marriott will earn you Marriott Bonvoy points on every stay. Points start at 10 points for every dollar spent before taxes (a couple of brands start at 5 points per dollar).

Our nights we paid for with points were primarily from staying at Marriott hotels.

Having Marriott Bonvoy Status

Marriott status levels include member, silver, gold, platinum, titanium, and ambassador elite. Each level has an additional amount of points you earn per dollar spent. It really adds up when you reach the higher levels. There are a variety of other benefits at each level.

At titanium status you can choose to receive a free night award. We used this benefit for one night of the stay. With titanium status we received a lot of other benefits as well.

As I mentioned we were upgraded from a regular guest room to a two room suite on the top floor. While we wouldn’t have paid the higher price for this fancier room, it was a huge perk! I loved having the extra space and the end suites only border one other room on one wall so it was very quiet.

We also received breakfast vouchers that meant we didn’t have to pay anything for breakfast. Have I mentioned that I love free breakfast yet? I’m happy with a basic continental breakfast, but the AC breakfast was top notch. Both the buffet and made to order menu items were included free of charge. Not only were menu items included free of charge, but as many items as you wanted! Don’t judge me if I ordered multiple items every morning! The food was very good too. I may or may not have taken a few items for lunch everyday. I didn’t include it in the overall savings, but not having to buy lunch was another savings!

Also with titanium status we receive a late checkout of 4pm. While it doesn’t seem like a perk to save money, it actually does. The hotel stores luggage, but it is so much easier to leave food in the hotel room fridge all day so it doesn’t go to waste.

Redeeming Marriott Promos

Marriott will have promos from time to time. They are listed under “promotions” on your account. Sometimes they have an offer for an extra 1,000 points per night and one extra elite night per paid night. This is an excellent promo that helps you gain more points and reach higher status levels quickly.

Using Marriott Credit Cards

There are five co-branded Marriott credit cards. The welcome offers are a quick way to earn a chunk of Marriott points, FNAs, and/or elite nights. Continued use of the card will earn you even more.

Many of the cards also come with a higher status level which means you’re earning the additional perks of that level without having to spend the money to stay that many nights. Plus there are increased earning rates on Marriott purchases. Click on the cards below to read more about each one.

#1: Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card

#2: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card

#3: Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card

#4: Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card

#5: Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card

Transferring Points from Partners

Having a Marriott credit card in your wallet is a smart choice if you stay at Marriotts often. If you like to keep your options open to different hotels and airlines or you don’t like to have a lot of credit cards, general travel credit cards are the way to go.

Marriott is a transfer partner with Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR), Amex Member Rewards (MR), and Bilt Rewards. When you use general Chase cards, Amex Cards, or the Bilt Rewards Card you are able to earn points with all your credit card spending. Those points can be transferred in the rewards portals of each program to Marriott. Points typically transfer at a 1:1 ratio. Occasionally there are transfer bonuses when you can transfer at a higher ratio.

Click on the credit cards below to learn more about some of the credit cards where Marriott is one of the transfer options.

#1: American Express® Gold Card

#2: The Platinum Card® from American Express

#3: Bilt Mastercard®

#4: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

#5: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Earning Marriott Bonvoy Points in Other Ways

The Eat Around Town is a dining rewards program. It’s a simple way to earn more Marriott points if you like to dine out. All you need to do is sign up and attach a credit card. Whenever you go to one of the restaurants in the program you will receive Marriott points. You’ll still receive the same points you would normally receive on the credit card you use. It’s just an extra bonus. You can look up restaurants ahead of time, but you can also just have the surprise once in a while when you happen to dine at one of the restaurants! Currently there is a 6,000 point bonus when you sign up.

For the coffee drinkers out there, make sure to link your Starbucks and Marriott accounts to earn points.

Link your Uber and Uber Eats account for a bonus (sometimes this is offered) and then earn on rides and deliveries. Note that it is only valid in the US and the rides have to be a premium ride.

Rent from Hertz, Dollar, or Thrifty and receive up to 500 Marriott points per car rental.

You can also book activities through Marriott and earn points.

