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The majority of people would love to travel more, but the cost of travel often holds them back. Hotel rooms can be a major travel expense, so it pays to learn how to get free hotel rooms or secure significant discounts. Here are some of our favorite tips to get free hotel rooms for your next vacation.
There are many ways to get free hotel rooms, but these are our favorite strategies because they are relatively easy to do and can earn bunches of hotel points in a hurry.
1. Earn a Welcome Bonus from a Credit Card
When you apply for a new credit card, you have the opportunity to earn a large number of hotel points when you meet the card's minimum spend requirements. Many of the minimum spending requirements can be hit just by putting your regular monthly expenses on the card. Some of the best hotel credit cards offer one-time bonuses of 100,000 or more points.
Both the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Card and IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card currently offer bonuses worth at least 100,000 points. Depending upon where you redeem them, these bonuses could be redeemed for multiple nights at your favorite hotel or resort.
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card
This product is currently not available via Slickdeals. All information about this product was collected by Slickdeals and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
- Our Rating 4.0/5 How our ratings work
- APR20.99% - 27.99% (Variable)
- Annual Fee$95
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Sign Up Bonus
100,000Marriott Bonvoy Points
Limited Time Offer! Earn 100,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Dollar Equivalent: $400 (100,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points * 0.004 base)
This is a good choice for people who are getting into travel rewards and plan to stay at Marriott properties several times a year. A lot of this card's value comes through its rewards program. Benefits include free elite night credits, a free annual anniversary night, a welcome bonus and more. Cardholders can also earn high points per dollar on eligible purchases at Marriott properties.
Overview
The Boundless credit card offers some solid benefits, including the free elite night credits, a free anniversary night every card membership year, a welcome bonus, Silver Elite Status and 2x points per dollar spent on travel and all other purchases.
Pros
- Earn a free night certificate after each year you have the card
- Redeem points for Marriott hotels
- Generous rewards rates for Marriott hotel stays
- Earn elite nights by spending on the card
Cons
- $95 annual fee
- Marriott points aren't as rewarding as some other hotel points
2. Annual Free Night Benefits
Many credit cards include an annual free night benefit that allows you to get a free hotel room. Some of them provide this annual free night just for renewing the card, while others require you to spend a certain amount before receiving your free nights.
Credit cards like the World of Hyatt Credit Card provide one annual free night just for having the card, plus the opportunity to earn another free night based on your spending. Whereas the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card requires you to spend $15,000 before earning a free hotel night.
Each hotel credit card has its unique restrictions and limitations. The Hyatt free night is good at participating Category 1-4 hotels. By comparison, the Hilton free night can be used at almost any Hilton family hotel. However, the Hilton free night is restricted to weekend travel only.
The World of Hyatt Credit Card
This product is currently not available via Slickdeals. All information about this product was collected by Slickdeals and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
- Our Rating 4.5/5 How our ratings work
- APR20.99% - 27.99% Variable
- Annual Fee$95
-
Sign Up Bonus
60,000World of Hyatt Points
Earn 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Plus, up to 30,000 More Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent Dollar Equivalent: $1,080 (60,000 World of Hyatt Points * 0.018 base)
World of Hyatt offers extremely valuable rewards, and this credit card puts you on the fast track to enjoying some of the program’s preferred benefits. The card also offers a free night every year, as well as automatic Discoverist status, which is the program’s lowest status level. However, there is a path to earn up to Globalist status, depending on how much you spend on the card.
Overview
Among all of the top hotel rewards programs, World of Hyatt offers the most valuable rewards, and the World of Hyatt credit card puts you on the fast track to enjoying some of the program’s preferred benefits.
Pros
- Hyatt has one of the most rewarding hotel loyalty programs around
- Free night certificate at any Hyatt Category 1-4 property, awarded every year on your cardmember anniversary
- Automatic Discoverist status, with an expedited path to higher tiers in the World of Hyatt loyalty program
Cons
- $95 annual fee
- No high-end perks
3. Earn Hotel Points on Your Purchases
Even when you're not staying at a hotel, you can earn hotel points on all of your purchases with a hotel credit card. While you'll get the highest number of points on your hotel purchases with these cards, many also offer bonus points on many of your regular expense categories.
Bonuses vary by hotel credit card, but many offer bonuses in a variety of categories, such as grocery stores, gas stations, restaurants, travel and gym memberships. Additionally, they all offer a base number of points per dollar on non-bonus categories too.
4. Take Advantage of Bonus Categories
Although credit cards offer bonus categories, not all of your purchases will fall into those categories. You can take advantage of your bonus categories with this awesome workaround. Places like grocery stores, gas stations, home improvement stores, and office supply stores offer gift cards for some of your favorite merchants.
When you buy gift cards from stores that offer bonus points on your purchases, you can turn non-bonused spending into extra hotel points towards your next vacation.
Say you're getting ready to do back-to-school shopping at a department store. However, that store doesn't qualify for one of your card's bonus categories. Simply make a quick stop at the grocery store or gas station (whichever one offers bonus points with your hotel credit card) and buy a gift card for that department store. Voila! You just earned extra hotel points and can now use that gift card to make your purchases.
5. Maximize Your Online Shopping
When shopping online, using a travel portal is a quick way to earn extra rewards. However, most hotel loyalty programs don't have their own shopping portals. Instead, you can earn Chase Ultimate Rewards or cash back on your online purchases.
Chase Ultimate Rewards can be used to book travel or transferred to airline or hotel loyalty programs. When you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve®, your points are worth 25% or 50% more, respectively, when booking travel through the Chase travel portal.
And, of course, cash can be used however you'd like to. We suggest depositing your cash back into a high-yield savings account. This can create a travel fund that earns interest and pays for future vacations.
The Bottom Line
Paying for hotel rooms can put a major dent in your travel budget. By following these five simple strategies, it's possible to score free hotel rooms on your next vacation. You can earn extra hotel points on your spending or use the annual free night benefits of your credit cards. Get the absolute best deals on your trips with Travelocity Promo Codes and status-based discounts. Booking.com also offers loyalty programs that can help you save more. Booking.com promo codes can help you earn points and miles for your next trip.
How I Always Get Late Checkout at Hotels
Lee Huffman
Lee Huffman spent 18 years in banking and investments and now uses that insider knowledge to write about credit cards, travel, and other personal finance topics. Lee enjoys showing people how to travel more, spend less, and live better through the power of travel rewards. You can connect with him at BaldThoughts.com.
