Buying miles & points strategically can often represent a good value. Along those lines, the Radisson Rewards Americas program has just launched its latest promotion on purchased points, which is the best promotion we’ve seen from the program so far in 2022.
In this post:
Promotion on purchases Radisson Rewards points
Through Monday, May 9, 2022, Radisson Rewards Americas is offering a 100% bonus on purchased points. While the bonus on purchased points is sometimes tiered, in this case you can unlock the 100% bonus even if you purchase just 1,000 points.
How much does it cost to buy Radisson Rewards points?
Ordinarily you can buy Radisson Rewards Americas points for 0.7 cents each, before any discounts or bonuses. If you maxed out this promotion and purchased 80,000 Radisson Rewards points, you’d receive a total of 160,000 points at a cost of $560, which is a rate of 0.35 cents per Radisson Rewards point.
Radisson Rewards Americas doesn’t sell points very often, at least compared to other programs. When the program does sell points, a 100% bonus is as good as it gets.
How many Radisson Rewards points can you buy?
Radisson Rewards Americas lets you buy up to 80,000 points per account per calendar year, before any bonuses. If you maxed out this bonus you’d also be at your yearly limit of how many points you can buy.
Which credit card should you buy Radisson points with?
Radisson Rewards points purchases are processed by points.com, meaning they don’t count as a hotel purchase for the purposes of credit card spending.
I’d recommend using a card with which you’re trying to reach a minimum spending requirement, or a credit card that maximizes your return on everyday spending, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited® (review), Citi Double Cash® Card (review), or Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (review) (Rates & Fees).
When in doubt, review which credit cards are best for buying points and miles.
- Earn 1% cash back when you make a purchase, earn 1% cash back when you pay for that purchase
- $0
- Earn 3% Cash Back on Dining
- Earn 3% Cash Back at Drugstores
- Earn 1.5% Cash Back On All Other Purchases
- $0
- Earn 2x miles per dollar on every purchase
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- 10,000 bonus miles every account anniversary
- $395
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- Global Entry/TSA Pre-Check Credit
- $95
- 2x points on purchases up to $50k then 1x
- Access to Amex Offers
- No annual fee
Is buying Radisson Rewards points worth it?
The new Radisson Rewards Americas program was launched in June 2021, and with this, Radisson essentially split up its loyalty program into two. You can earn and redeem points in the Americas region with one program, and earn and redeem points in the rest of the world with the other program. Fortunately you can transfer points between the two programs at no cost, but still, it’s not a very seamless experience.
For context, here’s the Radisson Rewards Americas award chart:
As you can see, the cheapest properties go for 15,000 points per night, while the most expensive properties go for 75,000 points per night. Generally speaking there probably aren’t many properties where purchasing points for a redemption represents a good value. Still, there will be situations where the math works out.
Do Radisson Rewards points expire?
Radisson Rewards Americas points expire after 24 months of inactivity. As long as you have some activity that involves earning or redeeming points once every 24 months, your points won’t expire.
How much are Radisson Rewards points worth?
Everyone will value points differently, but personally I value Radisson Rewards points at ~0.3 cents each, and I tend to value points pretty conservatively. So the purchase price is a bit higher than what I value the points, though like I said, there are ways to get much more value.
Does Radisson Rewards have blackout dates?
Radisson Rewards Americas doesn’t have blackout dates for standard room redemptions, so the program has one of the better policies when it comes to points availability.
Bottom line
Radisson Rewards Americas has just introduced a 100% bonus on purchased points, which is in line with the best offers we see from the program. Even so, this is definitely a niche opportunity, as I’d say there are few opportunities where this represents a good deal, beyond topping off an account for a specific redemption.
Do you plan on buying Radisson Rewards points with a 100% bonus?
(Tip of the hat to Frequent Flyer Bonuses)
For a hotel that takes 15,000 points, you can essentially purchase enough points for it at $56 (for 8K + 8K points). Purchasing 15K + 15K (30K total) points would be $105 for 2 nights, or $52.50 per night. That is a great deal! And if you luck into those hotels having discounted points within 2 months of booking, at 10,000 points per night, you can purchase those points for $35. I've got trips coming...
For a hotel that takes 15,000 points, you can essentially purchase enough points for it at $56 (for 8K + 8K points). Purchasing 15K + 15K (30K total) points would be $105 for 2 nights, or $52.50 per night. That is a great deal! And if you luck into those hotels having discounted points within 2 months of booking, at 10,000 points per night, you can purchase those points for $35. I've got trips coming up where this is going to help me. I just paid $140 for 40K points, which is getting me 4 nights in a hotel. Can't beat that!
Lucky
Will you stay at a radisson
This program is the worst in term of room redemption availability .. even if there is a standard room available .. the redemption is blocked for more then 9 months !! this is ridiculous . even when I call the customer care they say what the hotel say is what available ,, so we cant do anything !!
What hotel is this? I never had a problem redeeming RR points if standard room was available for cash.
SO many hotels in turkey and morocco ..
Check Radisson Blu Hotel, Ordu for more then 4 months or Radisson tagazout in morocoo for one year !!!
Thank you Ben! Saved me $50.
Did you mention radisson America can easily transfer to radisson?
I just bought 5,000 points for $35.00 and using it for a night that would have been $110.59, thanks for the savings, I appreciate it. With the high hotel prices now days, I certainly think it is possible to get great value from this deal.
@ Izz -- Sounds like a great value, happy the promo worked for you!