How does the Citi Prestige 4th night free benefit work?

The most reliable ways to get free hotel rooms are to use a credit card with hotel rewards, and to join hotels’ free loyalty programs. Plus, you can always ask a hotel to match a better price you’ve found, and checking in late can sometimes lead to free upgrades since the hotel will have a better sense of which rooms won’t be needed. But for fully comped stays, credit cards and loyalty programs are your best bet.… read full answer

With credit cards, there are two paths you can take. If you’re not particularly loyal to any one hotel chain and value flexibility, just get a travel rewards credit card whose points or miles can be redeemed for stays at any hotel. For instance, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card let you book hotels using rewards on their travel portals.

But if you tend to favor one hotel chain over others, the most efficient way to get free nights is with a co-branded hotel card. You’ll earn the most rewards at the hotel chain in question, redeemable for free nights. And if you join the hotel’s loyalty program, you’ll usually get an extra point or two per dollar spent, on top of what the card gives you.

Here are the best cards to get free hotel rooms:

• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: 100,000 miles for spending $20,000 within the first 12 months or 50,000 miles for spending $3,000 within 3 months of account opening. 2x miles everywhere. Miles can be redeemed for travel statement credits, which includes hotel stays. $95 annual fee.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®: 100,000 miles for spending $4,000 in the first 3 months. $300 annual statement credit for travel purchases, again including hotel reservations. 3 points per $1 on travel and dining (1 point per $1 on all other purchases). Redeem for hotels on Chase’s travel portal, at 1.5 cents per point. $550 annual fee.
• IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card: 1 free night every account anniversary and when redeeming points for 4+ nights. 125,000 points for spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. Up to 25 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel, 2 on gas stations and groceries, 1 everywhere else. Redeem for free nights. Annual fee: $89 that.
• Hilton Honors American Express Card: 80,000 points for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. Up to 7 points per $1 at Hilton Honors hotel or resort, 5 Hilton points at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations, and 3 points everywhere else. Redeem points for free nights. $0 annual fee.

The easiest way to get free hotel rooms is to get a credit card that rewards you with them. That’s because you’ll be earning free stays with every purchase you make, not just on reservations. But you can also earn free nights by joining a hotel’s loyalty program. Every time you book a stay, you’ll earn points that you can redeem for free nights. Similarly, Hotels.com has its own loyalty program. Members get 1 free night for every 10 stays they book on the website.

You can use a Marriott free night certificate to pay for a stay at any category 1-6 Marriott property by logging in to your Marriott Rewards account and checking the "Use Points / certificates" box before conducting your search. Once you select your hotel and desired room, you’ll be given the option to select any available free night award certificate(s). Watch out, though. You only have 12 months to use a Marriott free night certificate before it expires.… read full answer

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card users receive one of these reward certificates (valued up to 35,000 and 50,000, respectively) every account anniversary. Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card users also receive a free night award certificate (valued up to 50,000 points) every account anniversary, plus an additional one for spending $60K in purchases in a calendar year. You may also get a Marriott free night certificate if you spend points to purchase one. Once you have the certificate in hand, though, you’ll need to know the steps for redeeming it.

Here’s how to use a Marriott free night certificate:

1. Log into your Marriott Rewards account.
2. Fill out your destination, select your travel dates and the number of rooms and guests
3. Check the “Use Points/Certificates” box if it’s not automatically selected
4. Click “Find Hotels”
5. Select your desired hotel by clicking “View Rates” beside it
6. Select your desired room
7. Under “Review Reservation Details” you will be given the option to select any available free night certificate(s)
8. Review your reservation details and click “Book Now” to confirm your reservation

Your rewards certificate will now be applied to your booking and you’ll get to enjoy a free night. The process should go smoothly, as long as you remember to redeem within 12 months of your certificate being issued. There are no blackout dates for Marriott free night certificates, for example. But if a problem occurs during your booking, you can always call Marriott Credit Card customer service for help. The number is (302) 594-8200 for Marriott credit cards issued by Chase and (336) 393-1111 for cards issued by American Express.

There were some Citi Prestige® Card changes that happened recently; after being discontinued in August 2018, the Citi Prestige® Card returned with a new offer in January 2019. The biggest Citi Prestige® Card change that resulted was the card’s bonus rewards rate of 3 points per $1 on airline, hotel and travel agency purchases going to 5 points per $1 on dining and air travel. The old Citi Prestige® Card’s earning rate of 2 points per $1 on restaurant and entertainment purchases also changed to 3 points per $1 on cruise line and hotel purchases with the new version. And the Citi Prestige® Card’s $250 air travel credit changed to a $250 general travel credit. All changes were automatically applied to existing cardholders.… read full answer

Other Citi Prestige® Card changes include a cell phone protection plan, which went into effect on May 1, 2019. The plan will cover your cell phone for damage and theft when you charge your phone bill to this card, for up to $1,500 per year.

More changes followed on September 1, 2019. And they were not positive. ThankYou points redeemed for air travel decreased in value from 1.25 cents to 1 cent when redeemed through Citi’s travel portal. Also, the popular 4th Free Night benefit has been capped to twice a year. And the annual fee jumped from $450 to $495. The fee for authorized users increased from $50 to $75, too.