(EXPIRED) (Update: More Targeted) Hilton free night certificate offer with just $8K spend! [Targeted]

Update 11/18/21 from Stephen: When this offer appeared a couple of weeks ago, neither my wife nor I were targeted on any of our Amex Hilton cards which was disappointing.

When logging in today to pay my Hilton Aspire bill, I noticed that I was now targeted for the offer in the Amex Offers section and so enrolled immediately. Out of curiosity, I checked my wife’s account but the offer didn’t show in her Amex Offers. However, when checking the enrollment link that’s included below, the offer showed up on her Hilton Surpass card and she was able to successfully enroll in the offer too. That’s even better because it means we can earn the free night certificate while simultaneously earning 6x at the grocery store.

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A number of readers have reached out to share the details of an awesome targeted offer that some have received to earn a free night certificate with just $8,000 spend (some have received this on a Hilton Aspire card and others on a Hilton Surpass card). This is an awesome deal for those targeted, though not all cardholders are being targeted.

The Deal

• Hilton Honors has sent out an email to some Aspire and Surpass cardholders with a card member exclusive deal to get a Free Night Reward after first enrolling and then spending $8,000 by 2/28/22
• Note that the email contents are targeted but the email itself has the same generic subject line, “<name>, your Card Member perks summary is here” that goes out to all cardholders (in our accounts, we only received an offer for triple points, though there was also a link to a free Panera coffee subscription for 6 months as a consolation prize)
• Direct link to check if you are targeted

Key Terms

• Targeted
• Must enroll first — purchases prior to enrollment will not count
• Free night award is sent to the email address associated with your Hilton Honors account
• Free night award email may come up to 16 weeks after meeting the spending threshold
• Free night awards issued through this promotion on or before 12/31/21 will be valid until 12/31/22 and those issued after 12/31/21 will be valid for 12 months from date of issue

Quick Thoughts

Update: Some people have also received this offer on the Surpass card which is an amazing deal for those still spending toward a free night with $15K spend as I imagine any spend done after registration should count toward both certificates.

This is an amazing deal. Hilton Free Night certificates can only be used for standard room awards, but they are not point or category-capped. That means you can use these free night awards at almost any Hilton property worldwide — including places like the Waldorf-Astoria Maldives that are typically astronomically expensive (and that property is now charging as much as 150K points per night for a standard room).

Perhaps even more interesting to me is that the email clearly says that you can redeem your free night reward any night of the week. While that has been a temporary pandemic-era feature added to the annual and spend-based Free Weekend Night Rewards that come with some Hilton cards, I am glad to see it extended to a certificate that you could earn next year.

Speaking of earning the certificate, two key things to know about that: first, the terms state that certificates issued by 12/31/21 will be valid until 12/31/22 and certificates issued after 12/31/21 will be valid for 12 months from the date they are issued. More importantly, terms state that the certificate will be issued up to 16 weeks after the spending threshold is met. In practice, the annual free night certificate on the Aspire card takes around the 8-12 weeks that they suggest, so I wouldn’t be shocked if it takes a long time for this free night certificate to show up. I wouldn’t complete the spend if you would only do so to use the certificate sooner than that.

On the other hand, I think that most people who have this card should definitely consider doing the spend. The free night certificate that Aspire cardholders got this year is valid any night of the week until the end of 2022. You stand to get another free night certificate upon renewal next year. Combine those two certificates with one for $8K spend and you have yourself at least a 3-day weekend before considering the points you’ll earn on $8K spend. Even if you only get $250 in value out of the free night certificate, that’s like 3.125% return on spend and you’ll also earn at least 3 Hilton points per dollar on top. I’d absolutely do this one in a heartbeat.

If you an estimated tax payment to make before the end of the year, this could be a great way to do it.

Note that this offer is in the normal “cardmember perks summary” email that comes periodically. The emails we received in my household did not have this Aspire card spending offer but rather just triple points on stays and free coffee for 6 months at Panera. I’ve had a few free Panera coffee subscriptions in a row (I keep cancelling and getting an offer to come back for 3 free months), but my wife recently cancelled and didn’t receive an offer to sign back up, so that may work out for her. I’ll say that I really dislike the coffee from Panera, but I don’t dislike it more than I dislike paying for coffee, so I drink it now and then.

Check those emails and may the odds be ever in your favor.

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