Bits: win a Trespass rucksack today, £50 off at eBookers, HfP feedback

News in brief:

Win a Trespass rucksack – today only

Our sister site Shopper Points is giving away a Trespass hiking rucksack, worth £100 (albeit £57 in their current sale) in a prize draw today.

Entering only takes 30 seconds – all we need is your name and email address.  If you want to enter, visit this page at Shopper Points before midnight tonight.

£50 ebookers discount

Ebookers is running a new promotion worth £50 off a ‘flight and hotel’ package costing more than £600.

The ebookers discount code to enter at check-out is the easy-to-remember AFFPKG0417.

You need to book by 7th May for travel before the end of the year.

Terms and conditions are here and you can book here.

PS.  If you have your own travel blog, ebookers is offering free holidays in Barcelona as long as you agree to write about it afterwards.  Details are here.

Hilton / OneRepublic gig

On Saturday night we were at the famous Abbey Road Studios in North London for the Hilton Honors / OneRepublic concert which was an excellent evening.

It was great to meet so many HfP readers.  As you can probably imagine, sometimes you feel like the words you write go into a black hole.  You never quite know happens afterwards.

Back in August 2015, I wrote that Small Luxury Hotels of the World was looking for hotel inspectors.  One couple I met on Saturday had read that article, applied, and got the job.  This year they will visit 11 luxury hotels entirely free of charge.  Apparently they can spend as much as they want during their stay and it is all reimbursed by SLH later.  The downside is that they have to make certain demands of the hotel during their trip. At no point does the hotel realise that the couple is undercover.

I also covered – with, I admit, some scepticism – the auction on eBay for tickets on the ‘preview flight’ to New Orleans by British Airways over Mardi Gras this year.  I spoke to another couple who had bought this package after reading about it on HfP.  It was, apparently, an amazing experience with BA delivering far more than promised, with excellent private seats for the Mardi Gras parade and a host of additional events running pretty much 24/7 over the weekend.

Thanks to everyone who came to say Hi, I appreciate it.  FYI, the person who stood up at the start and introduced himself as ‘Mark from Hilton’ was actually the global head of Hilton Honors who had flown over especially …..

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.)