One free night at a Best Western after three stays is a promotion to keep in mind over the next two months. This promotion is available for hotels in the USA, Canada and Caribbean and the free night voucher is valid for any hotel in these same regions. There is a limit of one free night per Best Western Rewards member.

Best Western Rewards Spring Promotion 2013 registration is required. Members can earn 10 points/$1 for paid hotel stays points or choose to earn double miles with either Aeroplan or Air Miles.

The primary drawback to this offer is the short validity of the free night voucher. The free night voucher must be redeemed by June 30, 2013.

Best Western Spring Promotion FAQ.

Free night voucher T&C.

Loyalty Traveler Analysis

I see this promotion as an opportunity to pick up three cheap stays in places for about $250 or even less. There are many Best Western hotels where the free night voucher will have a $250+ value. Getting four hotel nights for $250 is a good promotional value.

Best Western Premier hotels are the obvious places to redeem a free night. These are the top tier hotels in the Best Western brand.

Two properties that came to my mind for redeeming an award are the Best Western Premier Ivy Hotel Napa and the San Francisco Best Western Premier Tuscan Inn at Fisherman’s Wharf (a hotel managed by Kimpton Hotels).

Sample date rate checks for Friday night, June 14, 2013:

• Ivy Hotel Napa = $269
• Tuscan Inn at Fisherman’s Wharf = $359

The main point I am trying to emphasize is earning the free night voucher can be an opportunity for booking three cheap hotel nights on three separate stays before April 14 and earning a high value certificate.

Here are some sample midweek rates for Best Western hotels around Monterey Bay, California for next week on Tuesday, February 26. These are winter weekend destinations with higher rates on Friday and Saturday nights.

• Best Western Beach Dunes Inn, Marina, California = $59.99
• Best Western Park Crest Inn, Monterey = $58.49 (AAA)
• Best Western Plus Carmel Bay View Inn, Carmel = $89.10 (AAA)
• Best Western Carmel’s Town House Lodge, Carmel = $89.10 (AAA)
• Best Western Plus Capitola-by-the-Sea Inn & Suites = $89.99 (AAA)
• Best Western Plus Seacliff Inn, Aptos = $89.99 (AAA)
• Best Western Plus All Suites Inn, Santa Cruz = $90 (AAA).

Most of these hotels will be more than double these rates by June.

These hotels are all located in beach towns and the rates are low season for winter weekday nights. These midweek off-season rates are lower than hotels in many less popular destinations around the USA.

I thought I might use the Best Western promotion in Denver this week to earn a free night voucher since there were Best Western hotels in the $65 to $75 range when properties like Hilton Garden Inn and Marriott Courtyard were around $150. Then I ended up finding Best Rate Guarantee claims with Marriott and InterContinental Hotels Group and went that direction instead.

This free night promotion is a good incentive to compare Best Western rates for places you might be visiting.

And earn a free night for a hotel in some other place you might be visiting.

Best Western Plus Hospitality House, Manhattan NYC

Ric Garrido, writer and owner of Loyalty Traveler, shares news and views on hotels, hotel loyalty programs and vacation destinations for frequent guests. You can follow Loyalty Traveler on Twitter and Facebook and RSS feed.

Best Western will launch a free night after three stays promotion offer February 11. Complete three stays at Best Western hotels globally from February 11 through April 14, 2013 and earn one free night voucher good for any Best Western hotel in the USA, Canada or Caribbean. The free night voucher is valid through June 30, 2013.

Best Western Rewards promotion registration is required for this offer at www.bestwestern.com/spring. Note: the registration page is not live until February 11.

Members may earn a maximum of one free night voucher for the promotion. Free night voucher will be sent electronically about two weeks after third qualifying stay.

Best Western Rewards credit card members can earn 1,000 bonus points paying for all three qualifying stays with the Best Western Rewards MasterCard.

I assume the Best Western stays can be at any Best Western globally since previous promotions worked this way, but the FAQ does not specifically address this term. The free night is restricted to hotels located in the US, Canada and Caribbean.

Best Western Rewards Spring 2013 promotion FAQ.

