Hilton Honors has just increased award costs for stays at some of its top properties… this is starting to get downright ridiculous. What’s wild is that many of these same properties were devalued just months ago, in May 2025.
In this post:
Hilton Honors raises points cap for top properties
For several years now, Hilton Honors hasn’t published award charts. While the program has dynamic award pricing, the reality is that the most expensive award rates at a particular hotel have been pretty consistent. That’s to say that if a standard room is available, you can redeem points for it at a cost that’s not above some (typically reasonable) maximum.
Up until May 2025, Hilton Honors free night redemptions for standard rooms topped out at 150,000 points per night. Then in May 2025, we saw top properties increase in cost to 200,000 points per night, representing a 33% increase.
Well, there’s now another update — Hilton has just increased redemption rates at its top properties to 250,000 points per night. So that’s a 25% increase overnight, and a 67% increase compared to earlier this year. What’s wild is that prior to that, the cost for stays at top properties hadn’t increase since 2021 (at which point the top costs went from 120,000 points to 150,000 points per night).
For example, you’ll find that the Waldorf Astoria Maldives now charges up to 250,000 points per night…
…while the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal now charges up to 250,000 points per night.
As before, Hilton Honors elite members can receive a fifth night free on award redemptions, meaning that a property costing up to 250,000 points per night could cost as little as 200,000 points per night. So you can spend five nights somewhere for a million points… what a steal!
I’m sure some people will jump in and point out that some Hilton Honors rooms cost over a million points per night. Just to clarify, when you see a rate beyond the maximum cap, that’s for premium room redemptions, when standard rooms aren’t available.
The bad news is that even beyond the properties that now cost 250,000 points per night, we’ve also seen a lot of other hotels increase award costs, compared to their previous maximum cost. For example, it wasn’t that long ago that the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island cost up to 95,000 points per night, then the cost increased to 140,000 points per night, and now this property goes for up to 180,000 points per night.
C’mon Hilton Honors, this is getting ridiculous!
I of course understand why loyalty programs devalue over time, especially ones with dynamic pricing. For example, during the last round of devaluations with Hilton Honors, I acknowledged how only a very limited number of properties increased in cost by that much, and it had been years since there was previously a devaluation to these top properties.
However, this now totally crosses the line, if you ask me. We saw properties increase from 150,000 points per night to 200,000 points per night several months ago, and now increase to 250,000 points per night? Will we see costs increase to 300,000 points per night before the end of the year?
Often loyalty programs can get away with devaluations, though I really think the program is starting to get to the point where Hilton is killing the golden goose. I’ve generally found Hilton Honors to be an increasingly useful program over the years, but these redemption rates are starting to get close to eliminating any outsized redemption opportunities.
What makes this situation even worse is that Hilton Honors is massively increasing award costs while also greatly decreasing points earning opportunities. Hilton has reduced the frequency with which it offers promotions, and has also made them less generous. What a customer-unfriendly combination.
This is something that I can’t justify. But perhaps Hilton Honors’ lifetime Diamond apologist has a different take, and can explain how this is actually good for members?
Bottom line
Hilton Honors is now charging up to 250,000 points for free night redemptions in standard rooms, compared to the previous cap of up to 200,000 points per night. Even worse, the cap was actually 150,000 points per night until several months ago.
I understand the need to increase award costs over time, but this is really getting out of hand. Going from 150,000 points per night to 250,000 points per night, all while reducing points earning opportunities, is super disappointing.
What do you make of this latest Hilton Honors devaluation?
As a Lifetime Diamond HH member, I recently starting comparing points needed for a Hilton stay to comparable Marriott hotels and stays. Points needed for almost all comparable Marriott stays i looked at were significantly lower with Marriott. Do your own comparison and see the results for yourself. I now always stay at Marriott as I’m tired of being ripped off by Hilton.
AMEX Platinum New Zealand applies the same points conversion ratio to HH and Bonvoy points, this makes it completely illogical to ever transfer points to HH.
I think it was bound to happen since it's so crazy easy to get points these days... SUBs, Xfer and buying. If you can get top status just by opening a CC then you kinda know what the deal is. Anyway, it's just the consequence of inflation. I have 2 Aspire cards and 1 Surpass. I'm able to use all the credits normally so I'll stick with it for another year. The FNCs are valuable....
