Points And Cash

[STEVIE]

Hi,
Has anyone reserved a room through SPG, using cash and points, and what do you think of it? Sue

 

[DeniseM]

I would love to use points and cash, but I never see any where I want to go available for points and cash. Seems to be only for less popular hotels maybe?

oops...I just looked and there is a lot more available than there used to be...I will have to go study it now!

 

[DeniseM]

I CAN'T believe this! They have the WKORV listed under points and cash for $90 + 4,800 Starpoints! That's a steal!

OK - it's on the list, but when you go to the website there is no "reserve with points option," but all the other Starwood hotels in Hawaii are on there!

 

[pointsjunkie]

i will be using points & cash over christmas, going to NC and washington dc. using it again in feb to stay at the westin diplomat and the westin kierland in march. i like using it, doen't deplete my starpoint fund and doesn't cost a lot of cash and still will get starpoints for the stay. good all around.

 

[Transit]

Each participating hotel only alots a certain amount of rooms for this option so you need to book early at peak seasons and highly requested properties .

 

[Pedro]

The "cash and points" is a good ideal. I used it last weekend at DC, and the weekend before at DFW and had no problems getting it.
The best deal I got was a couple of months ago at the Sheraton at Charles de Gaulle airport. The rate for a regular room was about 320 euros (not the rack rate, but the best rate available at the time) or about $450/night. With cash and points I got it for 4800 starpoints and $90/night. To make it better, they gave me an upgrade to a suite along with free breakfast and free evening drinks and hors d'oeuvres. Not bad at all for $90! Of all the SPG platinum benefits, the best is the upgrade to club level and/or suites.

 

[pointsjunkie]

i totally agree.we have been given many upgrades over the years.now that our hotel traveling is about to start we will see what perks we get. i will let you all know after each trip.

 

[Pedro]

i totally agree.we have been given many upgrades over the years.now that our hotel traveling is about to start we will see what perks we get. i will let you all know after each trip.

We are at the Annapolis Sheraton this weekend (using starpoints, not points and cash). We got the upgrade to a large suite, plus breakfast and drink vouchers. Not a bad deal!

 

[Henry M.]

Cash & Points is generally a good deal. The way I look at it is to look at the cost per point saved. Say it costs you $90 to save 9,000 points, they points are costing you about $0.01/point. When I use points I generally get at least $0.03/pt and usually much more than that, not counting suite upgrades. These are costs that I would otherwise pay for myself since I'd likely be staying at those hotels anyhow.

I'd say any time I can get points for less than $0.02 I'll go for them. At or above $0.02 I'll consider it but probably wouldn't because I already have a lot of Starpoints and there is too much risk of devaluation, as we saw this year.

 

[formerhater]

I love C&P and it's available at a lot more props than it used to be. Participating props used to have to op in on a quarterly basis. It used to be poorly organized and participation was limited for the most part to less desirable props that seemed to need help filling rooms. Now, all props are required to have the rate code loaded in the system (which doesn't necessarily mean they have to actually participate), and it seems to have translated into more desirable props with availability. I stayed at the Sheraton Bilbao and La Caleta in Spain this summer on C&P and they were great deals. I had a room booked at Westin Riverwalk San Antonio for last month, but had to cancel because something came up. Now I'm booked at the Sheraton in Kona in Feb on C&P.

Point being, it's usually a great deal and seems to be available a lot more than it used to.

 

[WeTravel]

We used cash and points at Westin Buckhead in Atlanta this fall. I think it was $60 and 4000 points, but memory fails me. They put us in a corner room, huge, on a high floor. Large bathroom with window. I feel it was a great deal for $60 plus just using the points racked up on my AmEx card in a few months.

 

[STEVIE]

Do they automatically give you the upgrade, or do you request it? thanks, Sue

 

[formerhater]

Do they automatically give you the upgrade, or do you request it? thanks, Sue

Depends on the property (and the agent who is helping you). Some will automatically upgrade you. Some will upon request. Some will not regardless of how hard you plead. Other factors include length of stay and how booked up the property is for your dates of stay.

 

[Fletcher921]

Thank you for the posting about cash and points. I forgot about them and just booked that rate in Amsterdam over Spring Break for 3 out of the 5 nights we needed!

 

[pointsjunkie]

when i purchased my developer weeks the salesman actually gave me some great advice, he said every time you stay at a starwood hotel tell the front desk that we are supposed to ask for an upgrade as a vacation owner. 9 times out of 10 we have gotten some sort of upgrade. so that's what we do.

 

[stevens397]

First C&P stay was in New Orleans at the W a few months before Katrina - we were upgraded to a 1 1/2 bath suite. We've used it a number of times and there has never been a difference at check-in between C&P, points or cash.

This summer we're in the Hotel Eden in Rome and the Sheraton Park Lane London on C&P. It is the best deal and the best point-stretcher possible. The ONLY downside is that you cannot then use extra points during the reservation process to upgrade your room. Small price to pay.

 

[patty5ia]

How do you use the cash and point system. I have over 90,000 points but have never redeemed points or used the cash and point system. Can you do it online? Do you have to make the reservation by phone?
Thanks for any advice you can give me.

 

[formerhater]

How do you use the cash and point system. I have over 90,000 points but have never redeemed points or used the cash and point system. Can you do it online? Do you have to make the reservation by phone?
Thanks for any advice you can give me.

Either phone or spg.com. When you go to book a hotel online, you are presented with 3 options for each property in the locale you have searched. Cash, Redemption, or Cash and Points. Note that C&P is not always available, but that is where you will see it if it is.

 

[DeniseM]

How do you use the cash and point system. I have over 90,000 points but have never redeemed points or used the cash and point system. Can you do it online? Do you have to make the reservation by phone?
Thanks for any advice you can give me.

Go to SPG.com and you will see a link at the bottom of the page "CASH & Points." You have to register and log-in on the website. You can call or make Resv. online.

Do you know that 90,000 Starpoints will convert to 110,000 air miles? That's enough for 3 round trip tickets to Hawaii!

 

[patty5ia]

Thanks for the help. I spent quite a while on spg.com looking at hotels in Europe. It seems there are some good deals using cash and points. I appreciate the guidance.