Hilton gives points away like they’re Blockbuster shares. They are the uncontested easiest travel currency to earn:
- They frequently publish generous bonus points promos
- The best Hilton credit cards come with massive six-figure welcome bonuses
- You can earn up to 14 bonus points per dollar with Hilton cards when you spend in bonus categories
- Hilton status gives you up to 100% bonus points on your hotel spending (which you can achieve just by holding a credit card)
Pretty great, right? We estimate Hilton points value to be around 0.5 cents each (though they can be much higher if you know the best uses of Hilton points). So it’s an unexpected surprise to see that Hilton has enhanced their points system in three ways to make points earning even easier. I’ll give you the rundown.
Three positive tweaks to the Hilton Honors program
Beginning January 9, 2020, the following changes are implemented.
Earn base points with up to four rooms at a time
When you spend money at a Hilton hotel, you receive 10 “base points” per night. For example, if you spent $300 for your hotel stay, you’d earn 3,000 redeemable Hilton points.
Previously, Hilton allowed you to earn base points for two rooms at a time, so long as they were on the same bill. Hilton has since doubled that number — you can now earn points for up to four rooms at a time. For those of you who travel with friends and family that don’t bother to collect miles and points, this is excellent news.
All spending at all Hilton brands will earn base points
Many hotels also allow you to earn base points on other purchases you might make at the hotel, such as bottled water or snack from the hotel’s corner store. But a few brands, namely Homewood Suites, Hampton Inn, Home2 Suites, and Tru gave no bonus points for these expenses. Hilton has now changed that quirk — you’ll earn points on all purchases you make at any Hilton hotel brand.
Earn unlimited base points
This one is largely irrelevant, but it’s worth a mention for all you oil sheikhs out there. Hilton previously capped our base points earning potential at 100,000 points per stay. That was a bummer for anyone spending over $10,000 per stay. Hilton has now removed that cap, and you’ll earn 10 base points per dollar no matter how much you spend.
Let us know what you think of these changes — and read our complete guide on how to earn Hilton Honors points.
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