I think it was bound to happen since it's so crazy easy to get points these days... SUBs, Xfer and buying. If you can get top status just by opening a CC then you kinda know what the deal is. Anyway, it's just the consequence of inflation. I have 2 Aspire cards and 1 Surpass. I'm able to use all the credits normally so I'll stick with it for another year. The FNCs are valuable. I normally use pts at Waldorf, Conrad etc. I just stayed at Nobu Ibiza for 600K pts for 5 nights. So, that's $3,000 in pts as I value them. The cash price was $10K. I think $600/night with free breakfast ($95/day for 2people) is prob fair but it's getting to my limit. Anyway, the name of the game is to churn and burn and not store up pts because this kind of thing happens all the time in the game. I just do the math and move with the wind to the best option.
they have also switched all their hotels over to down pillows, to which i'm allergic. every time i have to request hypoallergenic in advance, then confirm at the front desk. the front desk never knows what i'm talking about, so i have to stand there and wait for them to call housekeeping and ask "what kind of pillows do we have??", and then wait for housekeeping to bring the correct pillows. How exhausting. Why would...
they have also switched all their hotels over to down pillows, to which i'm allergic. every time i have to request hypoallergenic in advance, then confirm at the front desk. the front desk never knows what i'm talking about, so i have to stand there and wait for them to call housekeeping and ask "what kind of pillows do we have??", and then wait for housekeeping to bring the correct pillows. How exhausting. Why would i continue to go through this hassle instead of staying at a marriott?
Wow even DCS is just about done. His comment on LL:
am a bit late to come by this insane news. The only explanation for a loyalty program to boldly make a move that it knows would enrage the majority of its members is that the company that runs it is doing so well it believes it could afford the alienation that its move is sure to cause. Supporting, at least in part, that...
Wow even DCS is just about done. His comment on LL:
am a bit late to come by this insane news. The only explanation for a loyalty program to boldly make a move that it knows would enrage the majority of its members is that the company that runs it is doing so well it believes it could afford the alienation that its move is sure to cause. Supporting, at least in part, that thesis is that despite the huge hike in standard room reward costs at Hilton's very high-end, most coveted properties, the availability of awards at such hotels remains poor, even more so, at least at WA Maldives, where I checked. The resort is extremely popular with people paying cash...
Another thesis that I developed to explain Hilton's dwindling and less and less lucrative promos has been that the company made the decision to boost the sale of its points, since points sales, along with promos, are the two best ways for members to raise their points earn rates, which also increase their returns on each hard dollar they spend on activities related to the program. The thinking there would be that reducing the number of points members earned through promos would boost the sales of points, which have been more frequently (about every two months) and more lucrative, as the maximum that can be purchased yearly with a 100% bonus has essentially been raised from 360K to 480K. This latest massive hike in standard award costs at the most 'aspirational' properties fits nicely into that game plan. Wanna afford a 5-night award stay at WA Maldives at 250K/night? Then you've gotta max out on points purchases because, even for those who spend 100 nights a year at Hilton hotels, the dwindling 2x or 3x promos mean that the only other source of big points is to purchase them.
It's a good thing I did two 5-night reward stays at WA Maldives, both at a standard award cost of 120K points/night, which suddenly seems like ages ago. I quit UA MileagePlus cold turkey as a 1MM after the hike of the cost to make 1K to $24k/year became a bridge too far for me. For that kind of money, I could fly all year in better premium cabins with other carriers, why stick with UA? The last couple of years, doing a couple of round-trips to Asia and back in SQ business (a couple being upgrades w/ points from premium econ to biz at the airport) at a cost of about $10K/y has allowed me to retain the SQ Gold status. Given that I travel mainly to and within Asia, the SQ *G status is worth more to me than UA 1K, though as a UA 1MM, I have the UA Gold and *G status for life to fall back on.
Bottom line: Even as a LT Diamond, I will quit Hilton Honors 'cold turkey' if the cost of patronizing the program similarly becomes a 'bridge too far', which it might become soon at the rate of their recent revaluations, coupled with the gutting of their promos, which were, until 2025, one of the program's key differentiating features.
G'day
I saw someone else mention this, but this is all because of their CONSTANT 100% buy points bonus. They probably have such a big liability from doing this so one way to reduce the liability is to devalue.
I and others would max out the 480,000 limit for $2400 and spend that at 5 nights at WA Cabo (120k/night, 5th night free). Instead of ruining WA Cabo for everyone, stop selling points for so cheap!!!!!
I have sent my comments on this devaluation to [email protected]
If someone knows a good email for Amex Surpass, I'd like to hit them too.
I’ll be checking out the other award programs. I’m super upset. So much for staying at Hilton properties in the future
This is super disappointing, and it will change my hotel strategy going forward. I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to stay at so many aspirational Hilton properties in the past like the Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam and the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal. Even more gratifying has been the SLH properties like the Nimb in Copenhagen, Kemala in Phuket, Viceroy Bali and Sowaka in Kyoto. However, that's going to be rare going forward....
