Originally Posted by
sch7458
On the positive side:
Doubletree Shanghai Pudong: 40k (before) ; 25k (now)
Conrad Seoul: 60k (before) ; 44k (now)
Conrad Tokyo: 80k (before) ; 59k (now)
Palmer House Chicago: 50k (before); 23k (now)
Hilton Mauritius: 50k (before); 41k (now)
This is not too bad, actually. It's rather a rate adjustment which is much closer to actual daily price than a mere devaluation. The downside is it's getting more difficult to get a point worth more than 0.6 cent $, but on the bright side a point won't be less than 0.5 cent $ worth.
When redeemed Hilton points are fundamentally worth no more than a fixed cash amount per point, the point of collecting the Hilton points -- at least via partner activity or where partner point alternatives are relatively more valuable -- gets undermined and a replacement option makes more sense than would otherwise be the case.
If Hilton wants Hilton Honors to be nothing more than a form of restricted cash back, many of its customers would be better off going for something less restricted in its value -- something like actual cash back. Are we there yet? Not so sure.