Choice Privileges Loyalty Program Review

- Updated: June 8, 2023|

29Comments

Travel /
Hotels

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Choice Privileges Summary Table

Hotel Website ChoiceHotels.com
Loyalty Program Choice Privileges
Hotel Brands 14 brands, including Cambria, Clarion, and Comfort
Points Are Worth 0.6 cents/point
Earn Points/Miles
- Best Ways To Earn Lots of Choice Privileges Points
- How To Use the Choice Privileges Mall
Redeem Points/Miles Best Ways To Redeem Choice Privileges Hotel Rewards Points
Award Chart Link Award nights from 6,000 points

Branded and Partnered Credit Cards

Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card

If you want to earn Choice Privileges points directly, you can use the Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card. This card earns 2x points per dollar on everyday purchases, which will pair nicely with the Choice Privileges Mall.

American Express Membership Rewards Cards

You can also earn Membership Rewards points and Choice is an American Express transfer partner.

Recommended American Express Cards (Personal)

Recommended American Express Cards (Business)

Capital One Miles Cards

Capital One miles can be transferred to Choice at a 1:1 ratio (coming soon).

Recommended Capital One Miles Cards (Personal)

Choice Privileges Program Overview

Choice Hotels has over 7,000 properties in 40 countries and territories.

Known for budget brands such as Comfort Inn and Clarion, Choice is expanding its mid-upscale Cambria brand and its upscale Ascend Collection.

Joining Choice Privileges

Travelers based in the Nordic and Baltic countries may prefer to join the Nordic Choice Club, which is a separate program for the 190 hotels in that region. There are reciprocal benefits between the 2 programs, though they are distinct and have differences.

How To Sign in to Your Choice Privileges Account

Viewing Your Account Activity

The My Point Activity page shows all your recent point activity.

Points Expiration

Points do not expire as long as you have qualifying activity once every 18 months.

Eligible activities include earning points from stays, using the Choice Privileges card, and purchasing points. Your points stay active even with a stay where you choose to earn miles or Amtrak Guest Rewards instead of points.

You can also Refer-a-Friend to Choice Privileges; once they complete a qualifying stay, your points expiration will be extended.

Choice Privileges Program Benefits

Choice Privileges Elite Status

Registering for free with Choice Privileges gives you the opportunity to start earning reward points on all of your stays with Choice.

General members can only book award nights 30 days in advance in the U.S. and Canada, and 60 days in advance elsewhere.

Hot Tip: An alliance with Penn National Gaming, Inc. will offer reciprocal earning and redemption benefits for Choice Privileges members and members of Penn’s mychoice loyalty program.

Choice Privileges Gold

10% point bonus
Early check-in and late checkout
Elite reserved parking
Rollover nights (up to 9)
100 to 250 point welcome gift at U.S. and Canada properties, varies by brand

Choice Privileges Platinum

All Gold benefits, plus:

25% point bonus
Rollover nights (up to 19)
Avis Preferred Plus status

Choice Privileges Diamond

All Gold benefits, plus

50% point bonus
Rollover nights (up to 39 nights)

Value of Choice Privileges Elite Status

Choice Privileges elite status does not have the glamorous benefits of some major hotel programs, reflecting the economical style of most of its properties.

There is no free internet, free breakfast benefit, or opportunity to receive a complimentary room upgrade.

Earning Choice Privileges Elite Status

Earning Choice Privileges elite status is refreshingly straightforward: you earn by the number of nights per year — and both paid and award stays count.

The number of nights required for elite status is:

Gold: 10 nights per calendar year
Platinum: 20 nights per calendar year
Diamond: 40 nights per calendar year

Hot Tip: Choice offers lifetime Gold status to military members, veterans, and their spouses. You’ll need to fill out this form to apply for lifetime Gold status plus a bonus of 2,500 points.

Status Match

With elite status in other hotel programs, you can apply for an elite status match by emailing [email protected].

Choice Privileges will match you to Gold or Platinum level based on your current hotel elite status, but if you stay at a Cambria hotel for just 1 night, you’ll be matched to Diamond-level elite status.

