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Lots of us have changed how we travel this year. That overwater bungalow may be on hold for some, but that trip to the national park may be full steam ahead. We all have our unique situations in 2021, but whether you are looking to get away near-term and closer to home or are still planning toward a big future blow-out trip, there are many ways to use your Hilton Honors points both now and later.
Hilton has around 6,000 properties worldwide that range in price from 5,000 to 95,000 Hilton Honors points per night for standard rooms (well, 120,000 points per night at this fancy Maldives resort and the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos). Given the wide range of options, let’s look at nine ways to use a haul of 150,000 Hilton points, which you can earn from a single card welcome bonus.
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How to earn 150,000 Hilton points
Before we get into how to redeem 150,000 Hilton points, let’s cover how to earn them first. The following Hilton cards are offering welcome bonuses of 150,000 points at the moment:
- Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card: Earn 150,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 within the first three months of card membership. Plus, earn a $150 statement credit after your first purchase within your first three months.
- Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card: Earn 150,000 points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months of opening your account.
- The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card: Earn 150,000 bonus points after you spend $2,000 in the first three months of account opening. Plus, earn a $150 statement credit after your first purchase within your first three months.
The information for the Hilton Aspire Amex card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Luxury near Utah national parks
National parks are having a moment as more and more travelers flock to the great outdoors. While there are various points-friendly hotels around some national parks, some of them are pretty modest offerings. However, if your travels are taking you to Utah, you can level-up your lodging selection in Moab and still be very close to both Arches and Canyonlands National Parks.
The Hoodoo Moab, Curio Collection by Hilton looks beautiful and is bookable for 23,000 – 49,000 Hilton Honors points per night in a standard room. At those rates, you could have anywhere from a long weekend to a full week getaway in the heart of Utah’s natural beauty for 150,000 Hilton points.
Also in Utah, you’ll find the Cliffrose Springdale just a few minutes away from Zion National Park. This Curio has rooms available from 22,000 to 56,000 Hilton points per night — so with 150,000 points you’d again have enough for anything from a weekend to a full week!
Related: Guide to visiting Zion National Park
Say aloha to Hawaii
It is safe to say there is probably some pent up demand for Hawaii.
When it reopens, it will again be a great place to redeem Hilton points at a wide variety of properties across multiple Hawaiian islands. Some of these properties, like the Grand Wailea Waldorf Astoria resort on Maui, can top out at 95,000 points per night for a standard room. With those high award rates, you’d be better off using a Hilton weekend-night certificate, which is available with several of the Hilton cobranded cards.
But don’t let some of the high award costs trick you into thinking that 150,000 Hilton points won’t go very far in Hawaii, as there are multiple options available for a significantly lower award cost. On the Big Island, the Grand Naniloa Hotel Hilo DoubleTree on the Hilo side (relatively near Volcanos National Park) starts at just 35,000 points per night.
Guests staying on Hilton points, even with midtier Hilton Gold status, are treated like kings and queens with free drinks, free parking, waived resort fees and free chocolates.
For a bigger Hawaiian resort experience on the Big Island, the 62-acre oceanfront Hilton Waikoloa Village goes for 60,000 Hilton points per night.
The Waikoloa Villa property has multiple pools, a snorkeling lagoon, canal boats and trams to explore the tropical grounds. Breakfast is served in a dedicated building and is offered free of charge to Gold and Diamond members. You can get complimentary Gold status just for having the Hilton Surpass Card.
On Waikiki, the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Resort costs 60,000 points per night. If you need more room for your group to spread out, you can book a one-bedroom suite with a pull-out couch at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Waikiki Beach for 70,000 Hilton Honors points per night.
Hilton doesn’t have a huge presence on the Garden Island of Kauai, but there is the Hilton Garden Inn Kauai Wailua Bay, which isn’t far from the family-friendly Lydgate Beach and the must-do Smith Family Garden Luau. It often goes for 50,000 points per night, which can be a good use of Hilton points.
Hit the slopes
Gallery: 10 Swoon-worthy Honeymoon Destinations That Won’t Break the Bank (Travel + Leisure)
The ski season will quickly return and Hilton points can save you a ton of money on peak-season ski weekends.
