There are fewer ways to start your hotel stay on a more positive note than hearing the phrase: “You’ve been upgraded.” Whether it’s a more spacious room, a spectacular view, or both, receiving an upgraded experience for no extra charge is definitely a welcome perk.
There are several ways to secure an upgraded hotel room and other on-site benefits. One way is to meet the hotel loyalty program’s annual stay (and occasionally additional spending) requirements to achieve elite status. Elite status can qualify you for upgraded rooms, free Wi-Fi, breakfast, late checkout, and many more on-site benefits.
There is, however, a shortcut to receiving hotel program elite status or elite-style benefits: by simply holding a hotel-branded credit card or premium travel rewards card.
That’s the focus of today’s article. We’re taking a look at the best cards for securing upgraded hotel rooms and other on-site perks. We’ll dive into the top travel rewards cards that offer complimentary hotel loyalty program elite status, perks at specific hotel collection properties, free night certificates, and hotel-branded cards that offer much more than just an upgraded room.
If you’re looking for those elusive upgraded accommodations with a view, you’ll want to stick with us as we discuss the best cards for securing these perks — complimentary, of course.
Best Personal Cards for Hotel Upgrades
The complimentary elite status that comes with your credit card may qualify you for room upgrades. Reges, a Luxury Collection Resort Spa, Cesme. Image Credit: Marriott
The Platinum Card® from American Express
The Amex Platinum card is well known for its premium travel benefits, earning valuable Membership Rewards, and flexible redemption options. It’s also a great card for hotel elite benefits, including those that offer upgraded rooms.
How the Card Upgrades Your Hotel Experience
You’ll have plenty of opportunities for upgraded rooms and other on-site perks using the Amex Platinum card with complimentary hotel loyalty program elite status and elite-style benefits at specific hotel groups.
Here are the hotel-related benefits that come with the card. Note that some benefits require enrollment so be sure you explore your benefits to get the most out of your card:
- Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status
- In addition to room upgrades, Gold Elite status members receive the fifth consecutive reward night free, late checkout, free Wi-Fi, welcome points, and 25% bonus points earned on paid stays.
- You’d normally have to stay 25 nights in a calendar year to earn Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status and be eligible for upgraded rooms.
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold Status
- Hilton Honors Gold status comes with free breakfast, room upgrades, the fifth consecutive award night free, late checkout, free Wi-Fi, and bonus points.
- To earn Hilton Honors Gold status, you would normally have to stay 40 nights or have 20 stays in a calendar year at Hilton properties.
- Elite-Style Benefits at American Express’ The Hotel Collection
- On stays of 2 nights or more, enjoy upgraded rooms whenever available. In addition, you’ll receive a $100 hotel credit to be used on qualifying dining, spa, and resort activities. Use your card to reserve the prepaid reservation and earn 5x Membership Rewards points.
- Elite-Style Benefits at American Express’ Fine Hotels & Resorts
- Receive room upgrades when available, daily breakfast for 2, late checkout, early check-in, free Wi-Fi, and a welcome amenity worth at least $100. No minimum stay is required.
- Up to $200 Statement Credit for Fine Hotels & Resorts and The Hotel Collection
- Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay, through American Express Travel when you pay with your card.
Hot Tip: Learn more about the Hotel Collection and Fine Hotels & Resorts in our overview and comparison of the benefits and perks of each program.
Why We Like the Card Overall
We like the Amex Platinum card for its long list of premium travel benefits, which includes worldwide access to more than 1,300 airline lounge properties. The card also earns valuable Membership Rewards points and comes with statement credits for specific purchases at Saks Fifth Avenue and Uber, for example.
Bottom Line: In addition to offering hotel elite status, statement credits, and benefits at luxury hotel collections, the Amex Platinum card earns Membership Rewards points that can be transferred to airline and hotel loyalty programs where the points can be redeemed for free hotel nights and flights. The card also comes with travel/shopping protections and benefits and is one of the best cards around that helps you upgrade your flight experience, too.
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
How the Card Upgrades Your Hotel Experience
While the Chase Sapphire Reserve card does not come with hotel program elite status, the card does offer the opportunity for an upgraded experience at these hotel collection properties.
