What is the best use of a Hilton Free Night Certificate? Like many things in life, it all depends. Where do you want to go? Can you drive there or do you have to fly? Would you be able to combine it with a five-night Hilton Honor Points reservation (automatic one free night for silver, gold and diamond Hilton Honors members)?
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Table of contents
- Best Use of a Hilton Free Weekend Night Certificate
- Money, Money, Money… Expensive City Stays
- Leaving on an Jet Plane… Free Hilton Night in Europe
- Far Out… Dream Destinations
- Case Study: Saving 156,000 HH Points in Paris!
- How Can I Get a Hilton Free Night Certificate?
- Conclusion Best Use for Free Hilton Night
- Pin Best Use for Hilton AmEx Free Night Certificate
Best Use of a Hilton Free Weekend Night Certificate
Good news: Hilton changed the rules to any day of the week instead of just weekend. Let us help you find the best redemption for your Hilton free night certificate. Dream big!
Money, Money, Money… Expensive City Stays
Not surprising, Hilton Hotel in cities tend to be expensive, especially if you want to stay in high end hotel chains like Waldorf Astoria, Curio by Hilton or Conrad. Here are some ideas.
USA Top Hotels for your Free Night Certificate.
- New York, New York. Conrad New York Midtown. Formerly The London NYC, this is an all-suite luxury hotel in a superb location. Best deal I found was $ 849 for a night so definitely worth using a certificate instead; Another freebie there: Go see the Statue of Liberty for free!
- Beverly Hills, California. Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. An urban oasis in one of the world’s most glamorous cities;
- California dreaming in San Diego, California. Hotel del Coronado, Curio Collection by Hilton. Historic hotel on Coronado Island;
- Chicago, Illinois. Waldorf Astoria Chicago. A haven of exclusivity with classic Parisian charm;
— Maui, Hawai’i Update
Although Maui, Hawaii, United States. Grand Wailea, A Waldorf Astoria Resort is on my list, be mindful of the time it will take them to recover from the devastating wildfires. Read updates by the Grand Wailea here and find out how they support the Maui community.
We were lucky enough to stay here a few years ago and we could see whales swim and spout from our private balcony. When we got upgraded to their so-called Napua tower, we gained access to two private lounges which included breakfast, hors’d’oeuvres, full bar, champagne, and chocolates. A quick web search showed this with a more than $ 1,000 sticker price.
Leaving on an Jet Plane… Free Hilton Night in Europe
- Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam An impressive hotel consisting of 17th century canal palaces on the Herengracht (one of the main canals). If you enjoyed reading The Goldfinch by Donna Tart, go see the painting in The Hague, an easy day trip from Amsterdam) In addition you can learn more about Van Gogh, the famous Dutch painter.
- London, UK. The Biltmore Mayfair, luxury hotel fewer than a five minute walk to Hyde Park
- Rome, Italy. The Aleph Rome Hotel, curio collection. Well situated boutique hotel close to Piazza Barberini and a metro station.
- Paris, France. Niepce Paris Hotel, Curio Collection. Not only a cool hotel, but also close to metro stations and an excellent Michelin Bib Gourmand Restaurant, Bistrotters. Just make sure not to fall into the shell game trap!
Far Out… Dream Destinations
If you are a dreamer, check out these gems. Hopefully, you can fly there on airline miles and stay with points on the extra nights.
- Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort & Spa. A private island along the coast of Africa;
- Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi. One of the most expensive and luxury Hilton properties in the world;
- Conrad Bora Bora Nui. Stay in an over-water bungalow;
For us, we are dreaming about staying at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City again once it finally reopens!
Case Study: Saving 156,000 HH Points in Paris!
Recently, we managed to get 156,000 Hilton Honors points out of a Hilton free night certificate! Clearly a pretty good Return On Investment for a 20 minutes phone call. Here is the story:
When we were planning a trip to Europe, we hoped for three nights in Paris. So we checked hotels to use our Hilton Honors points and noticed the Niepce Paris Hotel, part of the Curio Collection by Hilton. After staying at a Curio in Rome, we were excited about checking out another one. As always we wanted to use Hilton Honor points and save money.
Ouch, That is Expensive!
But there was no standard room available on rewards for the Saturday night, so our booking ended up being 61,000 HH points for Friday and Sunday, plus a very expensive 156,000 for the Saturday. Ouch!
Justifying it by adding the three nights and calculating that we would end up paying ‘only’ 93k points per night. Which is in line with what we were used to for any New York City redemption. Still, it was Very Creative Accounting…
Free Night Certificate to the Rescue!
A few weeks later, we got a Hilton Free Weekend certificate. Hoping we could use it, we called the Hilton Honors desk and bingo! So we got our free night applied to Niepce Paris and our 156,000 points refunded.
Wow! Now our Paris hotel cost had decreased to a mere 41,000 HH points per night. Altogether saving us about $1,200. Providing us with money to use in Paris and have dinner at La Closerie Des Lilas, Hemingway’s favorite hangout. Or to explore Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurants.
How Can I Get a Hilton Free Night Certificate?
So how can you earn one (or more!) of these free night certificates? America Express has three cards to earn Hilton Honor points, two of which can earn you a free night certificate. This table compares them in regards to the free night certificate.
All of these have the 5th night free offer if you book with points in case you are not ready for a card with an annual fee.
Comparing American Express Hilton Honors Cards
| Card Name | Annual Fee | Free Night? | Welcome Offer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hilton Honors Card | Free | No, you do get complimentary Silver Status. And your 5th night is free if you book with points. | 80,000 HH points after $1,000 spend within first three months |
| Hilton Honors Amex Ascend | $95 | Yes, after spending $15,000. Complimentary Gold Status (equals free breakfast) | 130,000 HH points after $2,000 within first three months |
| Hilton Honors Amex Aspire | $450 | Yes, each year on renewal date. Complimentary Diamond Status. Also airline credit, resort credit and priority pass lounge access | 150,000 HH points after $4,000 spend in first three months |
Of course there are many more rewards in addition to this to all the cards, but I wanted to focus on the free night certificate and the welcome offers for now. Go and apply for one and stay for free at Hilton!
The clock is running. Make the most of today. Time waits for no man. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why it is called the present.
Alice Morse Earle
Cautionary Note on Credit Cards
Only apply for new credit cards if you can pay the whole balance each month, they don’t make sense if you accrue interest.
Conclusion Best Use for Free Hilton Night
As you can see, there are many possibilities for the best use of your Hilton free night certificate. Where would you like to stay for free? Or what has been your best free night? Please share in the comments.
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6 responses to “Best Use of Hilton Free Night Certificate 2024”
[…] If you can spend $15,000 on it, you qualify for a free weekend night reward! We used one of our certificate for a free night in a Paris boutique hotel. […]
[…] visit this Waldorf Astoria, go for it! Try to wait for a good deal like we did, or use one of your free weekend night certificates from the Hilton Amex credit cards. We are impatiently awaiting the reopening in 2021 or 2022, so […]
[…] you can spend $15,000 on it, you qualify for a free weekend night reward! We used one of our certificate for a free night in a Paris boutique hotel. This fall, we used another one to stay at the London NYC in Midtown Manhattan for […]
[…] we visited Amsterdam, we used an Amex Free Weekend Certificate to stay in the Waldorf Astoria. Such a cool […]
[…] Or use a free Hilton weekend certificate. […]
[…] to a Hilton Free Weekend night certificate, we got to stay for free in this magnificent hotel! After a pleasant check in, where we got to […]