A TravelSort reader writes “I'm looking [to use AMEX Membership Rewards points] for hotels in Paris, Barcelona and Madrid…also will want to book award travel to Buenos Aires and Rio using whatever AMEX points we have left over. Would rather use AMEX points for flights than for hotels though. What do you recommend?”
By way of background, this reader has about 500,000 AMEX Membership Rewards points, but even with this amount, I wouldn't recommend using them to book hotels. Here's why:
American Express Membership Rewards Hotel Transfer Partners: Limited Choices
The direct hotel transfer partners are quite limited for AMEX Membership Rewards:
- Best Western
- Choice Privileges
- Hilton HHonors
- Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts
- Starpoints (SPG)
American Express Membership Rewards Transfers to the Best Hotel Option at a Terrible Transfer Ratio
While you can trade in AMEX Membership Rewards points for gift certificates to the Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, Mandarin Oriental, etc., you'd be getting a terrible value for your points: only 0.8 cent per point, not even 1 cent in value. Needless to say, I don't recommend this option.
- Best Western transfers at 1:1. I won't outright scoff at this for certain international redemptions, because there are actually some quite good Best Western properties in Europe that you would make you rethink your opinion of the chain, compared to the average U.S. property. But it's still not an aspirational redemption, more a value driven one for expensive European capitals.
- Choice Privileges also transfers at 1:1. This is a very low end chain, and the only ones I can think of offhand that I might redeem for are for a couple properties in expensive Scandinavian capitals. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother with this option.
- Hilton HHonors transfers at 1:1.5, so 1000 AMEX MR points becomes 1500 Hilton HHonors points. While this isn't bad, you can earn HHonors points so cheaply I wouldn't bother with transfer option either.
- Jumeirah Sirius points are expensive: 2300 AMEX points = 100 Sirius points. Don't bother.
- SPG Starpoints also transfer at a poor ratio of 3:1: 1000 AMEX points = 333 Starpoints. Again, don't bother.
Best to Earn Hotel Points Directly Instead
So what do I recommend? If I was this reader, I'd save all the AMEX points for the upcoming South America and future flight award bookings, and instead earn hotel points directly for stays in Paris, Madrid and Barcelona. Specifically:
Best Paris Hotel Options Using Points
For Paris, I'd use either Hyatt points or SPG points. If the reader and his wife each apply for the Hyatt Visa, they'd earn a total of 4 free nights that could be used at the Park Hyatt Paris Vendome, which is centrally located near the Champs-Elysees, Louvre and Notre Dame. The standard rooms here aren't huge, and only have a Queen bed, not a King, but it's often possible to arrange with the hotel directly to pay the difference between the standard room price and a larger room, if you need more space. See more pros and cons in our post Best Park Hyatt to Stay 2 Free Nights with the Hyatt Visa. If you have Hyatt points, the Park Hyatt Paris Vendome would be 22,000 Gold Passport points per night.
Another good option, available with SPG Cash & Points for some dates, is the recently renovated and reopened Prince de Galles. It's certainly not cheap, since as a Category 7 property it's 15,000 points + $275, but the Art Deco standard room does come with a King bed rather than a Queen and an in-room Nespresso machine.
Best Madrid Hotel Options Using Points
In Madrid, there are no Hyatt properties and the Hilton property is an airport hotel, while the Hotel Ritz Madrid doesn't participate in the Ritz-Carlton Rewards program, so it's not available with Marriott points. You could use your free anniversary night for the Priority Club Visa at the InterContinental Madrid, but my own recommendation would be to use SPG Cash & Points again to book the Westin Palace, at 4800 + $90 per night. Note that this rate will be going up soon due to the SPG Cash & Points devaluation, to 6000 + $110.
Best Barcelona Hotel Options Using Points
For Barcelona, it can be hard to find available dates for SPG Cash & Points redemptions at Le Meridien Barcelona and W Barcelona, but those could be good bets if you do find Cash & Points availability. Otherwise, it's easy to earn plenty of Hilton points for a stay at the Hilton Diagonal Mar, and if you have status or are lucky with an upgrade, a room with a sea view can be yours. If you're lucky enough to have an AMEX Centurion card, the Mandarin Oriental Barcelona would be a great place to use your free night.
Bottom Line: Save your AMEX Membership Rewards points for their highest value uses: transferring to airlines, particularly Singapore KrisFlyer, British Airways Avios with a bonus, or possibly Aeroplan or ANA if it makes sense for your particular award.
For hotels, aim to earn hotel loyalty points directly, particularly Hilton, which are easy to earn. SPG points are harder to earn a lot of, and Starwood is devaluing its Cash & Points awards soon, so don't forget to book soon to use the current award chart.
Have you used AMEX Membership Rewards points for a hotel and thought it was worth it, or have other recommendations for great Paris, Madrid and Barcelona hotel stays on points?
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