A match granted from January to June will be good for the remainder of the calendar year. Matches granted from July to December will be good through the entire following calendar year.

How To Earn Choice Privileges Points

Earning Choice Privileges points starts with hotel stays.

Earning Points on Stays

Choice Privileges has harmonized points-earning among its brands. No longer will you earn fewer points per dollar at its budget brands.

You earn 10 points per dollar on up to 4 rooms per night on qualifying stays. For each qualifying points-eligible stay at a Cambria, you receive 250 Choice Privileges points for being an elite member.

Note that you cannot earn points for stays in Brazil, China, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, Guyana, Iceland, India, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden.

In Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden, you can earn points by registering in the separate Nordic Choice Club program.

Announced for 2021, members will also soon be able to earn points at Penn properties.

Booking Meetings

Planners booking meetings with 10 or more rooms per night earn 4 points per dollar on meeting rooms, guest rooms, and food and beverage.

Your Extras

For U.S. and Canada stays that include a Sunday through Thursday night, you can select 1 Your Extras bonus:

400 Choice Privileges points
100 airline miles
$0.20 per gallon in Fuel Rewards
$2.50 Amazon.com credit
$5 coffee card
$3 Uber trip discount

You need to select a Your Extras preference in your Choice Privileges account to receive the benefit.

Free Night Promotions

Choice Privileges typically runs a promotion several times a year that offers 1 free night when you stay 2 paid nights.

Earn Points With Travel Partners

Beyond stays with Choice, you can earn points using:

Bluegreen Vacations
Cruises booked through Choice partner CruisesOnly

Alternatives To Earning Points

If you have infrequent stays at Choice Hotels, it can make sense to choose to earn airline miles or Amtrak Guest Reward points for your stays instead of points.

Check for regular promotions such as 1,000 Air Canada Aeroplan miles or 1,000 Amtrak Guest Reward points per stay.

Bluegreen Vacations

Enjoy a 3-night stay at a Bluegreen Vacations timeshare property for $199 and receive a $100 gift card or 20,000 Choice Privileges points.

Note that you will have to participate in the usual timeshare rigmarole.

Other Ways To Earn Choice Privilege Points

You can earn Choice Privilege points for:

Using the Choice Privileges card
Transfer from American Express Membership Rewards or Capital One Miles at a rate of 1,000:1,000 points
Transfer from Diners Club at a rate of 1,250:2,400 points
Transfer from Amtrak Guest Rewards at a rate of 5,000:15,000 points
Shopping online using the Choice Privileges Mall
Buy up to 50,000 points per year
Gift up to 50,000 points per year (subject to fees)
Refer friends to Choice Privileges (friend must then complete a qualifying stay)

How To Redeem Choice Privileges Points

Hotel award nights are the primary Choice Privileges points awards. From standard awards to Cash + Points, there are great values to be found.

Cost of Award Nights

Choice Privileges has over 7,000 properties available for award nights.

There are no published award charts. Instead, awards start at 6,000 points, with over 1,500 properties priced at 8,000 points or less.

The maximum award night price is 35,000 points (except for a whopping 75,000 in Australia).

Pricing is seasonal, so the same hotel may cost a different price at different times of the year.

Announced for 2021, members will also soon be able to redeem points at Penn properties.

Cash + Points

Compare Cash + Points results with regular points results — you may find some great values.

Cash + Points show up in award night searches where available.

Great for Families

Many Choice Privileges properties have multi-room suites ideal for families. These can be pricey in cash.

The great news is that if they are available for award booking, the price is the same as a standard room!

Great for Europe

Many European properties offer excellent points value in popular tourist destinations, with city center locations other chains may lack.

Even better, breakfast is often included for free.

In the Nordic countries, while you can’t earn points for stays, you can still redeem points for stays. These hotels may have a free breakfast, too, and sometimes even an evening smorgasbord.

FlexRewards

When searching for award nights, you may come upon special low pricing called FlexRewards. Certain properties offer these discounted rates on either Sunday to Thursday or Friday and Saturday.

You do not need to do anything special to book FlexRewards. You’ll book them the same as regular award nights.

