It was good to find this. My hotel stays are few, and I understand from a sticky thread that on a Points and Money stay I can earn points on the Money part. As a Silver using the no-fee Amex, I understand that a stay at an Embassy Suites should get 39 points per dollar, with the tax part only getting the 7 points for the Amex charge. It makes for an interesting algebraic equation if I want to determine how many points to use, and how many I would earn, if I'd like my account to have certain target balances after the stay.