There have been several opportunities to purchase Club Carlson points this week, between Daily Getaways and their Flash Sale.
In the comments, reader Andyandy mentioned another feature of the Club Carlson program that is worth exploring:
Lucky, You may want to note that Club Carlson points are freely transferable for elite members and if you have the CC card, you’re a Gold member. That means a couple could easily do the deal twice and combine points into one account.
Transferring Club Carlson Gold Points
One of the great perks of the Club Carlson program is that household members can combine points for no fee.
This can be done by calling Club Carlson Member Services at 888-288-8889, and unlike Starwood Preferred Guest transfers (which can take up to a week), it seems that in most cases the points transfer is near-instant.
On top of that, elite members of the Club Carlson program can transfer points to anyone, and if you have either the Club Carlson Premier Rewards Visa Signature® Card or Club Carlson Business Rewards Visa Card then you have automatic Gold status with the program.
Per the Club Carlson Terms and Conditions:
Can I transfer my Gold Points to another Club Carlson account?
Elite members may transfer Points from their account to another Program member account upon request. All other members (non-Elite) may transfer Points to another Program member residing in the same household provided that both individuals have been a Program member for at least one year and the addresses for either account involved in the transfer have not been up updated within thirty (30) days prior to the transfer request. All members can request a transfer by contacting Member Services. Club Carlson reserves the right to require proof of eligibility or residency and, in its sole discretion, deny a Point transfer request.
Maximizing Club Carlson Points Transfers
The biggest benefit to being able to combine accounts is in taking advantage of promotions and deals. You could accrue Club Carlson points in multiple accounts, for example, and then combine them into a single account in order to redeem at a more expensive property, or for a premium room or suite.
On top of that, this makes it easier to take advantage of the last-night-free benefit of the Club Carlson credit cards by “staggering” award stays between travel companions.
Since you can freely transfer between accounts, one person can book the first two nights of a stay, and the second person can book the subsequent two nights, and so on.
This would also work for say, a five night stay if only one person had a Club Carlson card – the cardholder could book the first, second, fourth, and fifth nights, while the other person could book the third.
Best Options For Redeeming Club Carlson Points
Although they have a fairly extensive footprint, in my opinion the best value from Club Carlson points is by using Gold Points for multi-night stays in Europe.
Not only do they have some high-end boutique properties in expensive hotel cities like London and Paris, but Club Carlson has great coverage in some of the more “off the beaten track” cities that can otherwise be difficult to redeem points for.
These typically aren’t luxury properties, at least compared to what you’d find in larger cities, but in many cases are among the top properties in a given area, particularly in Northern Europe.
The Radisson Blu Sky Hotel in Tallinn, Estonia is just 38,000 points per night
Given the exchange rate and taxes at many European properties, Club Carlson points can be a phenomenal value proposition, especially if you’re able to structure your stay in such a way as to take advantage of the second night free benefit that comes with the Club Carlson Premier Rewards Visa Signature® Card and Club Carlson Business Rewards Visa Card.
All Club Carlson members receive complimentary Wi-Fi as well, which can be outrageously expensive in Europe, so that’s another nice perk.
Bottom Line
Regardless of whether you’re accruing Club Carlson points through credit card bonuses, hotel promotions, or straight up purchases, the ability to combine points from multiple accounts can be incredibly valuable.
(In the interest of full disclosure, I earn a referral bonus for anyone approved through the above links for the Club Carlson Premier Rewards Visa Signature Card, while I don’t earn a referral bonus for anyone approved for the Club Carlson Business Rewards Visa Card)
Does anyone know how long points transfers between Gold Elite takes? My father can give me points, but it's only worth it if it happens before the devaluation. Thanks!
would love to hear the answers about transferring to a new account.
@ billy dee -- Don't believe that's possible, sorry.
I'm trying to book 4 nights before the 2nd night free perk goes away. I was looking to create an account for my fiance now (she doesn't have a CC account) and then immediately transfer the points, in order to book 2 separate reservations and get the 2 free nights.. Due to the 1yr account opening limitation, it looks like no dice.. Any ideas? Thanks!
@ Robert Hanson - My wife and I just stayed 5 nights in Cannes using the staggering method. paid one night, used 2 CC accounts to get 4 free nights. No questions asked by front desk, and they kept us in the same room. We only had to settle when we checked out on the last day.
The "staggering" idea has a lot of merit and as Shawn points out, the transfer feature can make it easier to accomplish.
On another note, with the demise of MR as a freely transferable trading currency, the field of trading currencies is narrowed down to CC and UR. I'd expect that UR will clamp down at some point, leaving only CC. Isn't CC is the only program that is "officially" flexible about who you can transfer points to?
@Lucky When booking a "staggered" 4 night stay, do we need to be discrete about it?
Usually when booking a multi-night stay with points from both of our accounts, I will link the reservations, so that neither we nor the hotel needs to have us check out and back in again.
But we will be doing a staggered stay with Carlson for the first time this July in Nice, and right now the...
@Lucky When booking a "staggered" 4 night stay, do we need to be discrete about it?
Usually when booking a multi-night stay with points from both of our accounts, I will link the reservations, so that neither we nor the hotel needs to have us check out and back in again.
But we will be doing a staggered stay with Carlson for the first time this July in Nice, and right now the reservations are not linked. Is it ok to have either the hotel or Carlson Reservations link them? Or do we need to pretend we aren't doing what we are doing by not mentioning it?
@ Robert Hanson -- When points are coming out of two peoples' accounts? You should be fine. I wouldn't mention it in advance, but you can mention it at check-in. Chances are you'll have to settle the bill after the second day.
My wife and I each have the Club Carlson Premiere Signature Visa, and we always choose to "take advantage of the last-night-free benefit of the Club Carlson credit cards by 'staggering' award stays between travel companions." I will book the first two nights, the second of which is free, then she will book the next two nights, the second of which is free, and so on. If there is another way to maximize the value...
My wife and I each have the Club Carlson Premiere Signature Visa, and we always choose to "take advantage of the last-night-free benefit of the Club Carlson credit cards by 'staggering' award stays between travel companions." I will book the first two nights, the second of which is free, then she will book the next two nights, the second of which is free, and so on. If there is another way to maximize the value of Gold Points, please enlighten me.
Also, the purchase of 40,000 flash sale Gold Points with the Club Carlson Visa nets not only the bonus 30,000 points but also an additional 1,400 bonus points for purchasing with the branded card. Every bonus is welcomed regardless of size.
Are Club Carlson points ever for sale at a price better than with this 75% promo?
@ FlyingExplorer -- Not that I've ever seen.
@atxtravel You may do something so dumb, if you have say 75,000 pts in account A, and 25,000 pts in account B. If I was "very dumb", I could transfer 25,000 from A to B, and have 50,000 in both, in which case I could then stack alternating 2-night awards.
Why would anyone do something so dumb? The main feature of this program is 2nd night free and if a couple (or one person with 2 accounts) has enough points in each, they can stack alternating 2-night awards at half price.
Seriously, why do you stubbornly keep overlooking this feature in each of your articles about Club Carlson and your comments to readers?
@ atxtravel -- Huh, what am I overlooking?