Preferred Hotels & Resorts

Choice Privileges Preferred Hotels — Image Credit: Choice

The 500+ Preferred Hotels & Resorts include some of the most luxurious hotels in the U.S. Award nights range from 25,000 to 55,000 points per night.

Gift Cards

You can redeem Choice Privileges points for gift cards.

The information regarding the Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® 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 American Express® Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Business Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, click here.

Featured Image Credit: Choice

Frequently asked questions

What is Choice Privileges?

Choice Privileges is the hotel loyalty program for Choice Hotels, which has 14 brands and over 7,000 properties worldwide.

Why should I join Choice Privileges? Is it worth it?

Choice Privileges is a free frequent guest program from Choice Hotels. Registration is free, and you can earn and redeem points with Choice Hotels award nights.

Is there a Choice Privileges credit card?

The Choice Privileges card earns 10x points per dollar at Choice hotels and 2x points per dollar on everyday purchases.

Will I earn more Choice Privileges points with elite status?

Yes, Choice Privilege elite status earns bonus points on stays: Gold (10%), Platinum (25%), and Diamond (50%).

How many Choice Privileges points do I have?

To see your points balance, sign in to your Choice Privileges account and view your activity.

What are Choice Privileges points worth?

Points vary in value by property and season.

Award nights range from 6,000 to 35,000 points per night (75,000 in Australia).

Are Choice Privileges points transferable?

Yes. You can transfer them to other Choice Privileges members (for a fee), donate them to charity, or transfer them to travel partners.

When do Choice Privileges points expire?

Choice Privileges points will expire after 18 months of no account activity.

Where is my Choice Privileges number?

You’ll see your rewards number when you log in to your account.

Which hotels are included in Choice Privileges?

The Choice family of brands includes: Ascend Hotel Collection, Cambria Hotels, Clarion, Clarion Pointe, Comfort, Econo Lodge, Everhome Suites, MainStay Suites, Quality Inn, Rodeway Inn, Sleep Inn, Sleep Inn/MainStay Suites (dual brand), Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, and WoodSpring Suites. You can also redeem points for Preferred Hotels & Resorts and Penn properties (coming in 2021).

About Alex Miller

Alex has been traveling for over 25 years and from a young age was lucky enough to set out on numerous family trips all over the world, which gave him the travel bug. Alex has since earned tens of millions of travel points and miles, mainly through maximizing every opportunity to earn the most points possible on each dollar spent.

Disclaimer: Any comments listed below are not from the bank advertiser, nor have they been reviewed or approved by them. No responsibility will be taken by the bank advertiser for these comments.