- Luxury Hotel and Resort Collection Benefits
- Receive an upgraded room, when available, a local amenity unique to the property, such as dinner, spa, or resort credit, early check-in/late checkout when available, daily breakfast for 2, and free Wi-Fi.
- Ennismore (formerly sbe) Hotels Benefits
- Enjoy an upgraded room, when available, a $30 hotel credit, the fourth night free, complimentary Wi-Fi, breakfast for 2 or a complimentary beverage, and late checkout.
- Relais & Châteaux Benefits
- Receive a VIP welcome amenity and complimentary breakfast.
Why We Like the Card Overall
We like that the card comes with a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership that provides worldwide lounge access to over 1,300 properties. The card also offers elevated earnings on travel and dining and comes with a $300 travel credit that is easy to use, even for upgraded hotel rooms.
The card earns valuable Ultimate Rewards points that can be redeemed for travel at 50% more value via the Chase travel portal or transferred to travel partners for even greater potential value. You’ll also find the card packed with premium travel insurance and shopping protections/benefits.
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
The Hilton Aspire card is one of the best hotel-branded cards available and is known for offering a unique package of hotel-related perks just for having the card.
How the Card Upgrades Your Hotel Experience
The Hilton Aspire card is the only hotel-branded card that comes with valuable top-level hotel elite status. With Hilton Honors Diamond status, you’ll enjoy the best that the Hilton Honors loyalty program has to offer.
Here are some of the hotel perks you’ll enjoy with the Hilton Aspire card:
- Free weekend hotel night certificate after card approval and each card anniversary
- The benefits of Diamond status include upgraded rooms (even suites when available), free breakfast or breakfast credit, lounge access, free Wi-Fi, bonus points, and a welcome amenity
- 14x earnings at Hilton properties when paying with your card
- Up to $250 Hilton Resort credit
- Up to $100 credit for a 2-night or more stay at Waldorf Astoria or Conrad properties
Without the Hilton Aspire card, you would need to stay 60 nights, 30 stays, or earn 120,000 points from stays in a calendar year to achieve top-level Hilton Honors Diamond status.
Why We Like the Card Overall
The Hilton Aspire card is packed with travel benefits, such as worldwide lounge access via Priority Pass Select membership.
The card also comes with hundreds of dollars in statement credits for specific purchases including a $250 airline incidentals credit. In addition to elevated earnings at Hilton, you’ll receive 7x earnings on qualifying flights, car rentals, and at U.S. restaurants.
For those looking for a Hilton-branded card with a lower annual fee with complimentary Gold status and corresponding upgrade benefits, have a look at the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card.
To learn more about all the best Hilton-branded cards and the associated benefits, check out our complete overview.
Bottom Line: All Hilton-branded credit cards come with a generous welcome bonus that can be redeemed for free hotel nights, elevated earnings at Hilton, on-site benefits, and complimentary elite status. If you stay at a particular hotel brand even once or twice a year, you’ll benefit from having a hotel-branded credit card.
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card
With thousands of properties worldwide, Marriott Bonvoy offers one of the largest global hotel footprints. It’s a big plus for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card that you have so many properties to enjoy your hotel benefits.
How the Card Upgrades Your Hotel Experience
- Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status with Platinum status after spending $75,000 on the card in a calendar year
- Up to $300 statement credit for eligible hotel purchases at Marriott
- Earns 6x points per dollar spent at Marriott properties
- Annual free hotel night award worth 50,000 points
- 15 elite qualifying night credits each year towards Marriott Bonvoy elite status
- $100 property credit at Ritz-Carlton or St. Regis properties
- Free premium Wi-Fi
Why We Like the Card Overall
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card offers 3x earnings on flights purchased directly from the airline and 2x earnings on all other purchases.
Every Marriott Bonvoy -branded card comes with hotel elite status or elite qualifying nights that help you reach higher elite status faster. Learn more about all of these cards in our article on the best cards for Marriott Bonvoy loyalists.
Bottom Line: Having a Marriott Bonvoy-branded card creates a faster path to elite status. Receive 15 elite qualifying night credits each year with a personal Marriott Bonvoy card and 15 additional elite qualifying night credits for having a Marriott Bonvoy business card, for a total of 30 elite qualifying nights. It takes just a total of 25 nights to qualify for Gold Elite status, 50 for Platinum, and 75 for Titanium.
