Advertiser Disclosure – Katie’s Travel Tricks is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as MileValue.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more. For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply
Why hotel cards are worth keeping
Hotel credit cards don’t offer the same flexibility as flexible rewards cards, but they can still be really valuable in the miles and points world. Great benefits and annual fees under $100 make many hotel cards worth keeping after that first year. Here are our favorite hotel card benefits and some of the cards that include them.
Hotel card benefits
Annual free night certificates
One of our favorite perks of holding a co-branded hotel card is the annual free night certificate. This night isn’t truly free since you are paying an annual fee, but we like to think of it like a discounted, pre-paid vacation.
Marriott cards, IHG cards, and the Hyatt personal card all offer annual free night certificates on cards with an annual fee. Our favorite hotel cards have an annual fee around $100, and this free night certificate can easily be worth more than $200 towards a hotel stay.
Faster path to elite status
Holding hotel cards earns you instant hotel elite status. The benefits of elite status vary based on the hotel chain. The status you get for holding a card is low level, but it could qualify you for perks such as the 5th night free benefit, late check-out, free breakfast, and/or room upgrades.
| Hotel Chain | Elite Status You Can Get from a Credit Card | Benefits |
| Hilton | Silver | -Bottled water -Fifth night free |
| Hilton | Gold | -Bottled water -Fifth night free -Space-available room upgrades -Daily food and beverage credit or continental breakfast |
| IHG | Silver | -Points don’t expire -Priority check-in |
| IHG | Platinum | -Points don’t expire -Priority check-in -Reward night discount -Complimentary upgrades -Welcome amenity at check-in (ie points or drink/snack) -Early check-in (subject to availability) |
| Marriott | Silver | -Priority late checkout (subject to availability) |
| Marriott | Gold | -2 PM check-out (subject to availability) -Welcome gift (points) -Room upgrade (subject to availability) |
| Hyatt | Discoverist | -Premium internet -Bottled water -Preferred room within type booked -Elite check-in -2 PM check-out (subject to availability) -American Airlines AAdvantage Bonus |
| Wyndham | Gold | -Free WiFi -Preferred room selection -Late checkout |
| Wyndham | Platinum | -Free WiFi -Preferred room selection -Late checkout -Early check-in -Caesars Rewards Status Match -Avis and Budget car rental upgrades |
| Wyndham | Diamond | -Free WiFi -Preferred room selection -Late checkout -Early check-in -Caesars Rewards Status Match -Avis and Budget car rental upgrades -Suite upgrades -Welcome amenity |
Free nights on award stays
Hilton, IHG, and Marriott all offer a free night benefit on award stays after a certain number of consecutive nights. While Marriott offers this benefit to anyone booking an award stay, Hilton and IHG only offer it for certain members.
For IHG, this benefit is only available to members holding a co-branded hotel card. If you hold any one of IHG’s three credit cards, you will get every 4th night free on award bookings over three nights. This means that if you book a 4 night award stay at any IHG hotel, you will only pay for the first three nights. If you book an 8 night stay, you will pay for nights 1-3 and 5-7 and nights 4 and 8 will be free.
Hilton offers a 5th night free benefit on award stays to those with Hilton elite status. If you hold any of the Hilton cards, you automatically receive elite status, qualifying you for the 5th night free benefit.
Earn points faster
If you are looking to rack up a lot of hotel points for a free stay, the fastest way to do so is by signing up for credit card card and earning the sign up bonuses.
For some hotel chains, you’ll earn the most points and get the best value by signing up for the co-branded hotel card and earning the bonus. For example, the IHG® Premier card will typically get you 140,000 bonus points when you sign up.