29 comments

Susan Finkelstein October 18, 2018
Choice Privileges has the worst customer service and I will never and none of my contacts will ever use them again.
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- SCOTT N FLAMHOLTZ October 23, 2019
  Agreed. They are the worst.
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Edward Brown April 25, 2019
It seems to be impossible to update one’s Choice Privileges info on-line after moving to a new residence and getting a new Internet / email provider. My phone number, email, and street address have all changed yet some of this info is required to log into the account I created 3 years ago. There needs to be a way to make these changes on-line. If I use my old email address, I am sure that a confirming email will be sent to my old email address, which I no longer have and cannot use. The funny part of this is that the Choice Privileges web site says “Simply do…” which is impossible in my situation. Nothing simple about it… and there should be.
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- Christine Krzyszton April 25, 2019
  Sorry you’re having trouble accessing your account, Edward. You probably have no other option in your situation than to contact Choice Privileges. Their phone number is 888-770-6800 or you can contact them by email here: https://www.choicehotels.com/support
  Reply
marilyn berkley May 24, 2019
agree with very poor customer service comment! recently booked and stayed at a cambria hotel thru travelocity. come to find out I can’t get any choice reward points since i did not book hotel direct! In the past felt that this chain was sub par and cheap. thought i would take a chance by staying at their newer and what looked like more upscale label. wrong! i will stick with my other loyalty programs at hilton and marriott.
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- Stephen Au May 24, 2019
  Marilyn,
  Generally, you will not earn rewards points at Choice Privileges if you don’t book directly. There are a number of other hotel chains and even American Express Travel that does this, in order to guarantee the cheapest rates.
  Reply
Arthur Brewster June 3, 2019
When I signed up for this program was never told if using calc for a discount I won’t get points if below a certain amount. Well let me tell you, I’m a member of Best Western rewards and Wyndham Rewards and I don’t have that problem with them. I don’t care what kind of discount I get, when I stay I get my points. I will never be staying at a Choice Privileges Motel again. I stay in motels at least three times a week, sometimes 5, but I will not be using Choice Privileges again. I will never stay in them period. This tells me that all they want is the money and they don’t care about the customer.
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- Christine Krzyszton June 9, 2019
  Hello Arthur. Thanks for the data point. Would you mind elaborating on the type of discount you used that didn’t earn points?
  Reply
  - TC June 25, 2019
    Per their terms and conditions, you do not earn points for rooms under $40/night. If the discount dropped it below that then Arthur would not earn any points. It’s not unusual for some budget properties, like a Rodeway inn, for example, to get below 40 with a discount applied.
    Reply
    - Christine Krzyszton June 25, 2019
      Thank you TC for taking the time to clarify that. I’m sure the information will be helpful to others as well.
      Reply
WhenInDoubt August 5, 2019
Loved choice privileges and their seasonal promotion events each time the roled them out. The best bonuses and payouts in the game, or so I thought. After noticing account discrepancies in regards to promotional payouts I did some digging, examined rules and terms of each promo going over the past calendar year and saw multiple nights were on my account that met every stipulation required to receive promo bonus points of 500pts min up to 8000pts max.
There have been 5 occurrences where the seasonal promo bonus points advertised were applied to my rewards account. Not one of these instances mentioned was I rewarded at the time of requirements were met. I inquired about these missing points 2 weeks prior and magically that’s when stays in question dating as far back as Feb 2019 turned into qualifying stays even though I’m told manual adjustments can not be made, yet clearly, my invoices reflect otherwise.
Under guidelines of these promos where bonuses are to be offered, there are over 30,000 points missing and that is the minimum. I am argued with, hung up on, cursed at and never once have I been presented with rules and regulations posted at any time that would make these stay unqualified and I am still not rewarded anything after at least 20 calls in occupancies to multiple departments where not one employee has been able to tell me my arguments are invalid and show me why or where its stated in the rules of each promo that would make my arguments null and void and still no points awarded.
My children and I being stuck in a Lobby for hours while seeking an explanation about a set of points I was assured would be added that morning and still were not upon arriving at our destination a little after 10 pm. The last straw was seeing my 3 kids reduced to sleeping on the lobby floor as I am being told these points now would not be added and was given no explanation as to why, just they will not be added at this time and I will be reaching out to multiple outlets online, commercial, professional, as well as legal and will pursue all avenues of retribution for these bad practices but mainly for the looks in my children’s eyes as they lie on hotel floor while I was being lied to by rep after rep after rep.
This is wrong on all accounts and I know I am not the only person who caught on to this mispractice and I doubt it will be hard to get this ball rolling and I look forward to righting this wrong at every level.
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R September 16, 2019