Promotion T&C:

Stay 3 sep. times between 2/11/13 and 4/14/13 and earn a free night voucher

Availability: 02/11/2013 – 04/15/2013
Promo Code: SPRING13

Best Western Rewards® members (Member(s)) residing in a participating country(visit bestwestern.com/spring for a complete list of countries) who (a) register for the Promotion and (b) complete three (3) separate qualified stays* between February 11, 2013 and April 14, 2013 (Promotion Period) at Best Western branded hotels worldwide, will earn a free night voucher redeemable at Best Western branded hotels in the United States, Canada, or the Caribbean Islands. Members residing outside of one of the participating countries†, who register for the Promotion and complete three (3) separate qualified stays at Best Western branded hotels in a participating country† during the Promotion Period, will earn a free night voucher redeemable at Best Western branded hotels in the United States, Canada or the Caribbean Islands. PROMOTION REGISTRATION AND BEST WESTERN REWARDS ENROLLMENT/MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED PRIOR TO THE FIRST QUALIFIED STAY. Limit one (1) free night voucher per Member during the Promotion Period. Free night voucher expires June 30, 2013. No free night voucher extensions, substitutions, or replacements available. *A qualified stay for the purpose of this Promotion is defined as one or more consecutive nights at the same Best Western branded hotel at a rate eligible for earning points or airline/partner rewards through Best Western Rewards. Only one (1) check-in/check-out permitted per qualified stay. Bonus Offer: A Member who satisfies the qualification requirements discussed above and uses their Best Western Rewards® MasterCard® to pay for each of their three (3) qualified stays, will receive 1,000 Best Western Rewards bonus points. Maximum of one (1) credit card bonus reward per Member. Credit card bonus points will be posted to the members account approximately 4 – 6 weeks after completed stays. Credit card bonus reward is in addition to the standard Best Western Rewards point earning structure. Other restrictions may apply. Promotion is not valid with any other offer, promotion, or discount. Promotion is subject to cancellation or change without notice. Free night voucher redemption subject to hotel availability. Free night voucher redemption reservation must be completed by calling 1-800-567-4009. If a valid email address has been provided in the Member’s account profile, the free night voucher may be sent electronically to the valid email address 2-3 weeks from completion of the third qualified stay. Otherwise, a paper voucher will be mailed to the address provided (on the Member’s account profile) 4-6 weeks from the completion of the third qualified stay. All Best Western Rewards program rules apply. Visit www.bestwesternrewards.com for complete program terms and conditions. Each Best Western® branded hotel is independently owned and operated. Best Western and the Best Western marks are service marks or registered service marks of Best Western International, Inc. ©2013 Best Western International, Inc. All rights reserved. MasterCard® is a registered trademark of MasterCard International, Incorporated, used pursuant to license.

Ric Garrido, writer and owner of Loyalty Traveler, shares news and views on hotels, hotel loyalty programs and vacation destinations for frequent guests. You can follow Loyalty Traveler on Twitter and Facebook and RSS feed.

The easiest way to see titles for all Loyalty Traveler posts from this month is scroll over the calendar dates for the current month at upper left portion of blog. Titles for each day’s posts appear. Archived Loyalty Traveler posts since January 2008 can be accessed in the ‘Archives’ drop down menu located below the calendar month.

Holiday Inn Resort stays of two nights or more from November 23-February 28, 2013 can earn a free night for a future two-night Holiday Inn Resort stay. This is a typically confusingly detailed fine print offer from InterContinental Hotels Group, but I see good potential for a traveler wanting a discount resort stay.

When

Stay anytime between November 23 and February 28, 2013.

What

Register for the promotion and stay two consecutive nights at a qualifying rate at any Holiday Inn Resort location and receive a certificate for a free night during your next stay, valid for one year. Offer only valid on first stay during promotional period and can only be used one time.

Participating Holiday Inn Resorts Read More…

Stay 1 night at any Radisson Hotel in USA, Canada, and Caribbean by December 31, 2012 and earn one free night for any Radisson hotel in these regions valid through December 31, 2013. There is a limit of one free night per Club Carlson member.

Your qualifying reservation must be booked by October 31. You have one week remaining to book a qualifying stay to be completed by December 31, 2012.

Only the first 50,000 members to register for this Radisson offer are eligible for the free night. The promotion opened October 1 and as of today the promotion is still open to new registrants.

Radisson 1 + 1 Promotion Registration.

