2024’s Best Hotel Rewards Programs: Insights and Savings

As the summer travel season kicks into high gear, travelers are keen to find ways to make their trips more cost-effective and enjoyable. One often-overlooked strategy is leveraging hotel loyalty programs. WalletHub's recent study, 2024’s Best Hotel Rewards Programs, set to be released today, sheds light on the best hotel rewards programs of 2024, revealing substantial savings and benefits for savvy travelers.

Photo byPhoto by Mikhail Nilov

The World of Hyatt program emerges as the top hotel loyalty program for 2024, achieving an impressive WalletHub Rating of 72 out of 100. This program stands out for its robust benefits and significant savings opportunities, making it a favorite among frequent travelers.

Significant Savings: The top five hotel rewards programs offer members notable savings, averaging around 10%. In some cases, members can save up to 15% at select hotels. These discounts make joining a loyalty program a straightforward way to reduce travel costs.

Flexibility in Redeeming Award Nights: Six of the top nine hotel rewards programs allow members to redeem points for award nights at all their brands and properties. Notably, Marriott Bonvoy, Choice Privileges, and IHG One Rewards are exceptions to this flexibility. The ability to use points across various properties significantly enhances the value and usability of these loyalty programs.

Rare Non-Expiring Rewards: Best Western distinguishes itself as the only major hotel chain whose points do not expire due to account inactivity. This feature provides peace of mind to travelers, ensuring that their earned rewards remain available whenever they choose to use them.

Best Hotel Credit Card: WalletHub’s editors have named the World of Hyatt Credit Card as the best hotel credit card for 2024. This card can save the average person about $4,778 over two years, making it a powerful tool for maximizing savings when combined with the World of Hyatt loyalty program.

John Kiernan, WalletHub Editor, emphasizes the importance of hotel loyalty programs for summer travel savings.

“When people look for ways to save on summer travel, taking advantage of hotel loyalty programs usually isn’t at the top of the list, but maybe it should be,” Kiernan states. “Hotel rewards programs are free to join, and WalletHub’s latest research shows that the five best programs save members an average of 10% on their hotel spending. Members can get discounted room rates and earn free nights over time, just to name a couple of perks. If you pair membership in one of the best hotel loyalty programs with one of the best hotel rewards credit cards, you can really take your savings to the next level. For example, you could get a few free nights just as a signup bonus, then earn thousands more in savings over the next couple of years. Fortunately for travelers this summer, the best loyalty program and the best credit card are affiliated with the same hotel chain: Hyatt.”