Choice privileges is the WORST! My business was exclusively using Choice Hotels for business travel. We were there weekly for the last 2 years. Consequently, we were active Choice Privileges members. Last week, we could not actually stay for our reservation. We still paid. We even followed up with the hotel manager to make sure he had the correct credit card to charge us for a no-show. But now Choice Privileges refuses to award us points because it was a “no-show”. Time to take our business elsewhere!
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Edward Padilla September 30, 2019
I just stayed 7 days in North Dakota and have been staying at a lot of your hotels. I just check on the member site and saw I have a second account with points in it. Can you just give me the points or combine them with my current account number?
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- Jarrod West September 30, 2019
  Hi Edward,
  We are not, and have no affiliation with Choice hotels so you will need to contact their customer service team for help combining accounts.
  Thanks for reading!
  Reply
Justin Crompton October 18, 2019
I just checked in to a Cambria hotel in Fort Lauderdale and was offered a free breakfast as a Diamond member on top of the usual $10 credit to the bar/restaurant. Wonder if this is unique to this hotel or a new Cambria benefit for Diamonds?
Oh I love the Choice promotions… stay 2 nights get a free one… I have doubled my Choice points every year on mainly this promo…. almost 400k now.. ~85 nights a year in Choice.. 2-4 free nights a year using points.
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- Stephen Au October 21, 2019
  Hi Justin,
  If you’re a top tier elite, you might get extra benefits that are not published perks. That being said, we’re glad you’re pleased with the Choice Privileges program. Thanks for reading.
  Reply
SCOTT N FLAMHOLTZ October 23, 2019
Terrible customer service. If I call for a reservation, someone answers in one second. If I call for a problem it takes 20 minutes for someone to answer. I have also have had problems making a reservation with points.
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Doc November 20, 2019
I was about to apply for Choice rewards and Credit Card account. After reading the comments. No way in hell I want to have either.
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laurel deveso November 24, 2019
OMG, what is wrong with these people all complaining about Choice? I absolutely LOVE this brand! I have never met a discourteous employee, not at any of the hotels, and never on the phone. NEVER. I’ve changed my name, my address, my e-mail, and had no problems at all. I use their website, I’ve sent them e-mails, I’ve sent letters, and I get prompt and courteous replies. I love their hotels, with the exception of a Rodeway in San Diego. If I have a problem and let them know about it, they fix it with a smile. Don’t believe all the naysayers because they likely complain about everything else, too!
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George Hatchell December 11, 2019
Quick question. I started this a few months ago and will be Platinum this week. So come January 1st am I starting back at zero stays and have to work my way back up, or do I stay platinum until I end of next year? It is about as clear as mud on anything I have read. It just says calendar year but does not clarify how long you hold membership.
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- Jarrod West December 11, 2019
  Hi George,
  If you qualified for Platinum status this year then you should continue to have it for all of 2020. Just keep in mind that you will need to requalify in 2020 to extend that status to 2021.
  Thanks for reading!
  Reply
JAF December 13, 2019
Just had my account hacked and 150,000 points stolen. Waiting to see if Choice reimburses me. If you have an account I suggest you check it and change your password.
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- Jarrod West December 13, 2019
  Hi JAF,
  We are really sorry to hear that! Hopefully Choice gets your points back!
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Laurie Zimmerman December 19, 2019
I’m a member that stays more than 7/8 times a month. Customer care direct with hotels that I deal with are great! Customer care direct with choice privileges not so great! Had reservation set for certain price today night phone call later price kept going up with choice privilege hotel accommodated best they could well I stay on the phone the entire day trying to adjust this. At this point if it weren’t for hotel staff any couple members choice privilege I would definitely not recommend choice privilege! I ended up just paying for a room.
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- Ray charles January 9, 2020
  Hey Zimmerman, may I ask what city you stay in due to the fact that it has to do a lot with the points?
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Kevin Maddalena August 23, 2020
I booked 6 nights at a comfort inn and I am very unhappy.
When checking in the lady working the front desk was extremely rude and prejudice. While trying to check-in she left in the middle of me asking her a question to go talk to the security guard which I overheard her tell him that he needed to keep an eye on me.
The hotel advertised premium free Wifi pretty much everywhere. I use my laptop for work. The internet in my room does not work at all. When I called the front desk about this they were very rude. They told me there was nothing I could do about it except leave. They said all other rooms would not have working internet access either so I couldn’t try moving rooms. When I asked about the advertising for free wifi and told her that I needed the internet for work she responded “oh” then hung up on me.
The room was very small, which I could deal with but it was dirty. The bedsheets looked dirty for sure. The bathroom was disgusting; the toilet had not been cleaned and there was blood splattered on the bathroom door and on the shower walls.
