Rundown of Hilton HHonors for Canadians (updated May 5, 2004)

The Hilton Worldwide hotel chain is well known for many reasons. The brands cover a wide variety, ranging from luxurious to very affordable ones: Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Hotels and Resorts, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton, Embassy Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Homewood Suites by Hilton, Home2 Suites by Hilton and Hilton Grand Vacations.

Hilton HHonors

When you stay with the Hilton chain, you can sign up for its loyalty program, Hilton HHonors. When you stay at one of the brands, you will earn 10 points for every $1 USD spent, including telephone calls and room service. There are some exceptions:

• Earn 10 points for every $1 USD spent at Hampton Inn and Homewood Suites by Hilton hotels, on the room rate only
• Earn 5 points for every $1 USD spent at Home2 Suites by Hilton hotels on the room rate only

Categories of Hotels

Hotel rooms are classified by a category. The higher the category, generally the more expensive the rooms will be. Points are redeemed the same way, the higher the Category, the more points you need to redeem for a reward night. Below are the redemption rates for each category of hotel room:

• Category 1 = 5,000 points
• Category 2 = 10,000 points
• Category 3 = 20,000 points
• Category 4 = 20,000 to 30,000 points
• Category 5 = 30,000 to 40,000 points
• Category 6 = 30,000 to 50,000 points
• Category 7 = 30,000 to 60,000 points
• Category 8 = 40,000 to 70,000 points
• Category 9 = 50,000 to 80,000 points
• Category 10 = 70,000 to 95,000 points

Thoughts

Unfortunately there are no credit cards associated with the HHonors program in Canada, but you can convert your American Express Membership Rewards points to HHonors points at a 1:1 transfer ratio. You need to transfer a minimum of 1,000 points.

The HHonors program was hit with a major devaluation in 2013. It takes a long time to earn 95,000 points, because you would have to spend $9,500 at a Hilton brand ($9,500 x 10 = 95,000 points). Those 95,000 will only give you one free night at a Category 10 hotel. However, if you can leverage those same 95,000 points into 19 hotel rooms with a category 1 room (95,000 / 5,000 = 19 rooms), then you can get a lot of value with your points.