Earn Rewards 10 Times Quicker at B&Bs Than Top Hotel Chains
There’s a better way for guests to earn rewards and free nights than trying to earn points at hotel chains. Make a few phone calls and here are the kind of numbers you can expect:
10 Times Faster Rewards than Marriott
Picking up the phone, we called Marriott Rewards with a standard request to earn a free stay. We asked about booking a $209-per-night room at the Marriott Suites, which would get us a total of 627 points per night. In order to compile enough points to get a free night at their lowest level, we would need 7,500 points. That means we would have to spend $2,500, staying about 11.9 nights in order to get that free night reward.
Compare this to earning a free-night stay at bed and breakfasts across the country. And while we’re at it let’s look at a few other additional values. A good bed and breakfast is tough to beat when it comes down to uniqueness, the bang for your buck, and guest pampering. And if you are interested in stretching that travel dollar more, here are a couple things to consider:
Right now you can get a free night at any one of 1,560 bed and breakfast inns when you purchase the first night at the regular rate. Why do the do this? Simple. B&Bs and country inns are smaller than your average hotel and they have smaller advertising spends. By offer a free night during certain times of the year, they can incent guests and earn additional exposure for their property.
The website iLoveinns.com offers this Buy-One-Night-Get-The-Second-Night-Free program. The typical amount a traveler can save is $140, but the savings can be much more. Compare this to the nearly 12 nights you have to purchase at a Marriott in order to get your free night or even their lesser promotions like a $25 coupon for gas.
The amount you save, of course, varies depending on the property and room you choose in the free night program. You can save up to $650 and it’s an immediate savings, not something you have to wait for weeks or months to earn.
Second, when you factor in food, the cost of your vacation is further reduced because typically your bed and breakfast room rate includes breakfast as the name indicates. In addition many innkeepers also provide assorted snacks/drinks and business services, such as sending a fax or printing an important document.
Memories and Dollars: More From A Bed and Breakfast Stay
Understanding that you can stretch your dollar further at a bed and breakfast, let’s look at a California bed and breakfast, this Craftsman-style B&B in the heart of Monterey Peninsula — the Inn at Seventeen Mile Drive.
With redwoods surrounding the cottage and chalet rooms, the Inn at Seventeen Mile Drive offers a tough-to-beat setting. The two-story bed and breakfast offers views of the sea or garden. Guest can enjoy the spa underneath the tall trees and set in the gardens frequented by deer or take some champagne near the fountain ponds and the Koi. Using the free-night stay, travelers can save from $145-$290 at this magnificent property.
Hard to beat an excellent experience and an excellent value. When you’re trying to decide how to find that next free-night perk, take a look at a property like that California bed and breakfast. The B&B free-night program is a superb travel value.
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