My free night has posted

Last Friday night I stayed at the Radisson San Jose Airport, California on a $66 rate.

Yesterday I saw the Radisson free night is available in my account. When I search a hotel, the Radisson Hotels show a reward night available for 0 Gold Points.

Radisson Hotel Fisherman’s Wharf San Francisco for $200 (after tax) or I can stay for free using my Radisson promotion free night I earned from a $75 after tax stay hotel stay last week.

Ric Garrido, writer and owner of Loyalty Traveler, shares news and views on hotels, hotel loyalty programs and vacation destinations for frequent guests. You can follow Loyalty Traveler on Twitter and Facebook and RSS feed.

Club Carlson has a free night fall offer for a Country Inns & Suites stay of 2 or more nights completed Sunday through Thursday between October 1 and November 29, 2012. This offer is only for Country Inn properties in the USA and Canada. You will receive a certificate for one free night at a Country Inn valid for a stay December 15, 2012 to February 15, 2013.

Country Inns Free Night Fall Offer registration page. Read More…

Best Western Rewards summer offer is a free night certificate after three stays from June 17 to August 19, 2012. There is a one free night certificate limit per member. Free night voucher expires January 31, 2013.

Best Western Rewards promotion registration is required prior to your stays.

This promotion is limited to residents of USA, Canada, Bahamas and US Virgin Islands. Read More…

Hilton HHonors Resort Escapes promotion offers a free night certificate after five consecutive nights at a participating Hilton resort from December 1, 2011 through April 30, 2012. This is one of the best hotel loyalty program offers of the past year.

Hilton resort bookings must be made by January 31 for this promotion. Two free nights may be earned during the promotion period.

Promotion registration is required by Jan 31.

Hilton HHonors Resort Escapes Promotion

• Booking Period: by January 31, 2012
• Hotel Stay Period: December 1, 2011 – April 30, 2012
• HHonors members must complete a minimum stay of five (5) consecutive nights at participating hotel(s) to receive one (1) free night certificate.
• Limit two (2) free night certificates per HHonors member.
• Certificates may be earned by completing two (2) separate minimum five (5) night stays or one (1) minimum ten (10) night stay.
• Free night certificate will be delivered within 6 weeks of completion of stay.
• Free night certificate is valid at participating hotels in the Hilton Worldwide portfolio for six (6) months after the date of issuance, as noted on the certificate.

Hilton HHonors Resort Escapes Dec 1-April 30, 2012 free night promotion.

Loyalty Traveler analysis

Read More…

“A Fast-Track to a Fabulous Getaway” is the way Starwood Preferred Guest is advertising their “Stay Three, Getaway Free” promotion for one free night at any of 200 Starwood Resorts worldwide after three hotel stays at nearly any Starwood Hotel worldwide.

The offer counts stays from May 1 to July 31, 2011. Free nights earned can be redeemed through December 21, 2011. There is no limit for the number of free nights earned except for the time limit.

SPG Stay Three, Getaway Free registration. Must register by June 30, 2011.

SPG Promotion FAQ.

 To redeem your Free Night Awards, contact SPG Customer Service and mention Award ID 3FRN.

Loyalty Traveler Analysis

This promotion for me is a fast-track to a fabulous getaway. I happen to have quite a bit of travel I can plan around California and the Pacific Northwest over the next three months. Portland, Oregon and Fresno, California have Starwood Hotels under $100 per night after tax. These are not my destination cities, but I can probably pull out six one-night stays in these two locations while enjoying the locale. Portland, Oregon is a great location for maximizing cheap Starwood stays.

$600 for six hotel nights on a couple of trips while I see locations like Yosemite National Park and visit some Portland microbreweries is a great deal when my paid stays earn two free nights for a place like Westin Mammoth which will be an even better hotel stay than the Four Points Fresno on another trip to Yosemite National Park later in the year. Or I can stay at St. Regis Monarch Beach rather than cheap Orange County Airport hotels when I go south to see my sister’s family. Basically what I spend for the three nights to earn a free resort night will be the going rate for the hotels where I redeem my free nights. Paying $600 for hotel stays I need to earn $600 in free resort hotel stays I desire is a good deal for my travel pattern.

