Travel planning can be hard enough as it is, with work pressures, managing deadlines, and getting the dates right. On top of all that, the stress of finding the right accommodation that fits your location preferences and budget can cause quite a headache, not to mention the crater-sized dent it makes in your wallet.
Luckily, there’s a solution if you know where to look. Many hotel groups allow the conversion of hotel reward points into Avios and vice versa. This is a win-win situation: You get to travel to your dream destinations and then use the Avios points earned while flying in to enjoy luxurious stays in some of the best hotels! Or you could use your hotel stays to earn air miles, which translates into Avios points. Either way, you're earning more rewards for future trips while learning how to spend Avios wisely.
So, get your Avios Calculator ready. In this blog, we’ll discuss which hotel groups provide this feature, why you should convert hotel reward points into Avios or vice versa, and which is the best value option.
First Things First: Should You Keep Your Loyalty Points or Convert Them into Avios?
Many hotel chains have loyalty programmes that attract guests with various rewards. The ultimate aim, of course, is to get them to become regular customers through repeat bookings. Deciding whether to convert them into Avios or keep them in the programme depends on your spending patterns and travel preferences.
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Generally, choosing to keep your hotel reward points makes for better value than converting them to Avios points, and we'll get into that in a bit. But for now, it's important to note that even earning enough loyalty points for a free night might require several stays at the same hotel chain. If you're not sure how many times in the future you'll end up in the same hotel chain, it might be more practical to choose Avios. Especially keeping in mind that the hotel might impose strict expiration policies on unused points. If you convert them to Avios, at least you get to increase your existing Avios points, which can always come in handy.
How Hotel Loyalty Programmes Work with Avios
Almost all hotel groups have loyalty programmes that let you earn and redeem points. These typically interact with Avios in one of two ways:
- You can choose to earn Avios instead of hotel loyalty points by providing your BA Club number at check-in.
- You can earn hotel loyalty points and convert them to Avios once you reach certain milestones.
What are the Best Avios Partner Hotels?
Although it comes down to personal choices and situations, the following three hotel chains allow members to earn Avios in place of their loyalty points.
Accor Hotels (Accor Live Limitless)
To earn Avios with this hotel group, you need to be a member of the Accor Live Limitless (ALL) programme, which is Accor's global, multi-brand loyalty scheme. It starts conversions at 4,000 points for 2,000 Avios. With more than 3,500 participating hotels worldwide, the earning rate varies by brand. How many Avios points you earn depends on your expenditure at each participating hotel. Thus, you can:
- Earn 2.5 Avios for every €2 spent at:
- Sofitel
- Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
- Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts
- Grand Mercure
- Novotel
- Mercure
- Pullman
- Raffles Hotels & Resorts
- MGallery
- The Sebel
- Suite Novotel
- Earn 2 Avios for every €4 spent at:
- Adagio hotels
- Earn 2.5 Avios for every €4 spent at:
- Ibis
- ibis Styles
- Thalassa Sea & Spa
- Earn 1 Avios for every €4 spent at:
- Adagio Access
Verdict: The lowest-value deal seems to be the Adagio Access, which gives 1 Avios for every €4. It makes more sense to keep the hotel points. On the other hand, converting to Avios points at Sofitel and other high-end brands makes a lot more sense.
Note: Keep in mind that a hotel stay in this programme means staying more than one consecutive night.
How to Join It
You must sign up for Accor's loyalty limitless programme and set British Airways Club Avios as your preferred earning option to earn Avios. You can register at no cost either online or during your next stay at one of their hotels.
How to Earn Avios Points with It
- Join the Accor ALL (Accor Live Limitless) programme to start earning.
- In your ALL account settings, navigate to 'Manage my ALL Rewards points'. Choose 'Automatic conversion of my points into airline miles', select British Airways as your Frequent Flyer Programme, and enter your BA Club membership number and name to set up auto-conversion of points to Avios after each stay.
- Book your stays directly through Accor or contact your nearest reservations office. Always provide your ALL membership number during booking and at check-in.
- Avios are typically credited to your BA Club account approximately six weeks after your stay.
- If Avios are not credited within six weeks, log into your ALL account to submit a claim form for missing Avios.
- Retain all original receipts until Avios are credited to your account.
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG One Rewards)
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG One Rewards) is made up of 19 brands spread over 6,000 locations all over the world. Membership in IHG One Rewards is required to collect Avios with this hotel group. IHG One Rewards offers 2,000 Avios for 10,000 points. How many Avios you end up earning depends on what you spend at each of these brands:
Earn 2 Avios for every $1 spent at these global locations:
- InterContinental Hotels & Resorts
- Regent Hotels & Resorts
- Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants
- HUALUXE Hotels and Resorts
- Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts
- voco
- Hotel Indigo
- Iberostar Beachfront Resorts
- EVEN Hotels
- avid hotels
- Holiday Inn
- Holiday Inn Express
- Holiday Inn Resort
- Holiday Inn Club Vacations
- Vignette Collection & Atwell Studies
- Garner
Earn 1 Avios for every $1 spent at:
- Candlewood Suites
- Staybridge Suites
Receive 500 Avios per qualifying stay at:
- The Venetian Resort – Las Vegas and Macao
- The Palazzo – Las Vegas
Note: A qualifying stay is one night or more consecutively at the same hotel.
Verdict: A stay at the InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, and other full-service brands earns you 2 Avios per $1 spent, which is better than the 1 Avios per $1 earned at Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites.
How to Join It
To start earning Avios points, join IHG Rewards and choose British Airways Club Avios as your preferred earning option. Registration is free and can be done online or during your next stay at any IHG hotel.
How to Earn Avios Points with It
- Choose British Airways Club Avios as your earning preference when signing up.
