AwardWallet receives compensation from advertising partners for links on the blog. The opinions expressed here are our own and have not been reviewed, provided, or approved by any bank advertiser. Here's our complete list of Advertisers.
Update 1/9/2025: Choice Privileges has now implemented a 50-week booking window for award nights. Also, in an email, Choice announced the launch of Choice RewardsSaver and additional premium rooms available for reward nights.
Our original article from November 1, 2024 is as follows.
Choice Hotels announced several changes to its Privileges rewards program, which will take effect in early 2025. These changes include a greatly extended booking window for award nights, more premium room options, and the return of Choice RewardSaver to give a better value on reward nights. Here are all the details.
What’s Changing With Choice Privileges for 2025?
In a recent press release, Choice announced several changes that will go into effect in “early” 2025. These changes are mostly for the better, which is welcome news. In the words of Noha Abdalla, chief marking officer of Choice Hotels International:
“We are committed to continuously making it easier and more rewarding for Choice Privileges' members to earn and redeem their points for stays and experiences around the world. These latest enhancements, coupled with our rapidly growing list of hotel options ranging from luxury and upscale properties and resorts to value-oriented hotels, ensure that members have the opportunities to use their points on what they care about most.”
The announced Choice Privileges changes for 2025 are as follows:
- A 50-week booking window for reward nights. This matches the booking window for paid stays. The current booking window for reward nights is 100 days in advance, so this will be a major improvement.
- More premium rooms available for reward nights. Premium rooms include suites with extra space, a better view, an upgraded room, and more.
- The return of Choice RewardsSavers. This tool allows members to book reward nights for as low as 6,000 points instead of the current minimum of 8,000 points.
The most significant news here is the 50-week window to book reward nights, more than tripling the current booking window. Members often want to make their travel plans more than three months in advance, which hasn't been possible if you wanted to use Choice points. Thankfully, this will change next year.
Choice Privileges members can use their points at over 7,000 hotels across 22 brands worldwide, including over 1,000 luxury properties. The biggest questions are whether premium rooms will require more points than standard rooms and how many premium rooms will be available for reward nights. Currently, members can occasionally book premium rooms with the same number of points as standard rooms.
Our Take
While so many airline and hotel loyalty programs have devalued over the years, it's nice to see Choice Privileges buck the trend and introduce positive changes. Of course, the proof is in the pudding. A 50-week booking window is a solid benefit for all members. On the other hand, we'll have to wait and see exactly what the availability of premium rooms will be next year and whether they'll require more points.
Furthermore, while RewardsSavers will offer lower redemption rates for some properties, we don't know if the upper threshold will also increase or how many hotels will offer reward nights for only 6,000 points. Currently, Choice doesn't use a standard award chart or dynamic pricing. Instead, prices are set by hotel, date ranges, and weekday or weekend nights.
Ultimately, some things are wait-and-see, but there's a lot to potentially be excited about here.
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.