Choice Privileges offering more college gameday experiences

Choice Privileges has offered a number of packages in recent months where you can redeem points for college gameday experiences. There’s a new batch out today which I can imagine will once again sell out fairly quickly. The picks of the bunch appear to be the Ohio State vs Penn State and Rutgers vs Wisconsin basketball games next month as there’s some great value to be had there.

With Citi points transferring to Choice on a 1:2 basis, some of these packages could be a good way of cashing out those points if you’d also value the sports experiences.

The Deal

• Redeem Choice Privileges points for college gameday experiences.
• Direct link to offer.

Key Terms

• All experiences are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
• Experiences are only available to members of the Choice Privileges Rewards Program who have the required number of Choice Privileges points in their account.
• Once redeemed the member will receive a confirmation email from Choice Privileges and within 48 hours of redemption, Learfield will contact the member with more information and any participation requirements.
• Do not make any non-cancelable travel or other arrangements unless and until you receive a confirmation from Choice and Learfield.
• You (and any guests, if applicable) must be 18 or older to participate and you must provide a government-issued ID upon request.
• These experiences are intended for fans of the teams advertised in the experience and we encourage members to wear that team’s gear. We ask that you do not buy an experience for an opposing team and wear that opposing team’s gear to the experience.
• Selected members will receive the experience and redeem the listed amount of points, which generally range from a minimum of 50,000 to a maximum of 250,000 Choice Privilege points. The number of points required varies depending upon the experience chosen. The experience must be taken (used) on the dates stated for that experience, which generally range from January 2024 – March 2024 (but check your specific date carefully).
• If you redeem a Gold VIP Package, you may receive a gift card (as specified in the experience; limit two), which may be used at U.S. merchants who honor the issuing network’s card. Some limitations apply, including restrictions on use for recurring bills; see the relevant cardholder agreement for complete details. The cards cannot be redeemed for cash, except where required by law. You are responsible for any income or other taxes.
• If specified in the experience details, you may also receive a two-night (or as specified) Choice hotel stay. Reservations must be made through your Choice Privileges Representative and availability is not guaranteed; if a hotel room is not available, you will be awarded an equivalent number of Choice Privileges points that you can use for a future stay. The stay only includes the room rate and any fees or taxes on the room rate; you are responsible for any incidentals or other expenses and the hotel may require you to provide both government identification and a credit card. If you are provided a room and do not check in as booked, that stay is forfeited (and you will not be provided Choice Privileges points or other substitute compensation).

Quick Thoughts

This latest set of packages aren’t as amazing as some of those available back in August when Choice started offering these gameday packages. However, there are still some good options for fans of college basketball (and hockey in a couple of cases).

The highlights here are the three packages that cost 150,000 Choice Privileges points and which come with a $750 travel voucher:

• Rutgers Basketball – Gold VIP Gameday Experience vs Wisconsin
• Ohio State Basketball – Gold VIP Gameday Experience vs Penn State
• Minnesota Hockey – Gold VIP Gameday Experience vs Michigan

Provided nothing has changed over the last few months, the $750 “travel voucher” is a Visa gift card that can be redeemed however you like – it’s not some kind of restrictive voucher that can only be redeemed in some hard-to-use ways. The $750 Visa gift card alone would be a reasonable (but not exceptional) redemption for 100,000-110,000 Choice points, so then you’re looking at an additional 40,000-50,000 points for everything else that’s incorporated in the packages. For example, the Ohio State vs Penn State game also comes with the following:

• Two (2) VIP tickets
• Two (2) Pre-game hospitality passes​
• Two (2) Pre-game visit to floor to watch warm-ups (with escort)
• One (1) Parking Pass
• One (1) Autographed basketball item
• One (1) $100 gift card to team store
• Two (2) night Choice Hotel stay

If you’re an Ohio State basketball fan, I could certainly see it being worth redeeming an effective 40k-50k points for two of you to get that kind of experience.

The terms mention that if there’s no Choice property bookable for the nights you need, you’ll get an equivalent number of Choice points back. That could end up being the ideal scenario – especially if you live locally – as that further reduces your points outlay.

Something to remember is that Citi ThankYou points transfer to Choice on a 1:2 basis if you have a Premier or Prestige card. That means the 150,000 point packages only require 75,000 ThankYou points. For those packages that include the $750 Visa gift card, that means you’re effectively redeeming your ThankYou points for 1cpp, but also getting everything else listed above. While it’s possible to get more than 1cpp of value from Citi ThankYou points by transferring to other travel partners, this could still prove to be a very good redemption for fans.

These packages will probably sell out quickly, so if you’re interested I’d redeem for one or more of these ASAP. Note that not all packages include a $750 travel voucher, so some packages aren’t a great value for your points unless you’re a huge fan and this would be a priceless experience for you.

Want to learn more about miles and points? Subscribe to email updates or check out our podcast on your favorite podcast platform.