If you or your work frequently pay for hotel stays, you’ll appreciate that using your co-branded card to pay will earn you more points per dollar spent at that hotel chain.
| Card Name | Points Earned Per $ Spent at Hotel |
| Hilton Honor American Express | 7 |
| Hilton Honor American Express Surpass® | 12 |
| Hilton Honor American Express Business | 12 |
| IHG® Rewards Traveler | 17 |
| IHG® Rewards Premier | 26 |
| IHG® Rewards Premier Business | 26 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bold® | 14 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® | 17 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® | 6 |
| World of Hyatt | 9 |
| World of Hyatt Business | 9 |
| Wyndham Rewards Earner® | 5 |
| Wyndham Rewards Earner+® | 6 |
| Wyndham Rewards Earner® Business | 8 |
Hotel cards and their benefits
We consider cards with annual fees worth it when the perks and benefits outweigh the fees. It can be hard to stomach fees that are several hundred dollars, even if they do pay for themselves. Luckily, many hotel cards have annual fees under $100, but the benefits are worth much more.
If you don’t think one of these cards is worth a 5/24 slot, or you already have a personal card and aren’t eligible to re-earn a bonus yet, remember that business cards don’t count against your 5/24 and are a great way to earn even more points.
| Card Name | Annual Fee | Annual Free Night Certificate | Free Night on Award Bookings | Complimentary Hotel Status | Other Perks |
| Hilton Honors American Express | $0 | No | Yes (every 5th night, available to those with status) | Silver | |
| Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® | $95 | Must spend $15,000 on your card | Yes (every 5th night, available to those with status) | Gold | 10 Priority Pass visits per year |
| Hilton Honors American Express Business | $95 | Must spend $15,000 on your card | Yes (every 5th night, available to those with status) | Gold | 10 Priority Pass visits per year |
| IHG® Rewards Traveler | $0 | No | Yes (every 4th night, available to cardholders) | Silver | |
| IHG® Rewards Premier | $99 | Yes (up to 40,000 points) | Yes (every 4th night, available to cardholders) | Platinum | -Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit -$50 United TravelBank credit per year |
| IHG® Rewards Premier Business | $99 | Yes (up to 40,000 points) | Yes (every 4th night, available to cardholders) | Platinum | -Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit -$50 United TravelBank credit per year |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bold® | $0 | No | Yes (every 5th night, available to everyone) | Silver | |
| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® | $95 | Yes (up to 35,000 points) | Yes (every 5th night, available to everyone) | Silver | |
| Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® | $125 | Yes (up to 35,000 points) | Yes (every 5th night, available to everyone) | Gold | |
| World of Hyatt | $95 | Yes (Category 1-4) | No | Discoverist | |
| World of Hyatt Business | $199 | No | No | Discoverist | Up to $100 in Hyatt statement credits |
| Wyndham Rewards Earner® | $0 | No | No | Gold | 10% off award nights |
| Wyndham Rewards Earner+® | $75 | No, but you get 7,500 points on account anniversary | No | Platinum | -10% off award nights -Cardmember discounts |
| Wyndham Rewards Earner® Business | $95 | No, but you get 15,000 points on account anniversary | No | Diamond | -10% off award nights -Cardmember discounts -Match to Caesars Diamond for perks like a free Atlantis stay |
Hilton Honors
Hilton offers three cards through American Express. This includes three personal cards (Hilton Honors, Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® and Hilton Honors American Express Aspire®) and one business card (Hilton Honors American Express Business). Other than the Hilton Aspire – with its annual fee of $450 – these cards have annual fees under $100.
Unfortunately, Hilton cards do not come with an annual free night certificate just for holding the card. However, since cardholders receive automatic Hilton status, card holders are eligible for the fifth night free on award stays.
Even without an annual free night certificate, the Hilton American Express Surpass® and Hilton American Express Business cards still pay for themselves for travelers. Both of these $95 cards come with Gold status, which makes you eligible for free breakfast for 2 and room upgrades. If you don’t frequent Hiltons, you may find the annual 10 Priority Pass lounge visits that come with these cards more valuable.
Favorite Hilton cards
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card – 150,000 points – Offer ends 04/05/2023
- Earn 150,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months of Card Membership.
- $95 annual fee (Terms Apply. | Rates & Fees.)
- 12x points for spend directly at Hilton hotels and resorts
- 6x points for spending on gas and groceries
- Complimentary Gold status (enrollment required)
- 10 Priority Pass visits per year (enrollment required)
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card – learn more
- $95 annual fee (Terms Apply | Rates and Fees)
- Earn 165,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $5,000 in purchases on the Hilton Honors Business Card in the first 3 months of Card Membership.
