Choice fall promotion: Park & Fly question
 

I don't know that it's my place to announce the Choice fall promotion, but there is one where they give 8000 points for every two stays between Sept. 1 and Nov. 30; details are on the Choice Hotels site.

My question is: I'm planning to make my first stay on this on my arrival at Kansas City airport at 11 p.m. after a trip to Europe. The Sleep Inn is the lowest-price Choice hotel there, but the Comfort Inn in Platte City has a Park & Fly offer that looks like a good deal if I do that rather than my usual parking. So if I park the car at the start of the trip before Sept. 1 but the only night I stay there is after 9/1, do I risk having my credit card charged when I first get there and the stay counting as pre-9/1? I'm not that sure that I'd get a reliable answer even if I call the hotel directly. Even if I pay full rate, it's a good deal with the parking, but it would be nice to get the SSO or other discounted rate. I suppose a call to the hotel would get me a good answer as to what rates can use the Park & Fly.

Oh dear.

I just finished the Summer promo, and now it's time for the Fall promo already?

Here's the scoop:

The free night is based on an 8,000 point Choice Privileges reward night. A free night may require more points at certain hotels. Choice Privileges number must be provided upon check-in for the stay to be eligible. Members earn points for stays when paying eligible rates at participating Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites or Suburban Extended Stay hotels. A stay is defined as any number of consecutive nights at one hotel regardless of check-ins or check-outs. Bonus points will be added to points earned from every two qualifying stays, with arrival between September 1 and November 30, 2007, to reach the 8,000 point reward level. Allow 72 hours from check-out for points to post to your account. You must maintain a U.S. address (including U.S. territories) or Canadian address to be eligible for this promotion.

Unlike the last 2/8000 promo, this one is 8000 points in addition to what you'd normally get. In my case, that's 10 points/$ plus to 40% Diamond bonus, and of course the Choice Visa points.

Well, I'm back at Marriott trying to maintain platinum status, so we'll see how the schedule goes.

I don't see it as 8000 points in addition; it's enough bonus points to reach 8000. So, can no one assure me that a Park & Fly that starts before 9/1 with the hotel stay after 9/1 will count as being during the promotional period?

One can indeed interpret it either way. I have contacted Choice to get the official answer.

Regarding the Park&Fly rate, I have no information one way or the other. Choice has traditionally allowed just about any rate avaiable on the website to count, but special, hotel-unique rates often do not.

Your best bet is to:

1. Call the hotel and ask them, and get the rate code (typically 3-4 letters)
2. Call Choice and ask them if that rate will qualify.

I doubt if many foks here (if any) have been in this particular situation before.

Edit: Upon re-reading your question, it's pretty clear that in order to count, stays must start on or after Sept. 1

Did you happen to ask them if there was a max amount of points that could be collected? It seems that most times Choice does not put a limit on the number of times you can collect on a promo, but you never can tell when things will change.

Yikes! By calling and asking that question, one would just be calling their attention to the fact that people are collecting multiple times, and making the day when things change come all that sooner.

Since points and bonuses post so quickly, it will quickly become apparent if one were to reach any cap that Choice put in place. In the meantime, why not just collect and be happy?

I came in just shy (I guess) of BigLar, collecting the Choice summer bonus a total of 11 times and going from Silver to Diamond. But even though I think Choice benefited, too, because I switched a lot of my business from Fairfield Inn, I wouldn't go out of my way to call Choice's attention to how many times I earned the bonus.

I really don't think it is a stretch to think that Choice can look at an account during a promo and see that a person who has hopped every night between 2 hotels that are 10 miles apart is doing it strictly for the promo bonus, especially when collecting 5 or 10 or 15 of the promo bonuses.

I have to think it is a business decision they have made, that a certain amount of people will play the bonus to the hilt, but at the same time will give more nights to Choice rather then going to Fairfield (in your case) or to Springhill and Marriott (in my case).

Here's the official answer:

They are just adding enough points to what points you earn on your two stays. So points from the first stay plus the points earned on the second stay, plus the bonus points will equal 8000 points total.

So, it's just like the one they ran last year.

It's not bad, it's just that we were spoiled with the recent promo. :)

Well, that is hardly worth the pain of bouncing every night, especially if you are in an expensive place, which I am. I might still do it, just because some of the Choice hotels are close to where I need. But I am not sure I will change every night. Then again, if I get points hungry.....

Yeah. I've switched back to my local Fairfield Inn 'cuz I've got about 25 nights or so to do by the end of the year to keep my plat status. However, that still leaves a few opportunities to pick up some bonus points here and there.

I'm going to need a lot of miles for our upcoming reunion, so the more points the merrier. It's a lousy exchange rate (actually no worse than anyone else), but when you've got a pot load of points ...

I thought you had given up on Marriott a while ago?

I am actually doing the same thing, making a big push to get my 75 nights in at Marriott. I think I can do it by staying at Choice during the week (2 hotels, change every night) and then go to a Marriott product on Fri/Sat/Sun. I can expand my range since there is no daily commute involved, which means I can look towards the beach. The things we go through just for points.

I don't think this would be too hard for them to figure out on their own.

First bonuses posted:

1. As advertised, you get a total of 8000 points for the two stays, no matter what you paid for the stays.

2. Any elite bonus (e.g., the 40% Diamond bonus) is in addition to 8000 points.

Point 1 seems to really encourage hotel-hopping. The more nights you spend on any given stay, the less the bonus is worth.

OTOH, they ran two of these promos last year, and I thought they were gooder than sex. I really racked up a pile, only to be eclipsed by the recent 3/16K promo. So, I'm gonna work this one, too. After all, the odd 100K points here and there is bound to come in handy for something, right? :)

This HH member needs some help with the Choice program.

The promo fine print says "eligible rates" at participating hotels. What exactly are eligible rates? or maybe an easier question would be, which rates are excluded?

Just about any rate is eligible. The only exclusions I've ever run into are those rates where you negotiate a special deal with a particular hotel. In general, if you can book it on the website, it's an eligible rate.