Over the years, we’ve seen some travel brands (both airlines and hotels) sell travel passes, whereby you can pay a fixed amount upfront, and then travel a certain amount (or even an unlimited amount) during a promotion period. Wyndham Rewards has just launched its version of this. It sounds too good to be true, and in some ways, it is…
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Wyndham Rewards selling 30 hotel nights for $499
Wyndham Rewards is introducing the Ultimate Hotel Pass, whereby Wyndham Rewards members can unlock 30 nights of stays across thousands of hotels and resorts for just $499 plus tax. If you were to actually stay 30 nights, that comes out to under $17 per night, which is a spectacular value, of course.
This offer is valid for Wyndham Rewards members in the United States, and you must stay all nights by September 30, 2024. The person who buys the pass must actually be the one to stay in the rooms, with the only exception being that you can redeem to book a second room at a property you’re staying at, so you can bring friends and family. Taxes and fees are included for stays at most properties.
You can spread out your pass nights across properties however you’d like, though you can’t spend more than 10 nights at any particular property. Those who buy this will get access to a concierge, who can help with making hotel reservations under this offer.
There are only 25 of these passes available
Even if you’re not ordinarily a Wyndham Rewards loyalist, odds are that 30 hotel nights for $499 might interest you. This is where the major catch comes into play — there are only 25 of these passes available, so think of purchasing these passes as being more of a lottery than anything else.
You have until July 4, 2024, to register to express your interest in this pass. Then as of July 8, 2024, Wyndham Rewards will start randomly notifying selected registrants of their chance to purchase a pass. Once someone is notified, they’ll have 48 hours to purchase the pass, or else another person will be given the opportunity.
This is a cute concept, and I like what Wyndham Rewards is going for, though I can’t help but feel like the execution here leaves a bit to be desired. If you’re going to make this what essentially amounts to a lottery, why not just make this a sweepstakes, and give it away to lucky members? After all, the maximum revenue here is under $12,500, which is a drop in the bucket for a company the size of Wyndham Rewards, and a tiny marketing expense.
Furthermore, people will only start to be notified on July 8 whether they have a chance to purchase this pass. For people in many part of the United States, that’s already halfway through the summer holiday for school. Most people realistically can’t travel for 30 days in such a short travel window, especially with a lack of advance notice. Then again, I suspect that’s by design.
I can’t help but wonder if this promotion actually ends up generating goodwill, or just ends up leading to frustration, as a vast majority of people learn about the thing they won’t have the privilege of purchasing.
Bottom line
Wyndham Rewards has launched its Ultimate Hotel Pass promotion, whereby select members can buy 30 nights in Wyndham Rewards properties for just $499. This is of course an amazing value, and comes out to under $17 per night.
The catch is that this is essentially a lottery, as you’ll need to register to express interest, and then as of July 8, people will start to be notified if they’ve been selected for the pass. It could be worth registering for this if you think it could be valuable to you, but don’t expect to be chosen…
What do you make of the Wyndham Rewards Ultimate Travel Pass?
I love this concept instead of a sweepstakes. That forces only people who actually have some skin the game to participate. Otherwise it can be some random person that won't even necessarily use it well.
Despite the limitations, I think it's a good promotion.
I did something similar with a small German chain during CoVid. I discovered a new brand I'd never staid with, probably never would have...
But I can't even register, looks like the website can't handle the volume?
This is a dumb gimmick, although I suppose if they made it a sweepstakes you would get people entering and only using one or two nights, or conversely just booking their local Wyndham and just eating the breakfast or turning tricks in the hotel.
The Olive Garden playbook.
The other catch is that a night in most of wyndhams properties offers about $17 a night in value.
The catch is that you have to actually stay at Wyndham properties to use it ;)
They charge $500 because they want to make sure people will actually use it. If it is free, I will just get it and maybe use it for 2 night weekend vacation
What a stupid promotion. The overwhelming feeling of anyone who looks into it will be disappointment, which is directly transferred to the brand.