My last stay was in Nov-2010, and I don't intend to have mroe stays coming up this year due to me taking up a non-travel job.

I looked up Choice website and it said points expire on Dec-31 after 2 yrs when they were earned, but then somewhere it was also mentioned that Choice has the right to cancel my membership after 18 months of inactivity.

I'd welcome feedback/experiences from the forum members regarding this.

Many questions on my mind:
Does a reward stay constitute an activity, which means 18 month period restarts?

Do the points expire after 2 yrs regardless of the stay activity?

Any creative ways to keep Choice points alive (like airline miles) or do they expire regardless, and only thing one can do is redeem them within the 2 yrs?

Thanks in advance.

You have it right - Dec 31 of the second year after you earn the points.

So, your November 2010 points will expire on Dec 31, 2012. Any points you might earn this year will expire Dec 31, 2013.

I've never heard of anyone being cancelled (and points forfeited) after 18 months. And, yes, redemption qualifies as activity, but it still won't change the expiration date.

I'd also love to hear about ways to extend the expiration date. One dodge that has been reported is to make an award reservation and then cancel it. The points will be put back in your account, but with a new exp date. I think that loophole has been closed.

If the date is approaching and you've got points left over, might as well take a free night somewhere or convert them to airline miles, or get a gas card or something, 'cuz they're goin' away.

Yes, this has been closed.

However, points that are about to expire can be transferred to airlines or gift cards. Although not the most cost effective, but better than letting them expire.

Thanks all for the responses.

I'll make sure to redeem before Dec 2012...however I'm just a bit concerned about the clause of Choice "MAYBE" canceling membership after 18 months of inactivity...which means to be doubly sure I use them before June 2012.

Any experiences if anyone has been dinged for 18 months of inactivity?

I've not had any experiences with being dinged for 18 months of inactivity. If you are concerned, you can always buy 1,000 points for $11 USD. I'd guess (but am not sure) that would qualify as activity.

This is the thing I don't like about Choice. I do stay with them at least a couple of times a year when I travel to smaller towns in Kansas and Ohio that don't have many options. Then I will stay with them sometimes in bigger cities because of price. I have been thinking of getting the credit card, but I'm not sure I want to invest that much into the program when you can't stop the points from expiring. I usually am able to redeem at least one free night a year, so I haven't had any points expire, but if I don't get to use them, I don't want to lose them.

I would shift more to Priority Club, but in some cases I can get a decent Choice hotel for $70-$80ish and the cheapest Holiday Inn will be over $100 and I really don't like to go over $100 a night for a hotel if at all possible.

Well, at least Choice is able to tell you clearly, and years ahead of time, how many of your points are set to expire when. Just log into your account and view your pop-up "statement", and it tells you right htere this many points expire this year, this many points expire next year, etc.

It could be a lot worse. WyndhamRewards (Super 8, Days Inn, Baymont, etc) expires points 4 years after they're earned, on a continuing rolling basis (not just once per year as at Choice), but unlike Choice provides zero information on the website about how many of your points are set to expire when. The points can just start disappearing bit by bit! Isn't that much worse?

best non stay use?

Probably airline redemptions, if you already collect with an airline where you will find the extra miles valueable.

Airline and hotel rewards are typically higher value than anything else because they're "excess capacity" awards. Gift cards, gas cards, and such tend to be all the same lower value, because the points are simply turned into money which Choice (or their parner) uses to buy the gift cards / gas cards at the same rate you'd buy them at a store. Thus once you get past hotel and airline redemptions, all the other redemptions tend to be exactly the same value, so then it just boils down to which ones you can actually use.

Not sure there's anything to invest other than the credit inquiry. The card has no annual fee, gives you an extra 5 points per dollar spent on bookings at Choice hotels, and awards Gold status, earning you an extra 10% on points and extending your booking window on points from 30 to 50 days, thus making it easier for you to use the points you have accumulated. That's not as much of a window as Diamond, which affords 100 days, but every little bit helps in trying to make bookings.

The bigger bonus offer of 40K for this card disappeared earlier this week, and the Choice website is now showing only a 16K offer. However, this offer page still seems to work to get 32K (click on the Terms and Conditions link and then scroll to the bottom for the "Bonus Points" section): https://www.barclaycardus.com/app/japply/WebAppGate.jsp.

I ended up applying last weekend and got approved under the 40k. I did it the same day as applying for the Southwest 50k personal and 50k biz, so figured I might as well get another app in. I've never had a Barclay card before, and like you said with the no annual fee, decided to go ahead.

Now just hope the card gets here soon so I can use it for my Thanksgiving travel!

Good deal. I used the 32K link when 24K was the best offer and didn't try to "bump" my bonus when the 40K offer came out. BTW, if you're an elite with another chain, don't expect much other than what I described in my earlier post regarding the Gold status the card gives you; unlike SPG, where I've generally been greeted and thanked as Gold at check in and given some decent perks, I've never, ever been greeted as a Gold member by Choice staff.

I don't think the acknowledgment is terribly important, but just wanted to prepare you for what's likely not to come.