On July 18, 2023, the Choice Privileges and Radisson Rewards Americas programs will be merging. That means you have until July 17 to freely transfer points between Choice Privileges, Radisson Rewards Americas, and Radisson Rewards. I’m sure I’m not the only one who is trying to decide what to do, so let’s talk a bit more about that.
In this post:
The Radisson Rewards & Choice Privileges points transfer deadline
If you haven’t been following along, it can be tough to keep track of the situation between Choice Privileges, Radisson Rewards Americas, and Radisson Rewards. So let me simplify it as much as possible:
- In the summer of 2021, we saw Radisson Rewards split into two, with a separate loyalty program for the Americas; this was because the Chinese government essentially owns Radisson, and the United States has restrictions around data the Chinese government can access, necessitating the creation of a new program for the Americas
- In the summer of 2022, Choice Hotels acquired Radisson Hotel Group Americas, meaning that Radisson’s properties in the Americas nowadays have nothing to do with Radisson’s non-Americas properties
- As of July 18, 2023, the Radisson Rewards Americas program will cease to exist, and will be merged into the Choice Privileges program, with all points transferring at a 2:1 ratio (so you’ll get half as many Choice Privileges points as Radisson Rewards Americas points, reflecting that these currencies have different values)
- Through July 17, 2023, you can transfer points for free at a 1:1 ratio between Radisson Rewards Americas and Radisson Rewards
In other words, through July 17 you have the option of freely transferring points between all three programs. As of July 18, there will be no connection between Choice Privileges and the Radisson Rewards (non-Americas) program.
Should you choose Choice Privileges or Radisson Rewards points?
Over the years I’ve racked up ~436K Radisson Rewards points in the non-Americas program. I acquired these mostly with Radisson Rewards’ credit card, as the card offered an annual bonus of 40,000 points (the card has since been discontinued). I had the card for around a decade, so over time those points added up!
So now I have to decide whether I’d rather have 436,000 Radisson Rewards points (in the non-Americas program) or 218,000 Choice Privileges points. I can’t say I’m particularly passionate about Choice Privileges or Radisson Rewards, so off the bat I don’t have a particularly strong preference here.
That being said, while I can still be talked out of it, I’m leaning toward transferring all my points to Choice Privileges. Why?
- The Radisson Rewards program (non-Americas) had a brutal devaluation in October 2022, and now has dynamic award pricing, greatly limiting the ability to get outsized value with points
- Personally I value Choice Privileges points at 0.7 cents each and value Radisson Rewards points at 0.3 cents each, so based on my valuations, it seems that Choice Privileges points would be the better option (even accounting for the 2:1 transfer ratio)
- In terms of converting points into airline miles, it’s a wash between the programs; Choice Privileges points transfer to airline miles at a 5:1 ratio, while Radisson Rewards points transfer to airline miles at a 10:1 ratio
- If I transfer points to the Radisson Rewards program, I won’t have any properties in the Americas to redeem at, while Choice Privileges would give me access to properties globally (Radisson properties in the Americas, plus Choice properties globally)
- Choice Privileges has a cool partnership with Preferred Hotels & Resorts, which is a group of over 500 luxury independent properties around the globe, and you can redeem points there for 25,000 to 55,000 points per night
The only real reason that I’m considering keeping the points with Radisson Rewards is because the brand’s non-Americas properties are sometimes useful. For example, Radisson Rewards has hotels in lots of markets where you don’t otherwise find many chain hotels, including in many large African cities. That could be useful, but for me is probably still too niche of a reason for keeping points there.
I’m not committed to transferring these points to Choice Privileges, but that’s what I’m planning on doing. If anyone has a different take, I’d love to hear it!
How to transfer points between Radisson Rewards programs
Transferring points between Radisson Rewards and Radisson Rewards Americas is super easy and generally instant. Here’s how this works, through July 17, 2023:
- At this link you can move points from Radisson Rewards to Radisson Rewards Americas
- At this link you can move points from Radisson Rewards Americas to Radisson Rewards
There’s no cost to transfer points between accounts in the same name, and the process is easy. Once you have an account with both programs, just follow this link, and log into your Radisson Rewards account (the non-Americas one).
Once on the next page, you’ll be asked how many points you want to transfer, and you’ll be asked to enter your Radisson Rewards Americas account number. While I had 436,000 points, the transfer page only allowed me to transfer up to 420,000 points. However, I was able to make a subsequent transfer for an additional 16,000 points.
After submitting the transfer request, I refreshed my Radisson Rewards Americas account, and the points immediately posted there.
By the way, I was happy to see that I didn’t have issues with this, given that one account has my first name as “Ben,” while the other has my first name as “Benjamin.”