Best Business Cards for Hotel Upgrades
Having an upgraded room when traveling for business can make your stay much more comfortable. AlRayyan Hotel Doha Curio Collection by Hilton. Image Credit: Hilton
Just like personal hotel credit cards, these business cards offer travelers the opportunity for upgraded hotel experiences.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
You’ll enjoy all the same hotel upgrade benefits with the Amex Business Platinum card as the personal consumer version — Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Gold status with Hilton Honors, upon enrollment, plus elite-style benefits at American Express’ The Hotel Collection and Fine Hotels & Resorts.
Why We Like the Card Overall
We like that the Amex Business Platinum card earns valuable Membership Rewards points that can be redeemed for travel via Amex Travel or transferred to travel partners for the potential of even greater value.
In addition, you’ll find value in statement credits of up to $400 for Dell Technology purchases, and up to $200 credit for airline incidental fees.
With car rental benefits, shopping protections, and a long list of valuable travel insurance benefits, there’s plenty of value to derive from the card.
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
Enjoy complimentary Gold status, with the opportunity to earn Diamond status after spending $40,000 on the Hilton Business Amex card in a calendar year.
You can expect these hotel benefits with Gold status:
- Free breakfast or breakfast credit, room upgrades to executive room level, and free Wi-Fi
- No resort fees on award stays
- 80% bonus points earnings on spending at Hilton properties
Why We Like the Card Overall
- Earn big when you stay at hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio
- Earn a Weekend Night Reward after spending $15,000 on the card in a calendar year, spend an additional $45,000 and receive another Weekend Night Reward
- Worldwide airport lounge access to more than 1,300 properties with complimentary Priority Pass Select membership
If your business involves travel and staying at Hilton properties, investigate the Hilton Business Amex card to see if it could be a fit for your operation.
Your points will go further when you utilize Hilton’s fifth-night free benefit. Reward stays of 5 consecutive nights or longer receive a credit for the average of the rewards points spent.
Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card
Unlike the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card that comes with Gold Elite status, the Marriott Bonvoy Business card comes with just Silver Elite status and an option to spend a significant $60,000 in a calendar year to achieve Gold Elite status.
Silver status does not include upgraded rooms at Marriott properties. However, we like that the card provides a faster path to elite status, a free hotel night certificate each year, and elevated earnings at Marriott. The card also comes with a lower annual fee.
Why We Like the Card Overall
- 15 elite qualifying night credits towards higher elite status — just 25 total nights are required for Gold Elite status
- Free hotel night certificate at card anniversary
- 6x earnings at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program
- 4x earnings at U.S. restaurants, U.S. shipping, U.S. wireless telephone services, and U.S. gas stations
- 2x earnings on all other purchases
If your travel includes just 10 annual nights staying at Marriott properties, you’ll automatically qualify for Gold Elite status if you have the Marriott Bonvoy Business card. If you have both the personal and business versions of the card, you’ll receive a total of 30 elite qualifying nights, which would automatically qualify you for Gold Elite status that comes with upgraded rooms and more.
For the Marriott Bonvoy business traveler loyalist, this card should be a consideration.
Hot Tip: American Express-issued cards all have access to Amex Offers that frequently contain hotel savings or bonus earnings. Recent examples include a $50 statement credit after making a $200 Marriott purchase, $50 back on a $250 Hyatt purchase, and $50 back on a $175 purchase at Hampton Inn or Hilton Garden Inn hotels. Both business and consumer personal cards are eligible for Amex Offers.
Additional Credit Cards for Hotel Upgrades
Hotel-branded credit cards make it easier to secure that upgraded room with a view. Hyatt Regency Waikiki. Image Credit: James Larounis
The World of Hyatt Credit Card
Having the World of Hyatt card enhances the benefits you’ll find with the popular and robust World of Hyatt loyalty program. You’ll receive complimentary entry-level Discoverist status that offers upgraded rooms at most Hyatt properties. The card also comes with an annual free hotel night, late checkout, waived resort fees, and bonus points on Hyatt stays.
With a stellar welcome bonus, and up to 9x earnings at Hyatt, it’s easy to earn free nights, plus, earn 2x spent at restaurants, on airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, on local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships.
