Purchase Starwood points (Starpoints) at 20% discount (15 Oct to 30 Nov 2012)

dealswelike · Oct 16, 12, 6:14 am

Between October 15 and November 30, 2012 you can purchase starwood points at a 20% discount. This means 1,000 points will cost you $28 instead of $35.

You can purchase points in increments of 500 and up to 20,000 per calendar year. Points can take up to 24 hours to deposit into your account and you must have your SPG account activated for at least 14 days.

Remember though, when you use points, you will not earn points on your stay or any bonus points if there is a promotion. You will, however, earn stay/nights credit, which is great!

You can purchase points here.

dcstudent · Oct 16, 12, 6:46 am

This is probably a stupid question, but can one only buy/be gifted 20,000 points total a year, or can one be gifted 20,000 points a year and still buy 20,000 points.

The reason why I ask is that my parents bought 4,000 points for me as a gift. So can I still purchase 20,000 for myself, or only 16,000?

Thanks!

sfozrhfco · Oct 16, 12, 7:14 am

It is only 20,000 purchased points per account per year--whether you buy the points yourself or somebody buys them for you doesn't matter.

bgp2587 · Oct 16, 12, 9:27 am

Can points gurus confirm if this is worth it? Have about 100k *points, and would consider getting 20k more if the value is there.

jerry305 · Oct 16, 12, 9:44 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by bgp2587

Can points gurus confirm if this is worth it? Have about 100k *points, and would consider getting 20k more if the value is there.

You have to decide for yourself what a Starpoint is worth. Find a reservation for a room you'd book; compare the cash rate vs. the point rate. Repeat several times.

bgp2587 · Oct 16, 12, 11:12 am

Fair enough. Sounds like a good plan to me.

dealswelike · Oct 16, 12, 11:40 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by bgp2587

Can points gurus confirm if this is worth it? Have about 100k *points, and would consider getting 20k more if the value is there.

There is definitely value, but it really depends on how/where you redeem your points. For example, the Le Meridien Dead Sea costs about $250/night, but only requires 2,000 points/night on the weekend or 3,000 points/night during the weekday. With purchasing the points you can get a free night for $56 or $87/night.

gunners · Oct 16, 12, 12:57 pm

Quick Question - If I buy the points using Starwood amex. Do I get double points for my purchase?

sfozrhfco · Oct 16, 12, 1:25 pm

Nope, only 1 extra point per dollar as with any other non-starwood purchase. They are sold through points.com so it is considered a non-SPG transaction according to AMEX.

MIT_SBM · Oct 31, 12, 4:23 am

Did not see this posted yet ...

Buy Starpoints
Limited time offer - Save 20%
Top off your account for less! Buy Starpoints between October 15 - November 30, 2012 and receive 20% off the regular price.
Need extra Starpoints® for a free night, free flight or room upgrade? Now, you can buy 500 Starpoints for as little as $17.50 USD. Add up to 20,000 Starpoints to your account!

welookgood.com · Dec 12, 12, 6:17 am

Still can't figure out if good deal or not. 20k pts = $560.

Take a Cat 2 Hotel. A 5 night stay would prob be about that so you are getting about equal value. Looking at higher hotel, it's also about same value for pts to $...(Cat 6 W Union Sq, I see it about $400-500 so again breaking even)

With Marriott the 50k pts for $600 you buy can get you a $1000-1200/night hotel at times (and has). And for lower awards you also come out ahead. So there's a clear advantage.

trackypup · Dec 12, 12, 10:57 am

I believe the promo was extended until Dec. 14 (I think) we saved about $250 by buying the points and changing our booking to a cash and points deal. Happy Happy