Then you can also transfer points between Choice Privileges and Radisson Rewards Americas, so see my guide to that here.
Bottom line
With Radisson Rewards Americas being merged into Choice Privileges as of July 18, 2023, the clock is ticking on being able to transfer points between Radisson Rewards and Radisson Rewards Americas. Personally I’m planning on transferring all of my points to Choice Privileges, given the limited value that the Radisson Rewards program offers.
But before I make a final decision, I’m curious to hear what others are planning, and if there’s anything obvious I’m missing.
What’s your plan with any existing Choice Privileges and/or Radisson Rewards points?
my points are lost 450,000, they said it will post in 5 days. never happened. it's been over a month since the change. what to do. they literally asked me if I have proof of my points.
My points have not transferred from my Radisson Americas account over to my Choice Acct. Do I need to do something to make this happen?
my points were transferred to choice automatically at 50% rate for Radisson Americas. I could not transfer them to Radisson International. The properties to choose from,i.e. London, UK are very limited and I am not sure how to do the reversal, how can I sign out of Choice and transfer Radisson America to Radisson International?
My points did not transfer to Choice and no one at Choice seems to know when the transfer will complete. Any help would be appreciated.
Hi Ben,
I believe i am one of many who didn't get to transfer their Radisson reward points to Radisson Americas as i had not been travelling for quite some time. With the time lapsed now, i don't think i have any other option than to keep my Radisson points. The global transfer option has disappeared now from both Radisson global and Radisson Americas.
I’ve been top tier Radisson since 2014 and in 2017 had more than 2.5 million points. I was able to use them for amazing redemptions all around Europe and North Africa. The devaluation destroyed the value. I got more value from 500,000 point than I got for the last 2M. Nights go for six figures at most Radisson Blu properties any longer. I had to cash in 700,000 for a four-night stay in Brussels.
On a somewhat different note - not related to points transfer but the integration of the programs - is there a sense of what will happen from a points pricing perspective when the programs integrate? For example looking at a trip to Ireland next year, I see various Radisson hotels in the 30-50k range and Choice hotels around 8k. Given the transfer ratio is it expected that the Radisson hotels will be more in line...
On a somewhat different note - not related to points transfer but the integration of the programs - is there a sense of what will happen from a points pricing perspective when the programs integrate? For example looking at a trip to Ireland next year, I see various Radisson hotels in the 30-50k range and Choice hotels around 8k. Given the transfer ratio is it expected that the Radisson hotels will be more in line with the Choice hotels prices (even if not actually down to 8k/night?)
@LTL, your question makes no sense. Radisson properties in Ireland are part of the Radisson (non-Americas) program. Nothing is changing on that side (that we know). They've already devalued their points significantly. The integration is between Radisson Americas and Choice.
For Radisson Americas properties that will become part of Choice, I haven't seen any information about their new points prices yet. They'll probably be in line with Choice prices, though - perhaps 12k, 16k,...
@LTL, your question makes no sense. Radisson properties in Ireland are part of the Radisson (non-Americas) program. Nothing is changing on that side (that we know). They've already devalued their points significantly. The integration is between Radisson Americas and Choice.
For Radisson Americas properties that will become part of Choice, I haven't seen any information about their new points prices yet. They'll probably be in line with Choice prices, though - perhaps 12k, 16k, 20k, 25k, or 30k, depending on the location/quality.
Lucky, like you, I've accumulated Radisson points from the now discontinued Radisson credit card. And I have the same debate, although I have spend some points on Radisson stays recently and have <200K now. I have decided to keep the points in the Radisson International account, for the following reasons:
1) The post-devaluation Radisson program is actually BETTER than you think. I booked some stays in Europe (Belgium, the Netherlands) before the 2022 devaluation, and...
Lucky, like you, I've accumulated Radisson points from the now discontinued Radisson credit card. And I have the same debate, although I have spend some points on Radisson stays recently and have <200K now. I have decided to keep the points in the Radisson International account, for the following reasons:
1) The post-devaluation Radisson program is actually BETTER than you think. I booked some stays in Europe (Belgium, the Netherlands) before the 2022 devaluation, and out of curiosity, I checked the point requirements for the same properties again after devaluation, and was surprised to find that one property was priced LOWER post-devaluation, and the others comparable or only slightly higher.
2) I also found that, post-devaluation, you can book BREAKFAST INCLUDED rooms with a disproportionally smaller increment in points required than booking standard point-rooms.
3) As someone who always travel with family, the ability to book family rooms in Europe is of CRUCIAL importance. The new Radisson program allows direct booking of family room by points and not significantly higher than standard rooms. Also, in my experience, Radisson hotels in Europe do not care as much about headcount as other hotel groups (who will cite the fire code to limit having 4 people in one room).