The morning after my first night there I woke up to them vacuuming right in front of my room. They vacuumed the area in front of my room for no joke 1 1/2-2 hours. I called the front desk and asked about this, they said they had carpet cleaners there and that was the carpet cleaners cleaning the carpet. I checked and they lied, no carpet cleaners were there, it was the maid with the vacuum, vacuuming the same spot over and over. Why lie and why did they feel the need to do that, very immature.
Overall very disappointed. I tried calling corporate but was unable to speak to anyone, I will try again tomorrow. Also waiting for a response to the email I sent corporate.
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RICHARDMccallum April 26, 2021
I’ve been staying in Saskatchewan at a Choice Comfort Inn, I don’t want to say which one. Anyways, I have been staying with my wife due to uncertain circumstances for almost 2 months with the first month paying about $120 a day with taxes. Getting a discount on the second month somewhere around $75 with taxes and so it’s around 60 days consecutive with no breaks. Do you have any idea where I stand and how many points I might be getting? Also, what level I’ll be at, and do I get a card or is this on in the cloud or on the computer?
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- Christine Krzyszton May 3, 2021
  Hello Richard. We are not Choice Privileges or affiliated with the brand. We are Upgraded Points, a blog specializing in credit card rewards and travel resources. The best way to find out your balance and status may be to call the Choice Privileges Service Center at 888-770-6800 or email them at [email protected]. You can also go online and set up account access at https://www.choicehotels.com/choice-privileges. Be sure to have your Choice Privileges membership number when calling or include it when emailing. Hopefully, you have provided the front desk with your membership number. If you do not have a membership number, you can sign up at the hotel and have them put your number on your reservation immediately.
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Kyla August 13, 2022
I have membership with most, if not all, of the hotel brand’s rewards programs. In terms of earnings, promotions & extras, I believe the Choice’s rewards program is great! We travel & stay in hotels very frequently & I really believe we’ve benefited the most from Choice.
With that said, I agree 100% with everyone else’s comments about Choice’s customer support department. First off, their automated booking system over the phone is annoying & pointless. People call in for one purpose only: to speak to a live agent, not to book a reservation through an automated system. If they didn’t want to speak to someone, they’d just book online using a computer or smart phone (and yes, I believe every guest has at least one of those devices or they call the hotel directly). If only calling in to book, confirm, or alter your reservation, agents are super nice & accommodating. But if you have questions/concerns regarding anything to do with your memberships or points, please prepare for battle. If the agent doesn’t know what you are inquiring about, they’ll just hang up on you rather than finding the answer. Super frustrating because you’ll have to call back & possibly wait on hold. The endless battle I usually call for (I don’t now) is the ability to purchase points directly with an agent & having them apply them to my account immediately. This is because I’m usually a few points away from a free night. Customer service says they cannot do it because the points purchase goes through points.com so they have to wait for them to confirm my purchase & release notice that the points are ready to be applied to my account. This is where I call “BS” because of two things. First, occasionally I get a competent agent who is able to add my ppints to my account (thats why i continued to fight with them for so long.) Also, almost every hotel company uses points.com for their points purchasing program & for example, Wyndham, will apply points from any purchase over the phone immediately to your account.
Also, other hotel chains will look at your account & simply gift up to 1,500 points to allow you to receive a free night at no charge. With Choice, there’s zero flexibility, no matter how loyal you are. If you have 11,550 points needed for a 12,000 point free night, well, sorry, you are 450 points short & will need to either stay another night to earn points or purchase points. And it may take up to one week before points are applied to your account.
I really believe Choice hotels needs a revamp of their rewards program. First, & number one thing I believe people are lacking today is empathy. These companies need to start training their staff to recognize that customers are people with families & lives, not just account numbers spending money. They also need to grant the ability & train agents to apply purchased points to accounts over the phone. They need to be flexible in gifting points, especially if an account is close to a free night or if you are in a bind. One lady commented here about spending hours in the lobby of a hotel, her kids falling asleep on the lobby couches. That’s absurd for Choice hotels to drag out her account issue for that long. They should have just awarded the points that one time & then followed up with an email regarding the fine print details she missed. I highly doubt she did all the work of the promotion with the intention to screw over the company for free points. Ugh!
As much as I travel & stay in hotels, these companies need to realize that a few points can make or break a family’s vacation & if one reservation isn’t fulfilled, there’s usually not 10 reservations itching to fill the hole. So the room stays empty. There’s lots of options out there when considering hotel stays & each time they remain rigid, they lose loyal customers to companies who show they appreciation better.
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