The kids, for them. But that means the adult(s) have to pay up for an additional room at much, much higher point levels or in cash. Gives new meaning to cash+points redemptions.

Either way, way more expensive vacations come and that comes with reduced vacation opportunities for those hit by this.

That is an understatement.

I'm not seeing this. For a stay in June at Conrad Bali, I can get a Deluxe Resort King or a Deluxe Garden King for 29,750 points per night for a four night stay.

I'm having a hard time understanding the consequences of the devaluation and after I had read most of the zillion posts about it, I gained the impression that I'm not the only one without a clue. So I thought, maybe one could start a thread with open questions about this Black Friday Feast, it being Friday today ... My first questions are:

1. Do you have to stay or to book before March 28th for the old point rates to still be valid?

There seems to be some confusion about this in the posts. Some people think booking now for December 2013 will mean that they can have their rooms at the point redemption rates valid now, while most say that you have to book and *stay* before March 28th. I read the FAQ on the Hilton page, but I couldn't make head or tail of it concerning that issue. This may be due to the fact that I'm German and, unfortunately, English is not my native language.

2. Was or is there a deadline for them hhonoring bookings at the old redemption rate?

E. g., if I booked in December 2012 for August 2013, will it cost me the points it said in my original booking or will it cost me points according to the new schedule? Or better: If I booked next week, what will happen then? Btw.: I did not receive an email from HHonors informing me about this, so if I had not read it here, I wouldn't know. I'd be booking as an innocent, now.

3. What happens if I book now for after March 28th, am charged the point redemption rates valid now and I don't have the differential amount when I arrive?

Let's say, tomorrow I'll book 9 nights at the Conrad Hong Kong for 337,500 points (using GLON) in April, and when I arrive, they are telling me that I'd need 640.000 points (9*80,000 points minus the "free" fifth night) and I don't have the remaining 302,500 points in my account? Will I have to pay part of my stay in cash? And if so, which nights? Could I choose the cheaper weekends? Would they just charge me the, let's say, Beast ... Available Rate for the last nights?

4. What happens to Points and Money?

Will it be completely gone? Will they leave it as it is? Could be the best option, then. Have they announced anything about that yet?

Maybe you can think of other cases and scenarios like these, maybe I misunderstood the whole thing. So I'd be glad if you'd put your questions here, extending the catalogue of opaque issues. Maybe there's even someone who knows the answers and has some proof of it.

You will be honored for the redemption rate today for any bookings you make today. They can't ask you for more points. I wouldn't over think this

I thought it was pretty clear. Whatever reservations you make before March 28, even if the stay is after that date, are redeemed at the current rate, unless you make changes to the res after March 28, at which time the new rates apply. That's the way it was the previous devaluation as well.

To be more specific:
You have to book before March 28. When you stay is immaterial - the award at the old rate will be honored.No. If you booked it, that rate at booking will be the rate honored. Even if (as some here have posted) you get an award over a year from now, it would still be honored at the rate at the time of booking, since that was when the points were deducted from your account. I suppose that's similar to a contract.Nothing. As above, the rate you booked at is the rate that will be honored. You will not be charged the difference between the then-current redemption rate and the rate at which you booked.Alas, we don't have definitive answers for that question, nor the issue of AXON and GLON awards, either. Best guess:

AXON will be modified, possibly eliminated
GLON (and other VIP awards) will be minimized or eliminated
Points & Cash will probably stay around. There is another thread on this at the moment.

As always, even though I am a native English speaker , I still might have misunderstood some things. Feel free to correct me.

1. Book by March 27 2013, complete your stay by March 27 2014. Any changes after March 27 2013 result in your booking being repriced at the new rates. Stays booked for beyond March 27 2014 (or more than a year in advance) are a bit of a grey area at the moment.
2. See 1. The points cost of a booking does not change after it's made, unless you ask to amend the booking.
3. Not applicable.
4. Points And Money will probably stay, but they haven't said for sure yet. VIP awards (4 nights or more for a reduced cost when booked by an elite member, which some people still refer to as GLON or Going Global awards despite the term being long obsolete) are almost certainly dead, replaced by the 5th Night Free benefit. AXON awards (4 nights at a further reduced cost for holders of particular US American Express cards) are almost certainly dead.

Thank you Danny Darko. I was overwhelmed by all the threads started which only contributed to confusion, but I speak here for myself. ONE single thread is always more helpful. Thank you t BigLar and stifle for your accentuated clarifications.

Hotels in Asia are showing the new rate.

a sad day...

Glad I wiped out all my HHonors Points. Now HHonors Pesos.

Looks like it will be a Marriott world for me.

Sucks I have to pay for breakfast.

It was a good run Hilton........ but you've left me no choice.

I was just noticing this as I was trying to find a place to burn my points. Oh well...

it changed while i was booking
If i use points+cash for the hotel, do I still earn the points for the cash i paid?

Yea, my reservation for Maldives is now showing both point values under it. Yikes!