How to Keep your Hotel Points from Expiring Without Staying in a Hotel!

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Hotel Points expiration

I’ve written about how to keep your airline miles from expiring without flying.  Here’s how to keep your hotel points from expiring without staying in a hotel!  Points expire in most US based airline program after 12 to 24 months of no earning or redemption activity.

Some programs like Choice and Wyndham hotels expire after 2 and 4 years and there is nothing you can do to extend the expiration, so you might as well use them before they expire.

Award Wallet is a good tool to track your miles and points balances and expiration dates.

Hotel	Expiration Policy
Choice Hotels	On December 31st, 2 years after you earned the points.
Club Carlson	24 months of not earning or spending points
Hilton	12 months of not earning or spending points
Hyatt Gold	12 months of not earning or spending points
Marriott	24 months of not earning points
Priority Club	Points Never Expire
Starwood Hotels	12 months of not earning or spending points
Wyndham	Points expire after 4 years and you can't do anything to extend them beyond 4 years. However, they will expire sooner (in 18 months)of not earning or spending points

But it is really, really easy to keep your hotel points active WITHOUT staying in the hotel!

Sometimes, all you need to do is to make an award booking and cancel it later, for free!  This will generate redemption activity when you make the award and earning activity when you cancel the award and reset the point expiration clock.  But be sure to check the cancellation policy when you book!

You can easily extend the expiration by buying something cheap or making a $1 donation from the airline’s online shopping mall, or using a credit card to keep your points active!

1.   Choice hotels International

• Expiration Policy

• Choice says: “points expire on December 31, two years after the year in which they were deposited into your account.”

This means that Choice hotel points CANNOT be extended past the two year expiration date.

2.   Club carlson

• Expiration Policy

• Club Carlson says: “Gold Points do not have an expiration date as long as your account remains active by earning or redeeming within a 24 month period.“

• Keep your Club Carlson Points Active by Earning Points:

• Stay at any Radisson, Radisson Blu, Park Plaza, Park Inn, or Country Inn & Suites
• Use a Club Carlson Visa Signature card
• Rent a car with Alamo, Avis, Budget, National, or Sixt
• Plan a meeting through Club Carlson
• Shop for wine with Vinesse wine club
• Purchase points from Club Carlson

• Keep your Club Carlson Points Active by Redeeming Points:

• Transfer points, for free, to another Club Carlson account
• Redeem for a free night at any Club Carlson property
• Book and cancel an award night for free with no cancellation fees (but double check the cancellation policy)
• Use points for an In-Hotel Express Award
• Donate to the World Childhood Foundation or offset your Carbon Emissions
• Redeem points for gift cards
• Transfer points for airline miles
• Redeem points for Club Med credits
• Use points for a Paypal deposit

3.   Hilton

• Expiration Policy

• Hilton says “HHonors points do not expire as long as members remain active in the program. To keep an account active, members can stay at one of Hilton Worldwide’s hotels, or earn or redeem HHonors points within 12 months.“

• Keep your Hilton Points Active by Earning Points:

• Stay at any Hilton hotel
• Use a Hilton credit card
• Buy, Give, or Receive Hilton points
• Shop with the Hilton Shop-To-Earn Mall
• Subscribe to a magazine
• Order flowers from FTD or Teleflora
• Rent a car with a Hilton rental partner
• Sign up for HHonors Dining
• Spend $50 with the Gilt Groupe and earn 2,000 HHonors points
• Enroll in e-Miles
• Earn points with Energy Plus, FedEx, and LifeLock
• Transfer miles from Hawaiian Airlines or Virgin Atlantic to Hilton in a 1:2 ratio
  
• Transfer American Express Membership Rewards points Citi Thank You or Diner’s Club points to Hilton
• Connect with TopGuest and earn 50 points for each check-in at a DoubleTree Hotel

• Keep your HHonors Points Active by Redeeming Points:

• Redeem for a free night at any Hilton brand property world-wide
• Book and cancel an award night for free with no cancellation fees (but double check the cancellation policy)
• Convert Hilton points into airline, cruise line, rail, or rental car accounts for travel rewards
• Redeem points for merchandise from the Hilton Shopping Mall
• Donate Hilton points to local charities
• Transfer points to airline mileage accounts
• Redeem points for Disney, Seaworld, or Universal Studios tickets

4.   hyatt

 

• Expiration Policy

• Hyatt says “[I]f an account is left inactive for more than 12 calendar months, the account may be deleted and all points in the account forfeited.“