The renovated and rebranded Highline Vail (a Hilton DoubleTree property) is just a shuttle ride away from the slopes. Standard rooms currently range from 56,000 points per night, so you could have enough for a peak ski weekend. Early and late-season weekend rates can be found for even fewer points per night.
If you want to be within walking distance of the ski lifts, the DoubleTree by Hilton in Breckenridge, Colorado, is close to the Quicksilver chair lift and is bookable from 32,000 points per night right now during the ski season.
The DoubleTree Park City in Utah starts at 42,000 Hilton points per night during peak ski season.
Go all-inclusive
When life returns to normal, 150,000 bonus Hilton points can do more than get you a place to sleep at night. They can also cover your meals and activities if you go all-inclusive. Hilton has all-inclusive resorts you can book with points in Jamaica, Puerto Vallarta, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica and more.
All-inclusive Hilton properties in the Caribbean and Mexico usually go for 60,000 to 80,000 points per night, based on double occupancy. Children, ages 3 to 5 years old, stay free (depending on the resort), while children older than five incur a charge that varies with each resort.
Related: All-inclusive resorts you can book with points
Five nights at Disney World
If you want to take your family to Disney World post-pandemic and stay near the magic to enjoy the Disney perks but not pay Disney resort prices, Hilton points can be a great option.
The DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando-Disney Springs Area, Hilton Lake Buena Vista-Disney Springs Area and Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace-Disney Springs Area are located in the Disney Springs area. You can book these with Hilton Honors points and, during normal times, get benefits such as 60-day FastPass+ reservations and Extra Magic Hours (though both of those things are suspended right now).
The nearby Waldorf Astoria Orlando (80,000 points) and Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek (60,000 points) are additional solid options that now offer those Disney perks.
Related: Inside a reopened Disney World
Standard award rates at these Hilton Disney Springs properties run as high as 50,000 Hilton Honors points per night but can start as low as 21,000 during off-peak seasons.
With the fifth night free on award stays (for those with elite status), that could be as low as 84,000 Hilton Honors points for a five-night stay within Disney Springs. Remember that you can get instant Hilton elite status simply by having one of the Hilton cobranded credit cards. The Waldorf Astoria will set you back 80,000 points per night, so save that one for when you want to splurge at Disney.
Stay near (but not with) family
Visiting family is one of the best uses of miles and points. Sometimes, staying near family in your own hotel is a better choice than staying with family on a pull-out couch. Factor in the pandemic and you really may need your own space. With close to 6,000 properties, Hilton has locations around the world.
Unless your family lives in the middle of a major metropolitan area, chances are you’ll find Hilton-branded properties such as Homewood Suites, Hampton Inn and Embassy Suites available from 20,000 to 50,000 Hilton Honors points per night.
As an added perk, some of these properties include hot breakfast or even evening snacks and drinks for all guests (not just those with elite status). With the 150,000 point welcome bonus that comes with the Hilton Aspire card welcome bonus, you could stay multiple nights at a Hilton near your family or friend’s house and probably still have some points left over.
Splurge on a trip of a lifetime
Let’s be real — 150,000 Hilton points won’t get you that many nights at some of Hilton’s top-of-the-line overwater villa properties, such as the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island, Waldorf Astoria Maldives or the Conrad Bora Bora Nui. But it’s still a good start.
This is especially true if you pool your Hilton points with friends and family and each of you earns a 150,000 welcome bonus — and maybe add in a weekend-night certificate or two. Hilton allows free points pooling with up to 11 people, making top-tier redemptions even more accessible.
We found Hilton points to be the best ones when we planned our own trip to Bora Bora and we are actively saving again for another big trip for one day in the future.
Bottom line
These are just seven of literally thousands of ways to use 150,000 Hilton Honors points. You can stretch them to the max to book dozens of award nights at properties that cost 5,000 points per night or start saving now for the trip of a lifetime.
Featured image of Mezquite courtesy of Conrad Punta de Mita
SPONSORED: With states reopening, enjoying a meal from a restaurant no longer just means curbside pickup.
And when you do spend on dining, you should use a credit card that will maximize your rewards and potentially even score special discounts. Thanks to temporary card bonuses and changes due to coronavirus, you may even be able to score a meal at your favorite restaurant for free.
These are the best credit cards for dining out, taking out, and ordering in to maximize every meal purchase.
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Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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