- Complimentary Gold status (enrollment required)
- 10 Priority Pass visits per year
- Earn 12X at hotels & resorts in the Hilton portfolio.
- Earn 6X on U.S. gas stations, on U.S. purchases for shipping, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers, on flights booked directly with airlines or with Amex Travel, on car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies, and at U.S. restaurants.
- Earn 3X on all other eligible purchases.
IHG Rewards
IHG offers two personal and one business card. You can read our guide to the IHG cards here. The IHG cards are some of our favorites because they offer high sign up bonuses and cardholders get the 4th night free on award bookings.
The two IHG cards with annual fees, the IHG® Rewards Premier and Premier Business cards, include a TSA PreCheck/Global Entry statement credit every 4 years and $50 in United TravelBank Cash every year.
In addition, if you have the IHG® Rewards Premier or IHG® Premier Business card, you receive an annual free night certificate each cardmember anniversary worth up to 40,000 points. Since IHG Rewards are typically valued at about 0.5 cents per point, you can expect to get at least a $200 value from your free night certificate for a $99 annual fee. If you want to book a night that costs more than 40,000 points, you can use your IHG Rewards to cover the difference.
Favorite IHG cards
IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card – 175,000 points
- $99 annual fee
- Earn 175,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening
- Reward Night after each account anniversary year at eligible IHG hotels worldwide (worth 40,000 points)
- 4th night free when you redeem points for any stay of 4 or more nights
- Earn up to 26 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel
- Earn 5 points per $1 spent on purchases on travel, gas stations, and restaurants. Earn 3 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
- Platinum Elite status as long as you remain a Premier card member
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Fee Credit of up to $100 every 4 years as reimbursement for the application fee charged to your card
- $50 in United TravelBank cash each calendar year
IHG® One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card – 140,000 points
- $99 annual fee
- Earn 140,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
- Reward Night after each account anniversary year at eligible IHG hotels worldwide (worth 40,000 points)
- 4th night free when you redeem points for any stay of 4 or more nights
- Earn 10 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel
- Earn 5 points per $1 spent on purchases on travel, hotels (non-IHG), gas stations, dining, social media and search engine advertising, and office supply stores.
- Earn 3 points per $1 spent on all other purchases
- Platinum Elite status as long as you remain a Premier card member
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Fee Credit of up to $100 every 4 years as reimbursement for the application fee charged to your card
Marriott Bonvoy
Both American Express and Chase banks offer co-branded Marriott personal and business credit cards.
Holding a Marriott Bonvoy credit card will get you automatic elite status. The American Express cards, with annual fees between $125 and $650, will get you automatic gold status and Chase Marriott Bonvoy cards will get you automatic silver elite status.
If you plan to open both American Express and Chase Marriott Bonvoy credit cards, be sure to read the terms and conditions carefully. American Express limits the availability of Marriott Bonvoy card bonuses for those who have recently opened or received a cardmember bonus on the Chase Marriott cards and vice versa.
Favorite Marriott card
Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card
- $95 annual fee
- Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from your account opening
- 1 Free Night Award annually after your Card account anniversary (up to 35k)
- Earns 6 points per $1 at Bonvoy (Starwood / Marriott) properties and 2 points per $1 on everything else.
- After holding this card for 1 year, you can upgrade to the Ritz Carlton card, which is one option for families to get airport lounge access.
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card – 125,000 bonus points
- $125 annual fee (Terms Apply | Rates and Fees)
- Earn 125,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
- Provides 1 free night certificate every year on account anniversary (at a hotel up to 35k points)
World of Hyatt
Hyatt offers a World of Hyatt personal and business credit card through Chase. We love Hyatt, but unfortunately neither of these cards offers an impressive bonus. We still think they are worth getting for the perks, though.
The World of Hyatt personal card bonus stays pretty consistently at 30,000 points for $3,000 in spend in the first 3 months from account opening (and up to an additional 30,000 points for $15,000 in spend in the first 6 months).