This is super disappointing, and it will change my hotel strategy going forward. I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to stay at so many aspirational Hilton properties in the past like the Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam and the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal. Even more gratifying has been the SLH properties like the Nimb in Copenhagen, Kemala in Phuket, Viceroy Bali and Sowaka in Kyoto. However, that's going to be rare going forward.
As a practical matter, I think that this spells the end of my buying Hilton points when they are on sale. I will also likely close both my wife and my Hilton Surpass cards because the opportunity cost of spending $15K spend on each card annually can't be justified when the points are worth so little. However, I will keep the four Hilton Aspire cards that my wife and I have between us. If you know the various tricks, it is easy to turn that annual $550 fee to a net zero effective annual fee, and while HH points have been devalued, the free night certificates are even more valuable now. I will continue to use those free night certificates for "weekend" trips where we can stack them together two at a time. I will not be doing the five days of point redemptions to get the free night any further though because even four nights of point redemptions are just so astronomically high that the value proposition is no longer there. I will move more spend on my Chase and Bilt card to generate Hyatt points. Also, if the rumors turn out to be true, I'll be using the Amex Fine Hotel and Resort credits more frequently going forward between the three Amex consumer and platinum cards my wife and I have. I also my be tempted to keep my Citi Strata Elite card beyond the signup bonus because of their hotel portal program. Finally, I will now more actively explore doing things like using Choice points for Preferred Hotel redemptions and even Wyndham points at the handful of interesting properties that they have internationally. The days of taking several 5 day point redemptions at HH/SLH properties though is a thing of the past now.
Could you elaborate more on the tricks to make the Aspire fee net zero?
I know an eye-popping redemption at a LXR property more clicks, but this article is masking significant inflation down the scale. Even at 250k points you are still getting 0.9 cents per point!! The worst is getting .3cpp st some random Embassy Suites. Or even 250k points for a “parlor suite” at some Hampton Inn.
the other BIG change is it's the first time in years they don't have a points earning promo. Accordingly, this is the first year in atleast 5 years that I've regularly been also booking marriott and hyatt stays. In the past I always would steer the business to hilton brand properties. Now I am no longer allowing "point enticement" to overcome staying at some of their properties that are dated and not as comfortable.
This is a problem of their own making and at the same time a real slap in the face to truly loyal customers. My husband and I are both lifetime diamond and have been loyal members for over 20 years with a consistent 1M+ points bank. Then they started handing out credit cards like candy, giving people diamond status, along with hundreds of thousands of points. Of course this was coming.
Never ever use real money to pursue the accumulation of Monopoly money!
Waste of time spending any more brain cells on this program. Zero value.
Waste of time spending any more brain cells on this program. Zero value.
Not only are they devaluing properties and increasing rates but just recently at our last stay we were asked to unplug the toilet with a plunger upon arrival in our room. I thought it was a joke but no ..the toilet had toilet paper in it when we arrived to our room so I flushed it. It then preceded to overflow...when I called the front desk they told me to come down and get a...
Not only are they devaluing properties and increasing rates but just recently at our last stay we were asked to unplug the toilet with a plunger upon arrival in our room. I thought it was a joke but no ..the toilet had toilet paper in it when we arrived to our room so I flushed it. It then preceded to overflow...when I called the front desk they told me to come down and get a plunger. I asked for a different room but none were available. The quality and standards of Hilton has massively diminished over the past two years. We will be taking our business elsewhere. I hope they are not too shocked when they receive my plumbing bill.
Lots of "Guest" comments on this post?
... maybe even pissed Honors Reprs are posting too? ;-)
I wouldn't be surprised!
Hilton for sure is not just a big mess in recent years, it's NOT worth the loyalty anymore, compared to some competitors, with WAY more value for money!
Strange, . . . that mostly US based Loyalty programs have so much lost in value and sparkle since Covid!?
ACCOR,...
Lots of "Guest" comments on this post?
... maybe even pissed Honors Reprs are posting too? ;-)
I wouldn't be surprised!
Hilton for sure is not just a big mess in recent years, it's NOT worth the loyalty anymore, compared to some competitors, with WAY more value for money!
Strange, . . . that mostly US based Loyalty programs have so much lost in value and sparkle since Covid!?
ACCOR, IKOS, FourSeasons, RIU, all see Loyalty from a very different standpoint i think as they're pretty constant, of course, some with VERY limited Advantages, but solid for years.
Hilton Honor's ONLY great thing in recent years, was the partnership with SLH.
That's NOT much, compared to the many negative points we all saw recently.