• Keep your Gold Passport Points Active by Earning Points:

• Stay at any Hyatt hotel
• Use the Hyatt Credit Card
• Purchase Hyatt points
• Rent a car with Avis
• Transfer points from Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Hold a meeting at a Hyatt
  

• Keep your Gold Passport Points Active by Redeeming:

• Redeem for a free night at any Hyatt hotel
• Book and cancel an award night for free with no cancellation fees (but double check the cancellation policy)
• Use points for dining or spas at Hyatt hotels
• Combine points with any other Hyatt member to redeem for an award
• Transfer points to airline partners
• Redeem points for Avis car rentals
• Transfer points to a friend or family member

5.   marriott

• Expiration Policy

• Marriott says: “a Membership Account may be closed at the Company’s discretion if no Points or Miles are accrued during a 24-month period.  All Points in the Membership Account will be forfeited at that time.“
• This means that only earning (and NOT redeeming) Marriott points will extend the life of the points.

• Keep your Marriott Rewards Points Active by Earning:

• Stay with any Marriott hotel
• Use the Marriott Rewards credit card
• Transfer points from Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Purchase items from Marriott SkyMall or ShopMyWay Mall
• Take a cruise through a Marriott partner
• Earn points for Hertz car rentals & Sixt car rentals
• Hold a meeting or event at a Marriott hotel
• Send flowers via FTD
• Earn points with Energy Plus, taking a Chase home loan, using Ctrip (China’s largest travel site), and using Traveling Connect
• Refer a friend to Marriott Rewards
• Buy Marriott points

6.   priority club

• Expiration Policy

• Priority Club says: “Priority Club Rewards points never expire.“

7.   starwood hotels and resorts

• Expiration Policy

• Starwood says: “Starpoints earned or otherwise obtained by an SPG Member will forfeit without notice if the SPG Member becomes Inactive, even if the SPG Member has achieved SPG Lifetime Gold or SPG Lifetime Platinum status.
• An SPG Member is considered “Inactive” if during a 12 month period: (a) the SPG Member has not had an Eligible Stay at an SPG Participating Hotel; (b) the SPG Member has not earned or redeemed any Starpoints, or (c) the SPG Member’s account has been cancelled.“

• Keep your Starwood Points Active by Earning Points:

• Stay at any Starwood hotel
• Use the Starwood American Express credit card
• Transfer points from American Express Membership Rewards or Diners Club
• Purchase Starwood points
  
• Earn points for dining at a restaurant in a Starwood hotel
• Earn Starwood points with Energy Plus
• Participate in Audience Rewards trivia and earn Starwood points

• Keep your Starwood Points Active by Redeeming Points:

• Redeem for a free night at any Starwood hotel
• Book and cancel an award night for free with no cancellation fees (but double check the cancellation policy)
• Redeem Starwood points for airline miles
• Transfer points to Amtrak
• Bid points for auctions
• Donate points to the Red Cross or Unicef
• Transfer points to Avis or Sixt
• Transfer points to anyone who shares a common address
• Redeem points for purchases from Amazon, GAP, Starbucks, and more

8.   wyndham

• Expiration Policy

• Wyndham says “Wyndham Rewards points expire four (4) years after being posted to the Member’s account, unless forfeited or cancelled earlier due to membership inactivity or otherwise in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.”
• But Wyndham goes on to say: “All accrued points of a Member’s Wyndham Rewards account may be cancelled or forfeited if the Member has no account activity for a period of 18 consecutive months.“
• What this means is that your points WILL expire FOUR years after earning them and there is nothing you can do to extend this four year period.  But your points will expire sooner if you have NO account activity during 18 months.
  

• Keep your Wyndham Points Active by Earning Points:

• Stay at any Wyndham hotel
• Use the Wyndham credit card
• Plan a meeting or event with Wyndham
• Rent a car through Alamo, Avis, Budget, or National
• Purchase flowers from FTD
• Use Energy Plus
• Get a Liberty Mutual insurance quote
• Buy Wyndham points

• Keep your Wyndham Points Active by Redeeming Points:

• Use points for a free night at a Wyndham family hotel
• Book and cancel an award night for free with no cancellation fees (but double check the cancellation policy)
• Redeem for a Wyndham gift card or a donation
• Use points for a magazine subscription
• Redeem points for flights and cars
• Transfer points to an airline partner
• Redeem points for merchandise
• Pay maintenance fees (for Wyndham timeshare owners) with points

PS: I’m traveling so won’t be able to get the comments and email quickly.

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