You could book a hotel stay on points that is 17,500 or if you can't find a desirable property at that price point many nicer properties have the points + cash rate; for example you may find a property that regularly costs 30,000 points or so offering a rate of 17,500 + $70 or something like that; sure not free but $70 for a nicer hotel like kimpton is still not that bad of a deal. And while I hear your rant about the older credit card free night, I still think most will agree even the new $89 annual fee one is still a good deal! $89 for a free night isn't bad...yeah sure it's not unrestricted, can't use it for $1000 room in Bora Bora, but there are many regular priced $200-$300 hotels out there where the certificate can be used. IMHO paying $89 for a $200-300 room is a good deal, and not to mention the 10% rebate which for me gives back easily 50,000 points each year