Embassy.

Just wondering which would be the better deal.

thebobmc

The answer to this question will vary with the circumstances of the individual. To me it is largely a question of how many points do you have vs. how much cash do you have to spend.

For my purposes I usually calculate the value of the hotel points by converting them to flyer miles. 8,000 Choice points should equal 1,600 miles in most FF programs. If we value flyer miles at 2 - 3 cents per mile than the points are worth $ 32 - 48. So it would appear to be a good value to use those points and save $ 96. And I have done this in the past.

You also have to factor in what earnings potential you have lost by using points for a stay. For instance if the $ 96 cost of a night gets you your 2nd stay in the current stay 2 = 8000 point promo you may be better off in the long run to pay for this stay and have more points to use later.

I am sure others have a different decision making process.

onthego15

For me, that's a no-brainer. 8000 points is a great redemption value.

iggyray

I'd say 8k

Yul_voyager

As a rule of thumb I generally use points when amount $$ x 100 > amount points.
So in this case, I'll pay 8k.
Only exception is if you don't have lots of points and plan to go in a area with very good redemption values (Europe, Scandinavia...), or if you want do grab promo point (like 8k for 2 stays).

lougord99

For me, the equation is different. When I travel for pleasure, ( I rarely travel out of the country ) Choice just doesn't cut it as far as quality goes. I am quite happy staying 2 for business and getting the $50 gas card - so certainly I would take $96. The business comforts stays are tax deductable and the gas is post tax - making it even better.

RogerD408

And don't forget the other variabe: time. If the points are due to expire this year - BURN THEM!

djp98374

If you are talking staying a night for 8000 pts or paying $96 (not sure if that includes taxes)...i would stay for 8,000 pts

I dont recall what the point purchase rate is but i think its around $10-$12 per 1000 points.

If you are talking about buying points...it depends on what you are planning on using the points for. You are buying these points to plan on staying a night at a hotel...how much is the hotel you are staying at.

For choice hotels I generally wouldnt do such a purchase unless the price of the hotel is $200/night (some do exist).

For best western i saw a cut rate points deal where it cost me something like $60 for 10K in points which I then could use with my current points for a night at a hotel that would have been $150+/night

coachrowsey

Same here.

poptarts

I would pay $96 and save the points for Paris. You can stay for as little as 8,000 points a night in Paris.

yuel

Very true and agree, but remember, you can buy 32K points from daily deals in april for about $130-140ish, so I have been valuing 8K at $35, so I have used 40K for 5 days in central Rome last spring, rooms were pricing $300+ a night, Tokyo for 8K a night pricing at $150 a night.
But for $96 a night, I would use the 8K

mjh5o

Like others have said it depends substantially on your travel patterns. I live in Europe and am able to take advantage of some fantastic deals, regularly in the range 2-4 cents per point. As an example, Next weekend I have a room booked in Switzerland for 10,000 pts that is selling for $350 USD/night

sdsearch

Except that (1) you may or may not be able to do that (it's very limited and a big time race to be one of the first N people at just the right minute, and if your web connection slows down at the wrong second, poof!), and (2) it's not repeatable much (ie, if you want 320K points, say because you want to go to Scandinavia for 3 weeks, you are unlikely to be able to buy that many at the same rate).

So I'm not sure if Daily Deals pricing is a reasonable basis on which to value all points.

ssforcey

What is/are "Daily Deals"? I'm interested!!

lougord99

http://www.ustravel.org/sites/defaul...ways_2012.html