Residence Inn Boston Logan Airport in Chelsea, MA – $1,832

Residence Inn is one of Marriott’s long-stay hotel brands. As a full-time traveler I stay in them quite a bit. I like having a full kitchen because I cook so much. Just kidding, I don’t cook! I do like the kitchen space and appliances for warming up leftovers, storing groceries, and putting together simple meals. As much as I would like to go out to eat every meal, that isn’t realistic.

I had a great studio sized hotel room at the Residence Inn Boston Logan Airport with a full kitchen, living and bedroom area, and a nook with a desk. I always ask for a quiet room and they gave me one in this inner section that didn’t border any other rooms. Having room preference and staying in quiet rooms is a huge perk of status for me!

The hotel is located only a couple of minutes away from the Chelsea train station with a commuter train and express bus direct to downtown Boston. A full hot breakfast is included and there is a gym and indoor pool.

My stay here was fully paid for with points. I also made use of the stay 4 nights, get the 5th night free when booking with points. That means for every 5 nights you only need to use points to pay for 4 nights.

How to Save Money at Hotels by Earning Free Night Awards at Marriotts

See the above AC Hotel in Portland section for all the ways to earn points and free nights at Marriotts. As the ways to earn Marriott points are the same for any property I didn’t repeat the information below.

I used points and bonus points I had earned from previous Marriott stays to book this stay.

Hyatt Place in Flushing, Queens – $1,991.25

Compared to the other US hotel brands, Hyatt has significantly less properties. They are worldwide, but the majority of properties are in the US. Hyatt brands are typically found in bigger cities. It’s rare to have a Hyatt in a small town or near a national park.

Until recently I haven’t been staying at Hyatts as there almost always seems to be another brand at a similar quality level for a cheaper price. Thanks to the Daily Drop, a great travel resource, I learned about the power of Hyatt’s fixed award chart. Hotels are all assigned a category and have a set amount of points that it takes to redeem a free night. It means you can stay at very nice hotels for a lot less than you could with other brands.

The Hyatt Place in Flushing is a great hotel in Flushing, Queens. It’s only a few minutes away from the 7 subway that goes direct to Times Square. Who needs Times Square when you’re in one of NYC’s largest Chinatowns though? The neighborhood is full of delicious Chinese and other Asian restaurants.

The hotel itself is very nice with breakfast included and a free airport shuttle. I booked my entire stay here with points.

How to Save Money at Hotels by Earning Points and Free Night Awards at Hyatts

Staying at Hyatt Hotels

I find that Hyatt hotels are typically more expensive than a comparable hotel in the same location. Unlike most of the other chains where you earn 10 points on every dollar at the first status tier, with Hyatt you only earn 5 points on the dollar. Not only are you spending more for every stay, but you’re also not receiving as many points in return.

A few thousand of my points came from past stays, but most of the points I redeemed for this stay did not.

Having World of Hyatt Status

Having a higher World of Hyatt status leads to higher point earnings on each stay. It also provides other benefits like room upgrades. As a full-time traveler I spend a lot more time than the average traveler in my room sleeping, working, and doing anything the average person would do at “home”. Therefore, I really appreciate having a quiet room. Not only are upgrades possible with status, but I also find front desk workers are often more accommodating with room location. At this hotel the lovely lady at the front went through all the different available rooms and helped me choose the quietest one!

Redeeming World of Hyatt Promos

Not only did I stay for free at the hotel, but I also earned points on my stay! Typically for any brand when you pay with points you do not earn points on your stay. The exception is for some promotions. During my stay there was a stay 5 nights and receive 3,000 bonus points promo. The past month I have earned 9,000 points from that promo alone. That’s enough for almost 3 nights at an off-peak category 1 Hyatt hotel.

It always pays, literally, to stay up to date on all the current hotel promos.

Using Hyatt Credit Cards

The World of Hyatt offers two co-branded credit cards, one personal and one business. Thanks to Hyatts point redemption rates, the welcome offers can go a long way. You could book 12 nights at standard rates for category one hotels or you can go all in for a suite at an all-inclusive hotel.

Learn more about each of the cards by clicking on the links.

#1: The World of Hyatt Credit Card

#2: World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

Transferring Points from Partners

This is one of the best ways to book Hyatt stays. The majority of my stay was booked with points from Hyatt’s two transfer partners, Chase and Bilt. Chase Ultimate Reward points (UR) and Bilt rewards both transfer to Hyatt at a rate of 1:1. Sometimes there are bonus transfers where you can transfer at higher rates.