I'm NOT surprised, so many (hopefully with a reaction to that wealthy Family of the former TX Hotel owner) will come to terms and back to the ground, as in ALL Hilton related brands and Companies, massive devaluation is coming to an unbelievable hight, with little to nothing in return for it all!
It's now a royalty program, not a loyalty program...
Indeed ridiculous…I have booked the LXR Umana in Bali this year for 80k HH points per night and now the new standard rate is 120k, which is 50% devaluation
Can some law firm do a class action lawsuit, for people who have over 100k points gets 20% extra points when they devalue, this is so absurd and dishonored, you might as well call them Hilton Dishonor
Yeah my bank account should act the same way. Perhaps the same law firm can sue JPM?
Totally agree. The points aren't free; they come from credit card spending. Hilton keeps devaluing our points and stealing our money. We members need to do something!
Cancelled Hilton Amex earlier this year, and I'm sure glad I did.
*We* in the hobby don't matter. *We* in the hobby don't move the needle. *They* know this. As such, *they* don't care and *they* will continue on their path. It's not as if this is something new. Accept it, adapt, and move on.
Hilton corporate will go berzerk when blog reading & point redeeming free nite chasers halt their lo margin stays that displace $$ paying guests. For the stay...
I'm a Lifetime Diamond and with each passing year I stay fewer and fewer days at Hilton properties. They've been devaluing the Honors program for two decades. I still remember their Going Global for Diamond status that let you stay a WEEK at an international property for 100,000 points. Now you can't even get one night for 100,000 points at most properties. On the flip side, I'm building my Marriott status steadily and have stayed...
I'm a Lifetime Diamond and with each passing year I stay fewer and fewer days at Hilton properties. They've been devaluing the Honors program for two decades. I still remember their Going Global for Diamond status that let you stay a WEEK at an international property for 100,000 points. Now you can't even get one night for 100,000 points at most properties. On the flip side, I'm building my Marriott status steadily and have stayed at some wonderful boutique hotels I probably wouldn't have if the program hadn't been butchered as badly as it has been.
I just sent the following to hiltonhonors [at] hilton [dot] com (feel free to copy/paste):
"As a longtime Hilton Diamond member with multiple Hilton credit cards, this latest devaluation is the breaking point. Standard awards hitting 250K points per night shows Hilton doesn’t value loyal customers. Unless you reverse course, I’ll be cancelling my Hilton cards and avoiding paid Hilton stays going forward.
"
Other hotel brands will view this as a signal to follow suit.
Loyalty Programs should be renamed to One Way Loyalty program. Hilton Dishonorable? Hilton HAH you're screwed and Bonvoyed
I have given up on all of the loyalty programs for work trips. instead, I go wherever the Amex offer is richest. Better to get cash in my pocket than worthless points (and the offers often work out to 20% - 35% back plus points spend and points for program properties).
The slow death of points and miles speeds up. Wont be long and blogs like this will be obsolete.
I am new to Hilton point stays and just got my first Hilton card, the Aspire. I literally just got my SUB and and the same day (2 days ago), booked the Conrad Bora Bora for 120K per night. I bought points at $0.05 each to get enough points to book 4 nights to get the 5th one free ( the cash price was also inflated prior to this increase in points stay). The standard...
I am new to Hilton point stays and just got my first Hilton card, the Aspire. I literally just got my SUB and and the same day (2 days ago), booked the Conrad Bora Bora for 120K per night. I bought points at $0.05 each to get enough points to book 4 nights to get the 5th one free ( the cash price was also inflated prior to this increase in points stay). The standard room rate went from $1000ish to $2909. So, I figured I was getting a good deal for my points, even with the purchase. I was liking what I was getting and thought I might become a Hilton fan for future stays. After today, I doubt I will keep this card after a year. I can't believe I got the Conrad Bora Bora less than 48 hrs before this happened. It's our first time venturing to this part of the world as we usually go to Europe. Really disappointed today but very exciting for Bora Bora!
Conrad Bora Bora is a fantastic property. We did 6 nights there this past April and have 7 nights booked next April, thankfully all at 120k pts per night (and WA Maldives booked for 200k pts per night next summer.)
Does anyone have any idea what the right response to this is from the franchisee side? I’m an investor in hundreds of select service properties and have friends and family on the PE side that own many more properties and I’m not sure how to send the message to corporate how unacceptable this is short of pushing a long term reflag strategy - which I don’t know sends the message.
Is there anything those of...
Does anyone have any idea what the right response to this is from the franchisee side? I’m an investor in hundreds of select service properties and have friends and family on the PE side that own many more properties and I’m not sure how to send the message to corporate how unacceptable this is short of pushing a long term reflag strategy - which I don’t know sends the message.
