Earn double Hilton points for 4 months with ‘Unlimited Bonus’

UPDATE – DECEMBER 2021:  This article is now out of date, but don’t worry.  We produce a monthly summary of the top hotel bonus point offers – please click HERE or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ menu above. 

Click here for our article on Hilton’s ‘Power Up’ promotion which runs until 31st December 2021. You can register for the offer by clicking here.

Hilton HHonors has launched its new May to August promotion called ‘Unlimited Bonus‘.

If nothing else, it wins the 2016 award for simplest hotel promotion:  you will receive double base points on every stay.  No exclusions, no cap, no minimum stay requirements.

The only ‘tweak’ is that some members are receiving an additional offer when they register, such as 5,000 points on their next stay.  I didn’t.

You need to register to take part and this can be done via the Hilton website here.

One thing that is worth noting is that there is NOT a ‘double miles’ option as we have seen in the past.  If you take airline miles from your Hilton stays, you will only be earning them at the standard rate.

For once, no hotels are excluded.

You still receive double base points if you choose ‘points and miles’ (usually 10 base points per $1 plus 1 airline mile per $1) instead of ‘points and points’ (usually 10 base points per $1 plus 5 bonus base points per $1).

Most people will be better off taking ‘points and points’.  Once doubled, you are trading off 10 additional Hilton points per $1, which I value at 3p, against 1 airline mile, which I value at 0.75p to 1p.

You can register for ‘Unlimited Bonus’ here.  No registration = no bonus.

I would recommend registering now in case you forget later, given that the offer runs until the end of August.

A reminder that Iberia and BA are NOT equal in the eyes of Hilton

If you choose ‘points and miles’ from your Hilton stays, you will generally earn 1 mile per $1 spent at the ‘full service’ brands such as Conrad and Hilton.

However, both Iberia Plus and Virgin Flying Club are exceptions to the ‘1 mile per £1’ rule.  Here is the list of Hilton airline partners.  You will see that:

British Airways earns 1 Avios point per $1

Iberia Plus earns 15 Avios points per $10 (a better deal, but capped at 1,000 Avios per stay)

Virgin Flying Club earns 2 miles per $1

Except for very expensive stays where you may breach the 1,000 Avios cap, it makes no sense to credit Hilton stays to a British Airways Executive Club account when you could credit them to Iberia instead and get 50% more.

If you collect both Avios and Virgin miles and are ambivalent between them, Virgin is clearly the best option.

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (December 2021)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold, Radisson Rewards Gold and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Did you know that the Virgin Atlantic credit cards are a great way of earning Hilton Honors points? Two Virgin Points can be converted into three Hilton Honors points. The Virgin Atlantic cards are the only Visa or Mastercard products in the UK which can indirectly earn Hilton Honors points. You can apply here.

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with American Express Gold (20,000 bonus points), the American Express Rewards Credit Card (5,000 bonus points) and – for small business owners – American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus points) and Business Platinum (40,000 bonus points).

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Hilton Honors points. 

(Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)