If you’re a small-business owner, you may also want to check out the newly launched World of Hyatt Business Credit Card that offers big earning potential and an easier path to Globalist status.
Hot Tip: Qualification requirements for earning World of Hyatt elite status have been reduced for 2021. Learn more about the value of elite status, more details on the benefits at each level, and how to qualify.
IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card
We like the IHG brand because you can find an IHG property just about anywhere. And if you stay at IHG properties, even occasionally, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how the IHG Premier card can earn you free nights and improve your IHG experience.
Here are the features and benefits you can expect from having the card:
- An annual free hotel night certificate at card anniversary
- Complimentary Platinum Elite status
- 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 points per $1 spent on all other purchases
Platinum Elite status comes with room upgrades, late checkout, 60% bonus points at most properties, free Wi-Fi, and guaranteed room availability. To earn Platinum Elite status, members would normally need to stay 40 nights or earn 60,000 points in a calendar year.
To learn more about elite benefits in the IHG One Rewards program, check out our article where we go into more detail.
The Best Credit Cards for Hotel Upgrades — Summary
Enjoy the on-site perks offered at unique hotels throughout the world with our featured hotel-branded or premium travel rewards cards. Urban Garden Hotel Rome. Image Credit: The Hotel Collection
Let’s review the upgraded hotel room benefits you’ll receive from each of our featured cards.
| Card |
Hotel Upgrade Benefits |
| Amex Business Platinum card |
- Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Gold status with Hilton Honors that qualifies members for complimentary room upgrades
- Elite-style benefits at The Hotel Collection and Fine Hotels & Resorts
|
| Amex Platinum card |
- Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Gold status with Hilton Honors that qualifies members for complimentary room upgrades
- Elite-style benefits at The Hotel Collection and Fine Hotels & Resorts
- Up to $200 statement credit for prepaid stays at Fine Hotels & Resorts or The Hotel Collection properties
|
| Chase Sapphire Reserve card |
- Elite-style benefits, including room upgrades at Luxury Hotels & Resorts and Ennismore hotel brands
- $300 travel credit that can be used for upgraded hotel rooms
|
| Hilton Aspire card |
- Top Hilton Honors Diamond status that comes with upgraded rooms, including suites, when available
- $250 resort credit that can be used for upgraded rooms
|
| Hilton Business Amex card |
- Hilton Honors Gold status that includes upgraded rooms
- Spend $40,000 in a calendar year to achieve Diamond status
|
| IHG Premier card |
- IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite status that includes the benefit of upgraded rooms
|
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card |
- Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status and Platinum Elite status after you spend $75,000 on the card — both statuses qualify for complimentary upgraded rooms
- $300 credit each year for Marriott purchases that can be used for upgraded rooms
- 15 qualifying elite night credits toward higher status
|
| Marriott Bonvoy Business card |
- Mariott Bonvoy Silver status plus 15 elite qualifying nights towards higher status (25 nights total needed for Gold status)
- Spend $60,000 per year on the card for Gold status
|
| World of Hyatt card |
- World of Hyatt Discoverist status that includes upgrades to premium rooms at most Hyatt properties
- 5 elite qualifying nights towards any level of elite status
|
Final Thoughts
If you spend even a few nights a year at a specific hotel brand, you’ll benefit from having a hotel-branded credit card. At the very least, you’ll earn reward points faster, which allows you to redeem for more free hotel nights and receive on-site benefits that make your stay more comfortable. Many cards offer complimentary hotel loyalty program elite status and even free night certificates plus you’ll even find a few without annual fees.
Most points don’t expire as long as you have the associated card, so even if you don’t stay at a hotel brand frequently, you can take your time earning your next free hotel night while enjoying the perks of a hotel-branded card.
If you stay frequently at a specific brand, a hotel-branded card or premium travel rewards card could deliver even greater value.
We’ve given you an overview of some of the hotel-related benefits that come with our featured cards, but there may be even more features and benefits offered on each card — the most significant being travel insurance benefits and protections and also shopping benefits and protections. Prior to applying for any card, you’ll want to review the card’s entire earning, redemption, and benefits package plus the applicable rates and fees.
The information regarding the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card, click here.
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