The San Francisco Bay Area shows several hotels at under $100 in May. This is a great place to maximize cheap Starwood stays, but not in downtown San Francisco and the other locations kind of bore me now since I have been to these places so often.  A night at the Sheraton Palo Alto offers the free Stanford University Museum for a day of culture, a thought provoking lecture or two and the restaurants in Palo Alto are reliable for some interesting direct conversation or common eavesdropping if you comprehend the language.

The sensible strategy for someone in the US for this Starwood Resorts free night offer is to try and stay Starwood heavy in May before summer travel and room rates pick up. That is if we actually see a travel increase this summer with higher prices. Sure, occupancy has been up for the past year by 5 to 10%, but the room rates are not significantly higher than two years ago.

I actually thought San Francisco had been much higher priced hotels in 2011 and then I tracked May 2011 Starwood Hotel rates alongside May 2009 hotel rates and at least 50% of 20+ Starwood Hotels in the Bay Area are actually lower rates now on average.

Six Starwood Resort nights on a Greek or Italian Island can be a $3,000 hotel stay. I don’t know if I can get to Europe this summer for a trip. Loads of Starwood nights are less valuable if I can’t travel with my wife during summer school break when we both benefit from a luxury hotel stay.

Earning six nights with 18 hotel stays in the next three months is a plan I think makes economic sense for encouraging summer travel for me. My back-up California locations are St. Regis Monarch Beach (category 6), Westin Verasa Napa (category 5) and Westin Monache Mammoth (category 5).

Westin Napa has suites with a full kitchen, dining table, balcony patio, sitting room, bedroom and 1.5 bathrooms that I received an upgrade to when I stayed there as an SPG Platinum on free nights earned in the 2009 free weekend nights promotion.

We might even go for a Rocky Mountain tour to St. Regis Park City, Utah and St. Regis Aspen and Westin Beaver Creek Mountain, Colorado.

This “Stay Three Getaway Free” offer is a good promotion for making a $1,000 to $3,000 investment if you are in a position to travel frequently from now through July and still have the opportunity to get great value from free nights earned.

Starwood Resorts participating in free nights. These are the hotels where you can redeem free nights earned. Three stays at any of 1,000+ Starwood Hotels worlwide in all nine Starwood brands qualify for earning the free Starwood Resort night. Starwood brands include Sheraton, Westin, Four Points, Le Meridien, Luxury Collection, Aloft, W Hotels, St. Regis, and Element.

United States  

Arizona

• Sheraton Desert Oasis
• Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa
• The Canyon Suites at The Phoenician
• The Phoenician, Scottsdale
• The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa
• The Westin Kierland Villas, Scottsdale
• The Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa

California

• Four Points by Sheraton Ventura Harbor
• Le Parker Méridien Palm Springs
• Sheraton Carlsbad Resort & Spa
• The St. Regis Monarch Beach
• The Westin Desert Willow Villas, Palm Desert
• The Westin Mission Hills Resort & Spa
• The Westin Mission Hills Resort Villas, Palm Springs
• The Westin Monache Resort, Mammoth
• The Westin Verasa Napa

Colorado

• Sheraton Mountain Vista Villas, Avon / Vail Valley
• Sheraton Steamboat Resort
• Sheraton Steamboat Resort Villas
• The St. Regis Aspen Resort
• The Westin Riverfront Mountain Villas
• The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa

Florida

• Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Beach Hotel
• Sheraton PGA Vacation Resort, Port St. Lucie
• Sheraton Sand Key Resort
• Sheraton Suites Key West
• Sheraton Vistana Resort Villas
• Sheraton Vistana Villages Resort Villas, I-Drive/Orlando
• The Westin Beach Resort & Spa, Fort Lauderdale
• The Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa, Hollywood, Florida
• The Westin Key West Resort & Marina
• W Fort Lauderdale
• W South Beach
• Walt Disney World Dolphin
• Walt Disney World Swan

Georgia

• The Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa

Guam

• Sheraton Laguna Guam Resort
• The Westin Resort, Guam

Hawaii

• Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa, Waikiki Beach
• Sheraton Kauai Resort
• Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa
• Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa
• Sheraton Princess Kaiulani
• Sheraton Waikiki
• The Royal Hawaiian, Waikiki
• The St. Regis Princeville Resort
• The Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas
• The Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Ka’anapali
• The Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas

North Carolina

• The Ballantyne, Charlotte

Pennsylvania

• Cove Haven Resort
• Paradise Stream Resort
• Pocono Palace Resort

Puerto Rico

• The St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort, Puerto Rico
• W Retreat & Spa – Vieques Island

South Carolina

• Sheraton Broadway Plantation
• The Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa

Texas

• The Westin La Cantera Resort, San Antonio

Utah

• The St. Regis Deer Valley

Vermont

• The Equinox Golf Resort & Spa, Vermont

Virgin Islands

• The Westin St. John Resort & Villas

Virginia

• Sheraton Virginia Beach Oceanfront Hotel

Algeria

• Sheraton Club des Pins Resort and Towers

Argentina

• Sheraton Iguazú Resort & Spa

Aruba

• The Westin Resort & Casino, Aruba

Australia

• Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas Resort
• Sheraton Mirage Resort and Spa Gold Coast
• Sheraton Noosa Resort & Spa

Austria

• Schloss Fuschl Resort & Spa, Fuschlsee-Salzburg

Bahamas

• Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort

Brazil

• Sheraton Rio Hotel & Resort

Cambodia

• Le Méridien Angkor

Canada

• Four Points by Sheraton Quebec Resort
• Le Westin Resort & Spa, Tremblant, Quebec
• Sheraton on the Falls Hotel
• The Westin Bayshore, Vancouver
• The Westin Bear Mountain Golf Resort & Spa, Victoria
• The Westin Resort & Spa, Whistler
• The Westin Trillium House, Blue Mountain

Cayman Islands

• The Westin Casuarina Resort & Spa, Grand Cayman

China

• Four Points by Sheraton Shenzhou Peninsula Resort
• Le Méridien She Shan Shanghai
• Le Méridien Shimei Bay Beach Resort & Spa
• Sheraton Dameisha Resort, Shenzhen
• Sheraton Haikou Resort
• Sheraton Hangzhou Wetland Park Resort
• Sheraton Huadu Resort
• Sheraton Huizhou Beach Resort
• Sheraton Jiuzhaigou Resort
• Sheraton Qiandao Lake Resort
• Sheraton Qingyuan Lion Lake Resort
• Sheraton Sanya Haitang Bay Resort
• Sheraton Sanya Resort
• Sheraton Shenzhou Peninsula Resort
• Sheraton Yantai Golden Beach Resort
• The Malus Resort, Sanya
• The St. Regis Lhasa Resort
• The St. Regis Sanya Yalong Bay Resort
• The Westin Resort, Macau

Croatia

• Le Meriden Lav Split

Cyprus

• Le Méridien Limassol Spa & Resort

Egypt

• Le Méridien Dahab Resort
• Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel & Spa
• Sheraton Luxor Resort
• Sheraton Miramar Resort El Gouna
• Sheraton Sharm Hotel, Resort, Villas & Spa
• Sheraton Soma Bay Resort

Fiji

• Sheraton Denarau Villas
• Sheraton Fiji Resort
• The Westin Denarau Island Resort & Spa, Fiji

France

• Le Méridien Nice

Gambia

• Sheraton Gambia Hotel Resort & Spa

Germany

• ArabellaSheraton Alpenhotel

Greece

• Arion Resort & Spa, Astir Palace, Athens
• Blue Palace Resort & Spa, Elounda
• Santa Marina Resort & Villas, Mykonos
• Sheraton Rhodes Resort
• The Romanos, Costa Navarino
• The Westin Athens Astir Palace Beach Resort
• The Westin Resort, Costa Navarino
• Vedema Resort, Santorini

India

• ITC Mughal, Agra
• Le Méridien Jaipur
• Le Méridien Kochi
• Sheraton Udaipur Palace Resort & Spa
• The Westin Sohna Resort & Spa

Indonesia

• Sheraton Lampung Hotel
• Sheraton Mustika Yogyakarta Resort and Spa
• Sheraton Senggigi Beach Resort
• The Laguna Resort & Spa, Nusa Dua, Bali
• The Westin Resort Nusa Dua, Bali
• W Retreat & Spa Bali – Seminyak

Israel

• Le Méridien Dead Sea
• Le Méridien Eilat

Italy

• Le Méridien Rimini
• Sheraton Catania Hotel & Conference Center
• Sheraton Golf Parco de’ Medici Hotel & Resort, Roma

