Originally Posted by
MarkOK
Good point -- Hilton can be considered at 15 points per $ spent (but, to be fair, it is half that at a couple low-end brands). But look at the redemption -- nicer Hampton Inns (in Dallas TX), for example, require 25,000 points or more whereas there are a number of Hyatt Place/Houses that require 5,000 points. Getting 3X more points doesn't matter when you need 5X more on the redemption side. On the mid tier and high end the redemption doesn't look much better (you usually still need 4-5X more points than the comparable Hyatts).
Of course, you can get 27 Hilton points per dollar by using the Amex Surpass (15 + 12). Hilton points are worth about .6 cpp, so that works out to a rebate of about 16.2%, which is pretty damn good. I have the luxury of planning my leisure trips months in advance and can always get between .8 and .9 cpp internationally (against the best corporate or prepaid rate), making Hilton a much better earning proposition for me. For instance, I have a 10 night stay at the Conrad Koh Samui coming up which cost me 760,000 points. With taxes and service charges added in, I am getting around .8 cpp compared to the recent "Flash Sale" rate for Asia.