4) To transfer to Choice there is a 2:1 conversion; considering Radisson is valued at 0.21-0.25 cpp and Choice ~0.5, there is no mathematical benefit to transfer; therefore,
5) The Choice program is altogether unexciting. Sure, people will say it's valuable to book hotels in Japan or Scandinavia, but those in Japan are tiny business hotels, I want luxury (lol).
6) Therefore, the only benefit to book to Choice is if I have a Preferred hotel in mind, which can be booked with Choice points (I don't).
Sorry long post, of course depends on circumstances. I am willing to bet on using Radisson points to book Radisson properties for future family vacations to Europe. But the reason to book is to propose a alternate view; most bloggers suggest "escaping to Choice".
Lucky, I had the same resource for Radisson points (the Radisson credit card) and the same debate about transferring to Choice, except I have used some Radisson points and have <200K points left. I have decided to keep the points in the Radisson account, the reasons are as follows:
1) The post-devaluation Radisson program is actually better in some ways. I booked a few properties in Belgium and the Netherlands pre-devaluation, and out of curiosity,...
Lucky, I had the same resource for Radisson points (the Radisson credit card) and the same debate about transferring to Choice, except I have used some Radisson points and have <200K points left. I have decided to keep the points in the Radisson account, the reasons are as follows:
1) The post-devaluation Radisson program is actually better in some ways. I booked a few properties in Belgium and the Netherlands pre-devaluation, and out of curiosity, looked at point requirements for the same properties post-devaluation. To my surprise, one property in Belgium cost less in points post-devaluation, while the others are similar or only slightly higher.
2) With the new Radisson program, you can directly book a breakfast-included room with a small increment in points compared to room only.
3) For family travelers, the ability to book a family room in Europe is crucial, and with the new Radisson program you can easily book family rooms with points. Also, Radisson does not seem to care as much about headcount, compared to other hotel groups (who will cite the fire code if you request having 4 in 1 room).
4) Like #3, you can also directly book a suite with points (although admittedly costs way more points the higher you go with the category)
4) Transfer to Choice at a 2:1 ratio means you are not gaining value by transferring, since Choice points are valued at 0.5 cpp anyways.
5) The Choice portfolio is unexciting. People will say that booking Choice hotels in Japan is valuable, but those are business hotels. I want luxury (lol). So unless there is a specific Preferred hotel to book (I don't), I don't see
Sorry long post. Of course this all comes down to each traveler's circumstances; for me who often travels with family to Europe, I am willing to bet on Radisson points to deliver on my next trip. I believe it's a more exciting and luxurious option than the alternative.
Choice Privileges for the win. What with Radisson Americas, Strawberry Hotels, (Nordic Choice) and Preferred Hotels, it a no brainer. Oddly enough, even the BlueGreen Vacation Club deals can sweeten the pot. Just say no!
I still have 1M points in radisson europe. and have a Platinum status in americas but 0 points .. think what will be the status match in choice, thinking what are the additional benefits with status match in choice .. in that case i could transfer some points.
Your comment says it all. You acquired these points just for the bonus or the offers and had no plan. Credit card points are much better because they less often face devaluation and because they are more flexible. So, you don't frequent Radisson hotels but had their credit card just for the welcome bonus and for the bonuses on some purchases. Doesn't make sense to me. Sounds like you got the card also to "review"...
Your comment says it all. You acquired these points just for the bonus or the offers and had no plan. Credit card points are much better because they less often face devaluation and because they are more flexible. So, you don't frequent Radisson hotels but had their credit card just for the welcome bonus and for the bonuses on some purchases. Doesn't make sense to me. Sounds like you got the card also to "review" it. A loss of a return that could have been better elsewhere.
I was glad to find this analysis as I was pondering the same and leaning the same as Ben given my experience in trying to use the global points this year compared to what I could last year at the same property. Went from 90K points to hundreds of thousands points per night. Points of little value with a restrictive footprint and unknown to me expiration policy.
I have one thing to say which should convince anyone to move points to the Choice Privileges program.
“Strawberry Hotels”.
Makes sense if you plan on traveling where those hotels are but if you are not then it wouldn't convince people.
Looks like a lot of us are doing the same thing!
I had 1.4 million Radisson points at the time of the split between Radisson International and Radisson US. The points were in the US program, since I am US based. When news of the Choice acquisition broke, I moved 700k over to the International program so my points were evenly split between the two Radisson programs. (Plan was to move even more to International...
Looks like a lot of us are doing the same thing!