Is there anything those of us who are LPs can do? This is just a terrible business message. My friends in consulting and banking will notice and will book away and they’re the price insensitive customers the business is built on.
Enough with the fake compassion using a fake account.
Go count the money.
You're about to get a little richer.
But if you're actually a legit PE or investor, you'd already know that.
Have you looked at the IRR/MOICs for the hospitality vintages that are currently in harvest? Theyre pretty mediocre by historical standards - have a look on preqin.
I just got another capital call and im well aware that i would have done better indexing in an etf. This deval probably will hurt some of the select service properties where savvier road warriors stay. We’ll just have to hope rev mgmt can negotiate corp rates that...
Have you looked at the IRR/MOICs for the hospitality vintages that are currently in harvest? Theyre pretty mediocre by historical standards - have a look on preqin.
I just got another capital call and im well aware that i would have done better indexing in an etf. This deval probably will hurt some of the select service properties where savvier road warriors stay. We’ll just have to hope rev mgmt can negotiate corp rates that offset it. Hilton and franchisees are not aligned on this.
They seem to go up after point sales.
Ben, will you revise your valuation of the HH points?
WA Costa Rica went from 110K to 140K for standard redemptions.
I needed to drop one hotel loyalty option a year ago. Hilton made that choice easier. Now they make me only feel more justified in that choice. Have not missed them. One or two hotels may work but no need for my being loyal.
"Luxury hotel redemptions are becoming unaffordable"
I think that's the whole point of luxury, isn't it?
Only absolute losers stay exclusively at corporate hotels.
For sure - that’s what they call you when you when you’re at UBS or JPM and you get booked at the Waldorf in NY because it’s next door to your offices.
Absolute losers who want to be close to the office and earn points doing it.
Don’t make us book at the Interconn Barclay because the value prop is insane!
Waldorf in NYC, wow. Your company is amazing. Mine doesn't care about proximity. You better book a Courtyard or the Renaissance or there will be hell to pay. As a matter of fact, properties like the Waldorf cannot even be booked via Concur.
As a Hilton Diamond for Life I have found the programme less and less worthwhile. I have stayed over 70 nights so far this year and have had a number of minor upgrades but not a single suite upgrade or indeed any special rooms most look pretty basic even when they say you are upgraded. At the moment the bonuses are very poor and it is becoming like the British Airways FF scheme which had...
As a Hilton Diamond for Life I have found the programme less and less worthwhile. I have stayed over 70 nights so far this year and have had a number of minor upgrades but not a single suite upgrade or indeed any special rooms most look pretty basic even when they say you are upgraded. At the moment the bonuses are very poor and it is becoming like the British Airways FF scheme which had downgraded so much it's not worth bothering with.....so just like with BA I don't fly with them anymore unless there is an overwhelming reason to do so. So after this year I will go from long term top tier to zero. From Hilton I will just look for value and best prices and will stay elsewhere when it is not on my interest to stay with them. It's a shame but really these companies no longer show any sign of loyalty it's just a one way street.
Rome Hilton Airport - From 59,000 per night to 169,000 for Nov 5th reservation!! Wow - Cancelling both of my Amex Hilton cards ... I have had enough
The 169,000 is because there aren't standard rooms available on that date anymore. If you look at other dates, the new standard price is 65,000, so it's "only" a ~10% devaluation if it was 59k before.
Rome Hilton Airport - From 59,000 per night to 169,000 for Nov 5th reservation!! Wow - Cancelling both of my Amex Hilton cards ... I have had enough
It's particularly disgusting that they sell points for .5 cents each during 100% award sales and they take the members' money and now make the points virtually unusable.
Not only they increased the points needed for high end properties but also they devalued the mid or lower range 20 k points to now 30 k points. Some places paying cash is better than points redemptions.
After the devaluation last year I became a free agent. I stopped looking for 30 stays per year - I actually still reach gold - but honestly I don’t miss it at all.
I stay at Hilton’s when they work based on price, quality and location. I have no desire to overpay for inconvenience.
My experience as gold has been no different to Diamond. I’ve found competitor hotels to be no better or worse, but cheaper or more convenient.
It’s liberating being free.
I'm not surprised. All hotel programs are on terminal velocity in terms of devaluation. They're seeing how much they can reduce their points obligations (improving their balance sheet) to keep up with the market's expectations.
Bummer. I was thinking about taking a trip to the Maldives next summer. Rates for Saii are still the same, but all the others went up. Conrad Rangali is now more than double Saii. I should have booked it and cancelled it if I didn't need it...