I could have also transferred my Chase points to Marriott, but they wouldn’t have gone as far. I spent 12,000 a night at this hotel. A comparable Marriott hotel would have been at least 30,000 points. While it is typically quicker to earn Marriott points through Marriott stays, the rate of earning points through a Bilt or Chase card is the same so your points will go much further!

The following Chase and Bilt cards are great for transferring to Hyatt.

#1: Bilt Mastercard®

#2: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

#3: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

#4: Chase Freedom Unlimited®

#5 Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Earning World of Hyatt Points in Other Ways

Hyatt has a unique program called Brand Explorer. With every 5 nights at different brands within Hyatt’s portfolio you’ll earn a free night award!

After linking your World of Hyatt and American Airline accounts you can earn 1 World of Hyatt point for every $1 spent on the airline. That is in addition to the airline miles you’ll receive with a booking on AA.

Earn 500 bonus points when booking with Avis and including your Hyatt membership number.

Experiences are also available through Hyatt that will earn you points.

Multiple Hotels – $ 53.99

The best hotel savings will come from booking hotels with points or free night awards. Another way to save is by receiving cashback. These are a couple of ways I saved additional money this month.

How to Save Money at Hotels by Earning CashBack

TopCashBack

Whenever I book something online I use TopCashback and then receive cashback on purchases. It is usually between 3 – 10% back. It really adds up. I easily earn a few hundred dollars every year. It’s like using a coupon, easy nontaxable earnings!

If cashback isn’t exciting enough, the cool thing is that any earnings are on top of what you would earn otherwise. I received $16.69 back from TopCashBack from my stay at the Westin in Atlanta. I also received $28.90 back from a Chase offer (see below). Plus I received my usual credit card points on the total amount before both of those cashback amounts and received Marriott points.

This month I didn’t make as much because I was booking with points so much, but for the accommodations I did pay cash I earned $25.09 cashback. That’s money that goes right into my bank account.

Credit Card Offers

Another way to earn cashback is through credit card offers. My Chase Sapphire Reserve® and my Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card get me the most cash back. I typically make use of the travel deals the most. This month there was a deal for the Westin where I received $28.90 cashback after my stay. The awesome thing with credit card cashback is that you pay full price and receive credit card points on the full amount, but then you receive a portion back.

Offers vary from month to month. Some months I might earn a hundred dollars back and other months I can’t make use of any of the offers.

Next Steps for How YOU Can Save Money on Hotels

Feeling overwhelmed with all the options? Do you think travel savings don’t apply to you because you don’t travel often? Like anything worth doing, it takes some time and there is a learning curve. You may be thinking, well I could just work 40 hours a week and then use my income to spend $5,885.17 in accommodations. You could, but what fun is that? Wouldn’t you rather make money for travel by traveling than by working!?

1. Read my miles and points post for more tips on getting started on earning and redeeming points and miles. In this post I recommend setting a travel goal and that will help guide your plan.

2. Sign up for a travel credit card to start earning points. This should be based on your travel goal(s). If you need help choosing a card, I provide free credit card recommendations.

3. Read the free daily newsletter, Daily Drop so you can stay up to date on all the latest travel news, offers, deals, and promos. This will help guide you on the best ways to earn and redeem your points.

4. Sign up for Daily Drop Pro to search for the best hotel redemptions (and so much more).

5. Still overwhelmed? In my personal travel planning services I help travelers plan their future trips. I love helping clients strategize how to earn and redeem points for their future trips.

Depending on your destination(s), time of year, type of accommodations, number of nights, how many points you use, and how you redeem your points your monthly savings can be significantly more or less than mine. For me it’s about getting as many nights as possible paid for at nice accommodations in places that I want to travel.

Please note that Hilton, IHG, Choice Hotels, and Wyndham also have a lot of ways to earn and redeem points, but I did not include them in this post as I did not earn free stays at them this month.

If I helped you figure out how to save money on hotels, please consider supporting me and all the free content on my site by Buying Me a Coffee.

How To Save Money on Hotels: I Saved $5,885.17 in One Month!

How To Save Money on Hotels: I Saved $5,885.17 in One Month!

Acadia Park Inn Best Western in Bar Harbor, Maine – $662.93