I had 1.4 million Radisson points at the time of the split between Radisson International and Radisson US. The points were in the US program, since I am US based. When news of the Choice acquisition broke, I moved 700k over to the International program so my points were evenly split between the two Radisson programs. (Plan was to move even more to International program as the Choice integration got closer, since I typically used Radisson properties in Europe and IMHO the overall quality of the hotels there was much better in the US.) Was content with this approach until Radisson International killed their program with their devaluation.
Current status....moved 200k back to Radisson US last week and will likely leave these balances. With the 500k in the Radisson Int. program, I can get around $1250 in value and the 900k in the US program will become 450k Choice points which I will try and use ASAP. The thing that I do not like about Choice is the 100 day award booking timeframe since on trips outside of the US I normally book much earlier as they are typically award bookings. Fingers crossed this approach ends up being the best!
I've gone for moving them all to RRA and ultimately Choice, mainly due to the Head for Points article re Nordic hotels, sounds like excellent value when as you say the main RR programme is pretty poor value.
Did what Tennen did, first moving to Radisson non-Americas then back post that devaluation. DH and I both had accounts, but I combined all the points into my account.
Have a Choice account, unused since a road trip to Colorado about 15 years ago I think! I did have my measly balance expire due to lack of activity.
My understanding is that the points will transfer to choice as 2:1, so my 416K...
Did what Tennen did, first moving to Radisson non-Americas then back post that devaluation. DH and I both had accounts, but I combined all the points into my account.
Have a Choice account, unused since a road trip to Colorado about 15 years ago I think! I did have my measly balance expire due to lack of activity.
My understanding is that the points will transfer to choice as 2:1, so my 416K points will be only 208K after the transfer.
Understand that Choice has some good properties in Europe, esp. northern countries.
Will make sure I do something to not have the points expire.
Are there any benefits to transferring Radisson Americas points to Choice now or waiting until it happens automatically on
July 18?
Ben, another huge benefit of Choice points is that you can use them for some pretty great hotels via their partnership with Preferred Hotels Group. I’ve scored some insanely cents/point value from that partnership.
When the program first split, I transferred everything to Radisson (Worldwide). Post devaluation, I transferred them all back to Radisson Americas. At least with Choice, you have the choice (no pun intended) to get decent-ish value out of the points. They might not have the nicest hotels, but you don't feel like you're being ripped off. Radisson's program is completely worthless now, at least to me.
Stayed at Radisson Blu Zurich Airport last month, 113,00 points, previous stay 70,000 points. Transferred balance of points to Radisson Americas. With Hyatt at Zurich Airport no need to stay at this hotel again.
I went ahead and transferred over to Choice. My concern is the expiration policy at Choice. You have to have a "stay" every 18 months, not just an activity like points earning or credit card points. In addition, if I didn't already have a choice account I could have earned 500 points for a new account and 5k for a first stay. Since I prefer other hotel chains I plan to burn the points asap...
I went ahead and transferred over to Choice. My concern is the expiration policy at Choice. You have to have a "stay" every 18 months, not just an activity like points earning or credit card points. In addition, if I didn't already have a choice account I could have earned 500 points for a new account and 5k for a first stay. Since I prefer other hotel chains I plan to burn the points asap before I run into expiration issues. Basically Choice isn't making me want to engage long term. I prefer many non-USA Radisson hotels but I just couldn't chance further devaluations.
@ DaninMCI -- I might be missing something, but that's not how I interpret the expiration policy? https://www.choicehotels.com/choice-privileges/faq
Even buying points counts, and only the following examples are given of non-qualifying activity:
"Examples of non-qualifying activities include stays that are not point-eligible, registering for a promotion, and gifting points (this only counts as a qualifying activity for the member who receives the points, not the member who gifts the points)."
@ DaninMCI -- I might be missing something, but that's not how I interpret the expiration policy? https://www.choicehotels.com/choice-privileges/faq
Even buying points counts, and only the following examples are given of non-qualifying activity:
"Examples of non-qualifying activities include stays that are not point-eligible, registering for a promotion, and gifting points (this only counts as a qualifying activity for the member who receives the points, not the member who gifts the points)."
I also have the same dilemma as Ben and I don't have a CP account yet. I just went on their website and I don't see any mention of 500 points for a new account and 5k for a first stay. Is there a link to this you can share?
"To remain active in the program and retain your points, you must have at least one of the following activities every 18 consecutive calendar months:
*Qualifying point-eligible stay (earning points or miles),
*Redeeming Choice Privileges points (free nights, gift cards etc.)
*Earning points with the Choice Privileges Mastercard® card (US members only)
*Purchasing points
*Referring a Friend"