I feel your pain. I’ve booked several 5-10 night stays at Hilton Maldives using points purchased with 100% bonus, and found it a good deal at 100-110 000 points per night (plus ~$20-300 for an overwater suite upgrade), but they’ve raised it to 175K+/night now which is just too steep… I guess my 10 night stay this xmas will be the last :( Oh well.
Wooohoooo !!!! Now I have to reach 1 million Hilton honors points. Heck yeah !!!
Thank god I secured my bookings last week for Conrad in Osaka
Thank you Trump. :)
Hoorah ! Sandy Cortez 2028.
Something to keep in mind here is that Hilton remains the only program not to cap their credit card award free nights. They have issued a ton of these cards - so every cardholder can still get one night at one of these top tier hotels. They probably have to make that up on the points per room side. In addition, from 2021-2023/4, you could get some really high cents per points redemptions with Hilton....
Something to keep in mind here is that Hilton remains the only program not to cap their credit card award free nights. They have issued a ton of these cards - so every cardholder can still get one night at one of these top tier hotels. They probably have to make that up on the points per room side. In addition, from 2021-2023/4, you could get some really high cents per points redemptions with Hilton. They appear to have slaughtered that, but it probably wasn’t sustainable. Hilton has definitely dialed it back in terms of value, but it emphasizes the point that you gotta mine the value when it is there, especially when it doesn’t make that much economic sense for the company and for owners
This just makes Accor look the most sensible program. 2000 points stay €40 always, with many points earning opportunities and promos making it easy to stock up on points
Yes Accor is my number one choice now. Usually have better cash prices too.
Hilton Honors is a $hit program. Breakfast benefit is weak, upgrades are hard to come by and not guaranteed, no suite upgrades ahead of time. I made the switch to Hyatt a few years back and have zero regret.
Don’t forget the undefined late checkout time with many properties caping out late check out to 1-2pm, even for diamond members
I haven’t been granted a 1 pm check out in years. Recently, the most I have gotten with my Diamond status is a 11:30 am check out, that is after much asking and protest.
It's not even the top awards that bother me, pretty much everything I see when testing (from luxury to Hampton Inn) puts HH points around 3 points/cent or .0033 cents per point. That's a huge system-wide devaluation from one year ago. It changes the math on earnings from hotel stays and credit cards... Time to check out
why hasn't DCS put in a comment
Too busy crying in the bathroom about the deval
@Eskimo: you really don't know DCS, do you? He's not crying, he's figuring out the semantics needed to spin this to a positive!
@JoeAmateur
Is that you impersonating my username?
Regardless, I think I know DCS quite well. DCS is respectfully the Hilton Tim Dunn, only more zealous but without the fluff. And is probably somewhere in Asia right now bragging about all his upgrades and $15 credits.
Too busy crying in the bathroom about the deval
Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach 150K up from 95K
Oceana Santa Monica LXR 200K up from 105K
Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills 200K up from 120K
This isn't a devaluation, this is complete slaughter
I agree that this is insane and makes Hilton points worth a lot less, so I have less interest in the program -- but it seems like there are still cases where there is value to be had at super-high-priced properties. E.g., the Waldorf Maldives you have there, at 250k a night, you can buy those points for $1250 -- which is a lot but is 50-60ish less than the cash rate, right? Obviously not a chance to get basically free nights but still arbitrage to be done.
I occasionally stay at Hilton based on the return with the Aspire card, and diligently using those credits and free nights. But I'm right at the edge of bailing entirely - there are fun opportunities elsewhere.
Yeah, me too, the FNC and resort credit is the only thing holding me to the Aspire card but the FNC is only worth If you can add a night or two on points, making it a long weekend. But with these crazy redemptions the Aspire card is no longer the no brainer deal it was.
@Regis - I agree. Given the devaluations and fading value in the U.S., and some unique opportunities elsewhere (Rove Miles, anyone?), it's about to jump the shark for me.
Does Hilton now have peak day pricing for standard rewards? I saw something odd over Labor Day weekend where certain properties were pricing out one night at the regular standard room reward rate (say 75,000) and then the next night at double that rate (say 150,000). On the search results it would only show the 75,000 figure, but if you clicked through to book, it would show you the price per night. Perhaps this has been around for awhile and I just missed it.
For my OMAAT headline bingo card today I already have M and an A for Madness and Absurd. Currently:
Outrageous
Madness ✓
Absurd ✓
Asinine
Terrible
This may be the final nail in the coffin for me to drop the aspire card. Why should I stay at a hilton to get points that are basically worthless?
This puts most if not all, aspirational properties out of reach for me. This is very disappointing. Looks like I will be looking towards another program.
