Our “Famous Card Explorer”

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.

Despite devaluations, Hilton points can be quite valuable, especially using the 5th night free on awards if you have Silver Elite status or higher as that increases your value both by giving the 5th night free and because resort fees and room tax are waived on award stays.

Data point: We just stayed 5 nights in Lake Como at the Grand Hotel Victoria (SLH). It was 130,000 points a night, 5th night free. 520,000 points total and the room was 1,500 Euro a night. That’s about $8,700 in value (and whatever you think of the cash rate, the hotel is impeccable and perfectly located and that is what it costs!) for 520,000 points. So we got 1.7 cents per Hilton point in value in this case. (Note, I believe that particular hotel is now 170,000 points a night.)

Generally, we value an Amex point at 1.7 cents and a Hilton point at 0.5 cents and while those values are an average, with a 5th night free award you can definitely do well transferring 1,000 Amex points for 2,600 Hilton Honors points as I showed you above.

Our advice is to run some sample searches for potential redemptions to see the value you’re likely to get before transferring. Note that Standard Reward night rates can be as high as 250,000 points / night. That said, at the 30% level is where I personally am comfortable transferring at least some speculatively.

Keep in mind that if you have any Free Reward Night Certificates (valid on any Standard Reward night) which can be earned with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (each anniversary year and after $30,000 and also after $60,000 spent in a calendar year) or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (earned after $15,000 spent in a calendar year), you can add before or after a 5th night free award for a longer stay.

This still remains about the only award you would book with Iberia (you may find other instances where Iberia remains cheaper on its own metal) but keep in mind the biggest flaw of the Iberia program:

Award travel on partner airlines booked with Iberia Avios is non-refundable!!

That said, generally you want to move your points to British Airways first for the most flexibility – since you can move from there to Finnair, which has some great redemptions, or Qatar (note new restrictions on booking Qatar awards beyond yourself). I just booked an actual Iberia award and I’ll add that the website is full of glitches that can make booking even an Iberia award on Iberia quite painful.

See this post on the transfer bonus to British Airways Avios for more on the Finnair program.

Reminder: We now maintain an incredibly comprehensive Transfer Partner Matrix that tracks not just where every currency transfers but also notes any current transfer bonuses.