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.
Preferred Hotels has released a huge amount of award space for its properties. In addition, it has resolved the availability issue with its I Prefer rewards program; you can now use your points for stays at a wide range of Preferred Hotels around the world!
The latest development could make Preferred Hotels an even more interesting option, especially for those who prefer more upscale boutique properties. Here's what to know about these program enhancements — and a preview of the award rates we're seeing for (nearly) free nights.
Page Contents
How To Book Preferred Hotels Award Nights
Booking awards with Preferred Hotels is surprisingly easy. All you need to do is go to the Preferred Hotels website and follow some easy steps. You can then search for the location and dates you want to stay.
In this instance, we looked for a stay in Miami in February. The site defaults to a return results page showing cash prices and availability for your dates.
At this point, you need to use the drop-down menu and select use points. This will show you the available properties you can book with points during your selected dates.
Interestingly, once you select a property, it defaults back to the cash pricing for that property, and you have to select use points again.
At this point, the award booking calendar will pop up so you can confirm your desired date. In this instance, the hotel required a minimum three-night stay, which we chose and hit continue.
If you have not already logged into your I Prefer account, you will be prompted to do so. Then, you will be able to see the entire cost of your stay, including taxes and fees. You will also be notified whether you have enough points in your account to complete the booking.
Should You Book Preferred Hotels With Points?
If you can transfer Citi ThankYou® Points to Preferred Hotels and redeem them, you have room to leverage your points for some astonishing value. Consider that you can transfer Citi points to Preferred Hotels at a fantastic ratio of 1:4.
In the above example, a three-night stay would cost 150,000 points plus approximately $127 in taxes and fees. That works out to a mere 37,500 Citi ThankYou points. If you opted to pay cash, the same three nights would cost you about $1689. Deducting the award taxes and fees component, you essentially exchange 37,500 Cit points for $1561 of value.
That works out at a stellar 4.16¢ per point, which is one of the best returns you will ever get for Citi ThankYou points. Consider that, on average, AwardWallet members have been able to leverage their Citi points for an average value of 2.17¢ per point. Transferring them to Preferred Hotels will let you redeem your points to nearly double their average value.
Snapshot of Preferred Hotels Award Availability Worldwide
For a long time, one of the major drawbacks of the Preferred Hotels program was the lack of award availability. However, this seems to be a thing of the past. We looked across multiple destinations and found plenty of availability worldwide. Aside from Miami, there are plenty of awards in New York.
Heading across the country, Los Angeles is also bountiful, with many rooms available.
Internationally, things also look good. Heading across the Atlantic, London has a ton of award space.
Not to be outdone, Paris is also generous, with lots of awards available.
Heading further afield across the Pacific, Tokyo also has lots of award space.
Our Take
This latest development is excellent news and makes Preferred Hotel an even more appealing option — particularly if you are looking for a unique high-end stay in a major destination. This additional award availability also means you can leverage your Citi points for excellent value.
If Preferred Hotels keeps up this level of availability and pricing, it might just become a go-to program for many Citi ThankYou points collectors!
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.