by Hope Lee

Created on: September 06, 2010

Hotel reward programs come in as many types as there are types of travelers. Some are excellent and easy to use while others can be difficult.  This article will outline some of the best programs, and the reason that they are the best.  

Easiest to earn points & status:  Priority Club

Priority Club is the reward program for the Intercontinental Hotel Group, which includes hotel chains such as Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, Intercontinental hotels, and Candlewood Suites.  Priority Club points are easy to earn.  Not only can they be earned on hotel stays, but there are also a variety of

partner options for earning Priority Club points.  Priority Club always seems to be running a promotion or special to help guests earn more points.

On top of that, Priority Club is the only program to allow guests to earn status based on their total points earned for the year rather than the total number of nights or stays at one of their hotels.  This makes it easier for less frequent travelers to earn status.  Status gives perks like upgraded rooms, bonus points on paid stays, and other freebies like a fruit platter on arrival.  

Priority Club also has an excellent option for redeeming points:  Pointbreaks. Pointbreaks are hotel reward nights available at a select number of hotels for only 5,000 points per night!  Usually Priority Club reward nights are 10,000 to 40,000 points per night, so this is a real bargain.  

Best budget hotel reward program:  Choice Privileges 

Many budget hotels don't even have a reward program, instead relying on their low prices to attract travelers.  However, at Choice Hotels, travelers can get low prices as well as being rewarded for their stay.  Choice Hotels include hotels such as Quality Inn, Comfort Inn, Cambridge Suites, and EconoLodge.  

Guests at Choice Hotels have the choice of earning hotel points or frequent flier miles for their stay.  Under normal circumstances, earning frequent flier miles is the better deal.  However, during one of their periodic promotions, guests will receive a bonus of 8,000 points after two stays (note that a stay includes all the nights in one hotel in a row).  Since reward redemption nights begin at 10,000 points, this gives a good incentive to pick points.  

Be aware that the Choice Privileges program is more restrictive than most hotel rewards programs.  Points automatically expire after two

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