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You can buy Choice Privileges Points for 30% off through August 10, 2018. Choice hotels, in the United States at least, are mostly utilitarian motels. Europe is an exception, and one of the best place to get the most value out of your points. If you’ve got plans to travel (especially) to northern Europe, keep reading.

The Sale

Choice Privilege Points typically cost 1.1 cents each. The sale is tiered. You’ll get the biggest discount (30% off) by buying at least 40,000 points.

  • 5,000-14,000 points are .99 cents each: 10% off
  • 15,000-29,000 points are .94 cents each: 15% off
  • 30,000-39,000 points are .825 cents each: 25% off
  • 40,000-50,000 points are .77 cents each: 30% off

Important terms:

  • Maximum points one account can buy in one calendar year is 50,000.
  • Transactions must be completed between 9 AM ET July 6, 2018 and 11:59 PM August 10, 2018 to be eligible for a discount on points.
  • Points will be posted to your Choice Privileges account within 24 hours after your transaction is complete.
  • Purchased points do not count toward Elite Status or Lifetime Elite Gold Status.
  • Transactions are final and nonrefundable.

Choice Privileges Basics

Choice Privileges points can be used at over 6,300 hotels with the following brand names:

  • Comfort Inn
  • Comfort Suites
  • Quality Inn
  • Sleep Inn
  • Clarion
  • Cambria Hotel & Suites
  • Mainstay Suites
  • Suburban Extended Stay
  • Econo Lodge
  • Rodeway Inn
  • Ascend Hotel Collection

How far do Choice Privileges points go?

  • There are no blackout dates
  • There are over 1,000 Choice hotels with reward nights at 8,000 points or less.
  • Reward nights at Choice hotels worldwide are available from 6,000 to 35,000 points (excluding Australasia where points required are up to 75,000)

Thankfully Choice Privileges changed their old policy which restricted bookings further than 30 days out in the U.S. and Canada and 60 days at properties elsewhere. Now Free Nights at all properties can be booked up to 100 nights in advance.

Flex Rewards Can Also be  Good Use of Choice Privilege Points

Flex Rewards are discounted rewards nights at over 1,500 properties worldwide whenever there is less demand–either midweek or on weekends.

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Scott’s Experience with Choice Privileges Points (by Scott)

The big value I got from my purchase of Choice Privileges points was using them to book expensive European hotels for very few points.

Namely, I used 20k Choice points for two nights at the Clarion Hotel in Stockholm, Sweden including free internet and breakfast:

  • My Price: 10k points per night, which I had bought for $40 (cheaper than a hostel in Stockholm) through Daily Getaways [Sarah Page: typically buying Choice Privilege points through Daily Getaways is the cheapest way to do so all year]
  • Retail Price: $325 per night
  • Savings: 88% off
Clarion Hotel Stockholm, 16k Choice Privilege Points per night
Clarion Hotel Stockholm, 10k Choice Privilege Points per night

During Oktoberfest, I stayed three nights at a Comfort Inn a few miles outside of Munich proper, but with easy train access, for 12,000 points per night ($48) when a Munich hostel wanted 75 euros per night and hotels wanted several hundred euros.

Plus I have stayed at adequate airport hotels in Oslo and Rome and motels in the United States. Using Choice Privileges points in Europe was never glamorous, but was always a huge money saver.

Current Examples

Clarion Collection Hotel Drott

A weekend night in August costs ~$144, or 8,000 Choice Privilege Points ($61.60 when bought for .77 cents each). Not only do you get free breakfast, but free dinner as well!

Clarion Collection Hotel Folketeatert

A weekday night in August costs ~$209, or 16,000 Choice Privilege points ($123.20 when bough for .77 cents each). A standard free night booking at this property also gets free breakfast and free dinner.

I have also read that Choice Privilege points can get you far on redemptions in Japan, where hotels also tend to be expensive. Examples: Comfort Hotel Osaka Shinsaibashi, Comfort Hotel Tokyo Kanda, Comfort Hotel Tokyo Higashi Nihombashi, and Comfort Hotel Tokyo Kiyosumi Shirakawa.

Buy Choice Privilege Points with These Credit Cards

Choice Privilege points purchases are processed by points.com, so the purchases will not code as a bonus “travel” or “hotel” purchase on any credit card. You will not earn category bonuses from the purchase of Choice Privilege points.

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That means you should make the purchase with whichever card earns the type of point or mile you value the most.

Bottom Line

You can buy Choice Privilege Points for as little as .77 cents each through August 10, 2018. While most Choice Privilege hotels are basic motels in the United States, the points can be really useful in northern Europe countries and Japan, where hotels are pricey.

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Just getting started in the world of points and miles? The Chase Sapphire Preferred is the best card for you to start with.

With a bonus of 60,000 points after $4,000 spend in the first 3 months, 5x points on travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal and 3x points on restaurants, streaming services, and online groceries (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs), this card truly cannot be beat for getting started!


Editorial Disclaimer: The editorial content is not provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of the credit card issuers, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuers.

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