- Update your earning preference by navigating to your account status page's 'Manage Earning Preference' section. Select 'change earnings preference,’ choose 'Frequent Flyer Miles,’ and select British Airways as your Frequent Flyer Programme.
- Avios are typically credited to your BA Club account about six weeks following your stay.
- If Avios aren't reflected in your account within six weeks, file an online claim or contact IHG One Rewards Customer Care for assistance.
- You can claim missing Avios up to six months after your stay.
If you want to convert your existing IHG reward points into Avios, you should contact their customer care. Keep in mind that the conversion rate is 10,000 IHG One Rewards points = 2,000 Avios.
Marriott (Marriott Bonvoy)
Marriott consists of 30 brands spread over 8,000 locations worldwide. To collect Avios with this hotel group, you should be a Marriott Bonvoy member. It allows 3,000 Avios for 9,000 points.
How many Avios you end up earning depends on what you spend at each of the following brands.
You can earn 2 Avios for every $1 spent on all qualifying charges at these full-service hotels:
- Autograph Collection
- EDITION
- Le Meridien
- Renaissance Hotels
- The Luxury Collection
- W Hotels
- Delta Hotels by Marriott
- JW Marriott
- Marriott Hotels
- Sheraton
- The Ritz-Carlton
- Westin
- Design Hotels
- Gaylord Hotels
- Marriott Vacation Club
- St Regis
- Tribute Portfolio
Earn 1 Avios for every $1 spent on all qualifying charges at these hotels:
- AC Hotels by Marriott
- Element by Westin
- Marriott Executive Apartments
- Residence Inn by Marriott
- Aloft
- Fairfield by Marriott
- MOXY Hotels
- SpringHill Suites by Marriott
- Courtyard by Marriott
- Four Points by Sheraton
- Protea Hotels by Marriott
- TownePlace Suites by Marriott
Verdict: Stays at Le Meridien, Renaissance Hotels, and others offering 2 Avios for every $1 are the best deal.
How to Join It
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To start earning, you must sign up for Marriott Bonvoy and choose British Airways Club Avios as your preferred way to collect rewards. Enrollment is available at no cost, either online or during your next stay at a Marriott hotel.
How to Earn Avios Points with It
- When you sign up, choose 'Miles/other programmes' as your earning preference and select 'British Airways Club' as your preferred airline.
- Enter your BA Club membership number into your profile.
- Always provide your Marriott Bonvoy membership number when making reservations or checking in at any Marriott International hotel.
- You can see the Avios points in your BA Club account about six weeks after your stay.
You can also exchange your existing Marriott Bonvoy Points for Avios. To do that, either log into your online account or contact their customer support. The conversion rates are:
- 9,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points for 3,000 Avios.
- 30,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points for 10,000 Avios.
- 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points for 20,000 Avios.
- 90,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points for 30,000 Avios.
- 120,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points for 40,000 Avios.
Bonus Offer: Receive an additional 5,000 Avios when you transfer 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points in a single transaction.
Here are some other hotel loyalty programmes and their Avios conversion rates:
- Choice Hotels starts conversion rate at 5,000 Choice Privileges points, which get you 1,000 Avios.
- Hilton Honors requires at least 10,000 points for 1,000 Avios.
- Melia Rewards offers one of the best rates at 30 Avios for every 100 points.
- Radisson Rewards provides 200 Avios for 2,000 points.
Try Unlocking Perks with Hotel Debit Cards
This isn’t one you’ll be able to request from the front desk, but it’s certainly worth mentioning for travel planning before you jet off, as well as reducing your bank fees once you arrive at your destination.
Some hotel groups offer specialist debit cards for travellers. Hilton, for example, has the Hilton Honors Debit Card and Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card, which were created in partnership with Currensea. These cards allow you to earn Hilton Honors Points on eligible everyday spending, that you can then use on hotel stays and exclusive experiences. The cards also offer other welcome travel perks, such as free continental breakfasts, free Wi-Fi and space-available room upgrades.
Undoubtedly one of the best bits is that the cards remove bank fees from overseas transactions so you can get much lower rates than those offered by high street banks.
The Hilton Honors Debit Card has an annual fee of £60 with a 0.5% FX fee. Cardholders earn 1 Hilton Honors Point for every £1 spent on everyday purchases and up to 3 Points for every £1 spent directly with Hilton abroad. The Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card has an annual fee of £150 with 0% FX fee. Customers earn 1.5 Hilton Honors Points for every £1 spent on everyday purchases, and up to 4.5 Points for every £1 spent directly with Hilton abroad.
Take a look at more T&C’s, and get one yourself here.
Bottom Line: Which is the Best Option?
As a general rule of thumb, hotel loyalty points should be used to get you free hotel stays because, most of the time, the conversion to Avios points isn't enough to make an impact. If it's unlikely you'll gather enough points for a free hotel night, it’s sensible to transfer them. Typically, however, you'll get the most value from using points for complimentary hotel stays.
Having said that, if you can't get a free hotel stay out of your loyalty points and want to convert them to Avios, Marriott Bonvoy remains the top choice for exchanging them for airline miles. This is because the math for conversion is nearly balanced. A Bonvoy point is typically equal to 0.5p, and an Avios to 1p. Converting 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points would result in 25,000 Avios, including a bonus of 5,000 Avios for large transfers. By this conversion rate, £300 Marriott points come to £250 worth of Avios, making it a reasonably good exchange.
However, it's important to keep in mind that Hilton Honors and IHG One Rewards normally offer more bonus points, which add to the total number of Avios you earn per stay. So, whatever decision you make, make peace with it because while this method can make your travel dreams come true, it uses your hard-earned points to do so.