@Lucky you say the Waldorf Ped now costs “up to 250k”. Don’t you mean “at least”?
Wild this went from 120-140-190-250 just this year alone.
I've been thinking about reducing the number of cards in my wallet. The Hilton Amex Card just jumped to the top of the list. Gold status isn't all that compelling anyway. CSR and the The Edit may become my new go to.
I was thinking of trimming the number of credit cards in my wallet. My Hilton Amex just shot to the top of the list. Gold status isn't all that valuable anyway. The only thing Hilton has going for it is the relationship with Small Luxury Hotels, but those redemptions are ridiculous as well. CSR and The Edit may be my new go to.
Lollll why does anyone bother with hotel programs at this point??
They're are worthless!!
Ben is spot on. Hilton is overpaying their hand.
As always, we vote with our wallets.
This will affect Amex too, especially the Aspire card, which is being devalued acordingly too.
@Luis
I read this same type of comments when BA changed its program. A sizeable majority of objectors claimed they would do that - and they did - by continuing to vote with their pockets right back to BA's coffers.
It sure is a fascinating psychology.
@justindev
I ditched BA. I was a good run, but a waste of time.
I mean, at some point why don't they just bite the bullet and go to a quasi-fixed price/redemption scheme? X points per dollar, with limited variation (e.g. sales). It would be a band-aid rip, and since earning is also tied to that it would at least create a stable value proposition.
People need to let HH know that this isn’t ok! Book elsewhere! Once one starts the others will follow suit. Not like any of these programs reward loyalty at this point anymore and calling it a loyalty program is a freaking joke.
@Christian
Will not happen. An overwhelming majority, Ben included will continue to suck at HH loyalty teat.
Terrible deval.
But on the bright side, this makes Hilton FNC's that much more valuable!
Don’t celebrate yet as we can rest assure that limiting where they can be redeemed isn’t far off in the future!
lol no it doesn’t. It’s still worth exactly one free night.
Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam survived the May 2025 devaluation, but couldn’t avoid this one. 150k points a night now (up from 120k, representing a 25% increase).
Wonderful :\
Japan Conrads are both up, but (for now) not as much as they could be. Absolute shame, I liked both the Osaka and Tokyo locations.
I find Hilton points much more valuable than competition because the redemption aren't really dynamic (yet?). I don't like the devaluation but they're the one chain that can afford it without losing my business. I split my stays 50:50 between them and IHG, which earns me top tiers in both programs. Where would I go? More IHG stays, giving me outright useless points in dynamic redemptions program and no status advantage? Getting Bonvoyed with Marriott's...
I find Hilton points much more valuable than competition because the redemption aren't really dynamic (yet?). I don't like the devaluation but they're the one chain that can afford it without losing my business. I split my stays 50:50 between them and IHG, which earns me top tiers in both programs. Where would I go? More IHG stays, giving me outright useless points in dynamic redemptions program and no status advantage? Getting Bonvoyed with Marriott's virtual status that never delivers the "guaranteed" benefit? Hyatt with their miserable footprint? The only thing that works better for me is Radisson that allows me to get substantial discount instead of their worthless points, and a much better elite treatment, but their properties are too inconsistent so I'm not too keen to switch there.
Conrad Tokyo took advantage of this to increase their points price from 100K pts pn to 130K. A 30% increase, wow
I gave up on Hilton Honors years ago.
Not sure why anyone would still bother.
Lifetime diamond member here: have not had a paid stay in years due to the devaluations and moved all my stays to IHG and Marriott
At least Diamonds get "best room in the house" upgrades. Otherwise, it wouldn't be worth it.
Best “room” maybe but other programs are better with suite upgrades in my opinion.
This was intended as a joke.
You must be joking!! I am Diamond for Life but have had no significant upgrades in the 70 plus nights I have stayed at Hilton this year. I am out.
HOTEL fanboys whether they be Marriott, Hyatt, Hilton or others make me laugh. The currencies are so worthless and the prices both cash and points for these properties show a lack of basic math skills. STOP OVERPAYING FOR TRAVEL BLOGGER ASPIRATIONAL PROPERTIES. You are only stroking your ego.
There's enormous value to be had, Matthew, as long as one is sensible about things
I have to disagree. My employer pays for at least 60 nights a year and I get to choose where I stay within reason. I choose Hyatt whenever possible and the points earned fund a hell of a vacation every year purely on points. My normal spend coupled with a signup bonus or two covers my flights. No ego stroking here, I just like staying at nice properties on someone else's dime.
What else do you expect from Hilton? It's the Delta of the lodging business.