If you are after World of Hyatt points, you’ll get the most points by earning sign up bonuses on Chase Sapphire and Ink cards and transferring the points to World of Hyatt. With Sapphire and Ink sign up bonuses ranging from 60,000-90,000 Ultimate Rewards, transferring Ultimate Rewards to Hyatt is one of our favorite uses of our Ultimate Rewards.
A lower sign up bonus doesn’t mean you should automatically exclude the World of Hyatt personal card from your credit card portfolio.
The World of Hyatt personal card includes an annual free night certificate at a Category 1-4 hotel, which can more than make up for the $95 annual fee.
Additionally, if you are aiming to hit Hyatt elite status (and who doesn’t want to be a Hyatt Globalist?!), having the World of Hyatt card will automatically get you 5 elite nights.
The World of Hyatt Business card, which comes with a $199 fee, does have a higher sign up bonus but, unfortunately, does not include an annual free night certificate.
Favorite Hyatt card
The World of Hyatt Credit Card – Learn how to apply
- $95 annual fee
- 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening
- Provides 1 free night certificate every year on account anniversary (up to a category 4 hotel)
- If you spend $15,000 per year on the card you will earn an additional free night certificate
Wyndham Rewards
Wyndham offers a business and two personal credit cards through Barclays Bank. Wait for the bonuses to hit 60,000+ before you apply, they seem to raise in the summer. While they don’t include free night certificates, you do get points on your account anniversary which is even better, in our opinion, If you use Wyndham a lot you will also be able to take advantage of the 10% off award stays benefit.
Both Capital One and Citi points also transfer to Wyndham. Our favorite use of Wyndham points is transferring them to Vacasa for vacation rentals starting at 15,000 points per night. Wyndham hotels can be a great value too, starting at just 7,500 points per night.
We prefer the Wyndham Business card since it doesn’t count towards your Chase 5/24. You’ll also get more bonus points on your anniversary, and can status match to Caesar’s Diamond for free — which means you can get a free stay at Atlantis Bahamas.
Favorite Wyndham card
Wyndham Rewards Earner® Business Card – 45,000 points (non affiliate link)
- $95 annual fee
- Earn 15,000 bonus points on account anniversary
- 8 points per dollar on gas
- Automatic Diamond status which gives free upgrades
- Status match to Caesar’s Diamond for a free 5 night stay at Atlantis Bahamas
- Great for booking vacation rental homes.
Re-earning hotel card bonuses
While we love keeping hotel cards for perks like free stays, you may want to close your co-branded Chase cards every couple years so that you can earn the card bonus again.
Earning credit card bonuses again is a great way to keep earning points after you have been in this hobby for a few years. Chase typically allows sign up bonuses to be earned again 24 months after the last bonus. You can read all about re-earning sign up bonuses here, and learn how to check the terms and conditions of the card to see whether you qualify again.
| Chase Card Family | Re-earning bonus permitted | Eligibility | Other Terms |
| IHG personal cards | Yes | 24 months from last bonus on any IHG Rewards personal card | Not available to current cardholders of any IHG Rewards personal card |
| Marriott cards | Yes | 24 months from last bonus on any of the following: Marriott Bonvoy® Premier credit card, Marriott Rewards® Premier credit card, Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® credit card, Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus credit card, Marriott Bonvoy Bold® credit card. | Not available to current cardholders of any of the following: Marriott Bonvoy® Premier credit card, Marriott Rewards® Premier credit card, Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® credit card, Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus credit card, Marriott Bonvoy Bold® credit card. |
| World of Hyatt personal card | Yes | 24 months from last bonus | Not available to current cardholders of the World of Hyatt card |
| IHG Rewards Premier Business card | Yes | 24 months from last bonus on IHG Rewards Premier Business card | Not available to current cardholders of the IHG Rewards Premier Business card |
| World of Hyatt Business | Yes | 24 months from last bonus | Not available to current cardholders of the World of Hyatt Business card |
Advertiser Disclosure – Katie’s Travel Tricks is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as MileValue.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more. For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply
