From Four Points to 20,000 Starwood Points (Plus a FREE Hotel Stay!)

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Keith:   This is not your average story about complaining to get free hotel points.  Although I have quite a few of those! 😉

Last weekend, I was in Nashville for a friend’s bachelor party.  I arrived the night before the rest of the group got to town.  So I decided to book a cheap stay at an airport hotel.

After a few flight delays, I arrived in Nashville at 3:00 am.  I took a ~5 minute taxi ride to the Four Points by Sheraton Nashville Airport.  This is where the story gets good.  At check-in, I learned the hotel was oversold and my room had been given away.

Most folks would understandably be upset in this situation.  But I knew this was an opportunity to walk away with a free hotel night and much more!

Starwood Elite Status

I’m a loyal Starwood guest with Platinum elite status.  I’ve worked hard to earn this perk by mostly booking Starwood branded hotels whenever my wife and I travel.

It’s nice to enjoy room upgrades and earn extra bonus points when we’re on vacation.  But there’s a benefit of Platinum status I would never have thought could come in handy:

Guaranteed room availability when your room is booked by 3:00 pm, 72+ hours prior to arrival.

Well, apparently this perk does not work as advertised.

A Free Night & 20,000 Starwood Points!

Here’s what I got for the inconvenience:

• A free night at the nearby Hyatt Place Nashville Airport hotel
• 20,000 Starwood points 
• Free cup of coffee at the Four Points by Sheraton Nashville Airport when I visited to meet with the manager

Yes, 20,000 Starwood points!  That’s enough to get me a free round-trip flight to Hawaii.  Or a free night at highly-rated hotels like The Phoenician, a Luxury Collection Resort, Scottsdale.

I’m planning to save these points until the Marriott and Starwood loyalty programs merge in August.  And I am super optimistic I’ll be able to get at least $750+ worth of free travel with these points.

Bottom Line

The main takeaway from my story is: do not settle.  I think many folks would take the free night at a nearby hotel and then curse Starwood for giving their room away.

I was grateful for the free hotel room.  But a quick walk over to the hotel the following day for a conversation with the manager got me 20,000 free Starwood points!

Does anyone else have an oversold hotel experience?  I’d love to hear how you handled it in the comments below!