Careful! You might get some incoming from Delta's NUMBER ONE FAN
If I were Ed, I'd have seen about a preemptive restraining order by now
They also haven't increased the SUB on cards for years (i think 185k has been the max for a while?)
It really is ridiculous, and frustrating. I hope non-churner HH members are frustrated enough to complain too.
I've gone free agent-ish - booking via AA Hotels as my first choice when the pricing is decent. Combined with the Citi Executive card, I average about 12 LP/$ and over 20 redeemable miles per dollar, a combo that's extremely hard to beat (and I value AA elite status over just about any hotel status except Hyatt's)
I agree with you, but just remember that you are reading the blog of someone who would rather be a doordash driver for the miles/LPs than use AA hotels :-)
As an aside, for those of us who continue to use AA hotels, it still blows the Atmos equivalent out of the water in terms of miles and status earning opportunities.
As a second aside, there can also be phenomenal value using sites like Agoda...
I agree with you, but just remember that you are reading the blog of someone who would rather be a doordash driver for the miles/LPs than use AA hotels :-)
As an aside, for those of us who continue to use AA hotels, it still blows the Atmos equivalent out of the water in terms of miles and status earning opportunities.
As a second aside, there can also be phenomenal value using sites like Agoda when teamed with Rakuten. They routinely offer 10x MR points (sometimes higher) and together with a 3x travel bonus (RIP CSR 10/26/25; hello Citi Strata Premier "other hotels" 3x which includes travel agencies!) can still get 13x+ points in situations where the upcharge on AA hotels is too much to bear.
Sure sometimes it makes sense to book direct with a hotel, but many many many times it does not. I sort of get it if you can get Hyatt Globalist status, but otherwise, would much rather have AA or MR points versus any hotel currency.
It’s about time they became regulated!
It sucks but what program hasn't devalued? Another reminder to not hoard points. They only get less valuable.
While devaluations are unfortunate, I don't consider this to be that outlandish as in these examples Hilton points are still worth around half a cent per point. That is a sustainable redemption rate for both consumer and Hilton, especially given the ease of earning points through credit cards. I'll continue redeeming ~50,000 points for Hampton inns.
Was the previous pricing 3 months ago not sustainable? Have the prices increased by 60% in 3 months?
I mean, these point currencies have an inherent value because of the ability to sometimes get outsized value on redemptions. If 0.5cpp is now an approximate "ceiling" for the Hilton program, then it doesn't make much sense for people to earn/use Hilton points anymore unless Hilton points become much, much easier to acquire.
I can now get "much more hotel" (i.e. more nights, or nicer properties, or more $ saved, whatever metric you want to...
I mean, these point currencies have an inherent value because of the ability to sometimes get outsized value on redemptions. If 0.5cpp is now an approximate "ceiling" for the Hilton program, then it doesn't make much sense for people to earn/use Hilton points anymore unless Hilton points become much, much easier to acquire.
I can now get "much more hotel" (i.e. more nights, or nicer properties, or more $ saved, whatever metric you want to use) with a given amount of credit card spend or sign-up-bonuses outside of the Hilton program than I can within it.
For example, 1 Chase CC signup-bonus probably gets me sufficient points to have 3-4 nights at a Hyatt that might otherwise go for $1000-2000 per night. Conversely, getting a Hilton CC signup-bonus is now only enough for 1 night (or possibly not even) at a similarly-priced Hilton hotel.
Someone needs to match DL's 500K award energy, after all.
Even more bullish for CSR. Can book at 2cpp in luxury options via the Edit. Great for free agents
Quitting the points system. There's no advantage to be had. These programs are essentially data mining operations that provide little benefit and I've just as much a chance of a room upgrade without them as with them.
Thanks you Hilton. Sincerely, World of Hyatt.
bullish on hilton stock - value creation for shareholders
Hard to justify keeping my aspires with the direction the program is going.
Just when I thought my go-to, podunk roadside Hampton I frequent increasing 30k to 60k was bad....
Hilton is again showing it wants to be to the hotel loyalty point program world what Delta Air Lines SkyMiles is to the airline loyalty program world. So they kill the value of the points and hope people stay on the hamster wheel for the network footprint + elite status benefits.
I'm out. I was considering open a second Aspire to stack the FNCs but now I'm just going to close my existing Aspire when the AF comes due.
HH is clearly treating loyalty as a one-way street, and I'm not driving on it anymore.
For what it's worth, currently FNCs are unaffected. Possibly even very slightly improved, in the sense that standard availability might be improved because no one has 250k points/night to actually make these redemptions with points.
I fully expect these FNCs to be capped/nerfed in some way soon. But in the meantime, it seems like they're kind of "the only point" of the Hilton program anymore.