1,000 Bonus Airline Miles Promotion for Hotel Stays – Should You Do It?

Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

Via Points, Miles & Martinis, Starwood and American Airlines are running a promotion!

For stays completed by December 31, 2017, you can earn bonus American Airlines miles for every 2-night stay at select Starwood hotels.  But you’ll forfeit any Starwood points you would have earned on that stay.

I’ll help you decide when it’s worth taking the American Airlines miles.  And when you should stick to Starwood points!

1,000 American Airlines for Each 2-Night Starwood Stay

Link:   American Airlines Starwood Promotion

Through December 31, 2017, you can choose to earn 1,000 American Airlines miles for each 2-night stay at participating Starwood hotels!  You’ll have to switch your points earning preference, otherwise you’ll continue to earn Starwood points.

Here are the details:

• You must participate in the Airline Direct Deposit portion of the Starwood Preferred Guest program (the Starwood points you earn from your stay will be converted automatically into miles)
• You must stay 2 consecutive nights
• Only valid at participating Starwood Hotels & Resorts in North America and Latin America
• You must book with rate plan AIRPRO
• You can NOT combine this with other offers or promotions
• Award nights are NOT valid

You can read the full terms & conditions here.

Is This a Good Deal?

When you elect to earn the 1,000 American Airlines mile bonus, you will NOT earn any Starwood points.  However, this can be a good deal, depending on the cost of your room and whether or not you have an AMEX Starwood card and Starwood elite status.

Remember, Starwood points are extremely valuable.  That’s because they’re flexible, and can be used for free hotel stays, as well as transferred to 30+ airlines (including American Airlines!).  So if you have the chance to earn 1,000 Starwood points or 1,000 American Airlines miles, you should choose Starwood points!

For example, if you have NO Starwood elite status, you’ll earn 2 Starwood points per $1 at Starwood hotels.  And if you use the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express to pay for your stay, you’ll earn an additional 2 Starwood points per $1.  So if your 2-night stay costs $250, you’ll earn 1,000 Starwood points ($250 stay X 4 Starwood points per $1).

That’s a better deal than getting 1,000 American Airlines miles!  But if you’re staying at a cheap hotel, like the Four Points by Sheraton Queretaro Norte, you’ll be better off choosing to earn American Airlines miles.

Rooms here sell for ~$64, so you may only earn ~500 Starwood points ($128 stay X 4 Starwood points per $1).  In that case, earning 1,000 American Airlines miles could be a better deal.

Bottom Line

For 2-night Starwood hotel stays completed by December 31, 2017, you can earn 1,000 American Airlines miles!  But you will NOT earn any Starwood points if you elect to earn American Airlines miles.

This is a nice promotion for folks who plan to stay at low-cost Starwood hotels.  But if you’d earn 1,000+ Starwood points on your stay anyway, it’s better to earn Starwood points!  Because they’re much more flexible than American Airlines miles, and tend to be more valuable.

Do you plan to participate in this promotion?