Japan

• Sheraton Grande Ocean Resort
• Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel
• The Westin Awaji Island Resort and Conference Center
• The Westin Miyako, Kyoto

Malaysia

• Four Points by Sheraton Langkawi Resort
• Sheraton Langkawi Beach Resort
• The Andaman, Langkawi
• The Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa

Maldives, Republic of

• Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa

Malta

• Le Méridien St. Julians Hotel & Spa
• The Westin Dragonara Resort, Malta

Mauritius

• Le Méridien Ile Maurice
• The Grand Mauritian Resort & Spa, Mauritius
• The St. Regis Mauritius Resort

Mexico

• Hacienda San Jose
• Hacienda Santa Rosa
• Hacienda Temozon
• Hacienda Uayamon
• Le Méridien Cancun Resort & Spa
• Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center
• Sheraton Hacienda del Mar Golf & Spa Resort
• The St. Regis Punta Mita Resort
• The Westin Lagunamar Ocean Resort Villas, Cancun
• The Westin Resort & Spa, Cancun
• The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos
• The Westin Resort & Spa, Puerto Vallarta

Monaco

• Le Méridien Beach Plaza

Morocco

• Le Méridien N’Fis

New Caledonia

• Le Méridien Ile des Pins
• Le Méridien Nouméa

Nigeria

• Le Méridien Ibom Hotel & Golf Resort
• Le Méridien Ogeyi Place

Panama

• Westin Playa Bonita

Peru

• Hotel Paracas, Paracas
• Tambo del Inka Resort & Spa, Valle Sagrado

Poland

• Sheraton Sopot Hotel & Coference Center

Portugal

• Convento do Espinheiro Hotel & Spa, Evora
• Le Méridien Penina Golf & Resort
• Sheraton Algarve Hotel, Albufeira

Qatar

• Sheraton Doha Resort & Convention Hotel

Seychelles

• Le Méridien Barbarons
• Le Méridien Fisherman’s Cove

South Africa

• Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa

Spain

• Castillo Hotel Son Vida, Mallorca
• Le Méridien Ra Beach Hotel & Spa
• Marqués de Riscal, Elciego
• Sheraton Fuerteventura Beach, Golf & Spa Resort
• Sheraton La Caleta Resort & Spa, Costa Adeje, Tenerife
• Sheraton Mallorca Arabella Golf Hotel
• Sheraton Salobre Golf Resort & Spa
• Sheraton Santa Maria de El Paular

St. Maarten

• The Westin Dawn Beach Resort & Spa, St. Maarten

Switzerland

• ArabellaSheraton Hotel Seehof
• Sheraton Davos Hotel Waldhuus

Syria

• Le Méridien Lattakia
• Sheraton Ma’aret Sednaya Hotel & Resort

Tahiti

• Le Méridien Tahiti

Thailand

• Le Méridien Chiang Rai Resort, Thailand
• Le Méridien Khao Lak Beach & Spa Resort
• Le Méridien Phuket Beach Resort
• Sheraton Grande Laguna, Phuket
• Sheraton Hua Hin Resort & Spa
• Sheraton Krabi Beach Resort
• Sheraton Pattaya Resort
• The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa, Phuket

Turkey

• Sheraton Cesme Hotel, Resort and Spa

United Arab Emirates

• Le Méridien Abu Dhabi
• Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel & Resort
• Sheraton Jumeirah Beach Resort & Towers
• Westin Abu Dhabi Resort & Spa

United Kingdom

• Turnberry Resort, Scotland

Uruguay

• Sheraton Colonia Golf & Spa Resort

Vietnam

• Sheraton Nha Trang Hotel & Spa

As Loyalty Traveler I am focused on the economics of travel and helping leisure travelers get better value from upscale hotel stays. I say a promotion is a great deal when I see an opportunity to get a high value future rebate on hotel spend.

Starwood Preferred Guest “Getaway Free” promotion is a great opportunity for leisure travelers to earn SPG elite status while buying a high-value vacation opportunity at a luxury Starwood Resort at a bargain price. This is the third year Starwood has run a free night promotion.  Although this is a bit more restrictive than prior years with free nights earned limited to redemption at 200 resorts, the more positive aspect of this offer compared to the past two years is the ability to redeem free nights any day of the week.

Starwood’s Getaway Free may very well be the best hotel loyalty promotion we see in 2011.

Spend a lot to save a lot and earn elite status.

What I like about this promotion is the ability to earn SPG elite status while earning high-value free nights.

In 2009, during the height of the financial crisis, Starwood Hotels offered a promotion for a free night at any hotel up to category 6 after two hotel stays. In 2010 the promotion was changed to three stays earn a free night at any hotel up to category 6. This year the promotion is limited to free night redemptions at 200 Starwood Resort properties.

I worked the Starwood free nights promotion hard in May 2009. My wife was going through cancer treatment and the hotel stays provided us with some desirable distractions from the daily reality of being totally stressed about our future life together. Kelley just received results of her CT scan last week conducted 18 months after finishing treatment for Stage 2 rectal cancer. No cancer detected.

I wrote several posts on my Starwood Hotel strategies during the 2009 promotion and detailed my hotel rate search methods, hotel rate savings, and room types I received on my paid stays.

Many leisure traveler readers question the logic and real value of frequent stays when spending money to earn free nights through possibly unnecessary hotel stays.  

Here are links for three posts from May/June 2009 that I think still offer good information for travelers interested in the current Starwood Getaway Free promotion for a free Starwood Resort night after three stays. These posts illustrate how Starwood hotel stays paid off in our travels.

How I search hotel rates (May 8, 2009)

My Starwood Free Night Promotion Progress (May 20, 2009)

My May 2009 Starwood Free Nights Promotion Analysis (June 25, 2009) – This post has a table showing details of my Starwood stays for earning seven free nights and how I calculated getting about $6,000 in hotel rooms for under $2,000.

Westin Market Street San Francisco view northwest

Club Carlson launches March 31, 2011 and celebrates with a new promotion: ‘Stay Twice, Earn a Free Night’ for hotel stays from April 15 - June 15. There is a limit of one free night earned during promotion period. Free night may be redeemed worldwide through December 31, 2011.

Book qualifying stays beginning March 31 through June 15.

Promotion registration is required at www.clubcarlson.com/freenight.

Club Carlson has 1,070 hotels in 77 countries. Club Carlson hotel brands include Radisson Blu, Radisson, Park Plaza, Park Inn and Country Inns & Suites.

To support the launch of Club Carlson, Carlson is offering a “Stay Twice, Earn a Free Night” offer at any of its more than 1,000 branded hotels worldwide – including Radisson®, Country Inns & Suites by CarlsonSM, Park Inn by Radisson and Park Plaza® hotels. Existing and newly enrolled members who register and then stay twice at a Carlson property during the promotional period between April 15 and June 15 can earn a free night’s stay to use by December 31, 2011..

For more information about the new Club Carlson program or the Stay Twice, Earn a Free Night offer, visit www.clubcarlson.com, and its new social sites, clubcarlson/facebook and clubcarlson/twitter, beginning March 31, 2011. To qualify for the offer, members must register at www.clubcarlson.com/freenight and book qualifying stays between March 31 and June 15, 2011, for stays between April 15 and June 15, 2011. 

Club Carlson Press Release

I am disappointed Club Carlson did not release the hotel reward category assignment changes prior to these changes taking effect tomorrow. The changes do not impact the high category rewards all that much, but many low category hotels today will require more points in the new system with the reassignments.

Club Carlson would have been the trump card in this 2011-Q2 round of hotel loyalty promotions if this promotion were not limited to just one free night.

The main question on my mind is whether there is an earning limit on free nights? Tomorrow we’ll know the promotion details.

Related Posts:

Club Carlson new loyalty program replaces goldpoints plus on March 31.

These Loyalty Traveler posts describe changes with Club Carlson: 

 Club Carlson Loyalty program Launches March 31 – Replaces goldpoints plus (Feb 14)

 Club Carlson Reward Category Changes March 31, 2011 (Feb 18)

 Club Carlson Hotel Reward Category Analysis (Feb 28) This post shows the number of hotels in each category and changes from 2010 level for different global regions.

Club Med resort credit for goldpoints. $100, $250 and $500 credit. Loyalty Traveler analysis March 10.