Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Bits: Hilton Weekends sale on, good Marriott Moments events launched

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

News in brief:

Hilton weekend sale now on for Hilton Honors members

Hilton has launched a week-long pre-sale event of its major ‘Weekends’ sale for Hilton Honors members.

You can see full details on the Hilton website here.

The main sale kicks off on 14th November and will be accompanied by heavy advertising.  Hilton Honors members – and if you’re not a member, you can join for free at hilton.com – can book the European hotels (not the African or Middle East hotels) now before the PR push.

Here are the headline details:

Valid for participating hotels in the UK and Europe

Discounts are up to 25% off ‘Best Available Rate’ and ‘Best Available Rate With Breakfast’

Bookings are non-changeable and non-refundable (so, let’s be honest, it isn’t a full 25% discount as a non-refundable rate is usually 10% cheaper anyway)

You must book at hilton.com here 

Bookings valid for WEEKEND STAYS at any point between now and the end of 2018

Given that you can book for the whole of next year, you may be able to lock in a deal for any weddings or other events which you know are coming up.

We will take another look at the sale when it opens up and adds the Middle East and Africa properties next week.

The photo below is the new Hilton Tallinn Park which we reviewed here.

PS.  American Express has launched a new Hilton cashback deal, offering £50 back when you spend £250 at selected UK and European hotels.  More on this tomorrow, but if you are booking today then look in the ‘Offers’ section of your online Amex statement first to see if you have it and can opt in.  It is, in theory, only valid on ‘pay on departure’ rates though.

A couple of Marriott Rewards Moments of interest

Marriott Rewards Moments, the ‘special events’ redemption option, has added a couple of London events which might be of interest.

First up is a high value New Years Eve package.  This won’t go cheap but, at 150,000 Marriott Rewards points at the time of writing (it is an auction item) it is arguably decent value.

You’re bidding on a New Year’s Eve champagne reception and five course dinner with paired wines at the Marriott County Hall, a room for two nights with a Big Ben view, in-room breakfast, afternoon tea and a bottle of champagne on arrival.  You will also, of course, have an outstanding view of the New Year’s Eve fireworks display.

The second package is far sillier but has a hidden extra benefit.  For 30,000 Marriott Rewards points – this is a fixed price – you get a private hour-long cookery class for two people at the Marriott County Hall to learn how to make the perfect Christmas Pudding!

The package also comes with a champagne afternoon tea (the champagne is ‘unlimited’) for two people before the lesson.  I would value 30,000 Marriott Rewards points at £150.  Given that the afternoon tea would usually cost £92 including service for two people, it isn’t a bad package overall.

PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 65,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.

How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards

How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (April 2025)

There are various ways of earning Marriott Bonvoy points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

The official Marriott Bonvoy American Express card comes with 20,000 points for signing up, 2 points for every £1 you spend and 15 elite night credits per year.

You can apply here.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express

20,000 points for signing up and 15 elite night credits each year Read our full review

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points by converting American Express Membership Rewards points at the rate of 2:3.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Marriott Bonvoy Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Hilton Honors Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.

We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points indirectly:

and for small business owners:

The conversion rate from American Express to Marriott Bonvoy points is 2:3.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Marriott Bonvoy points.

Category

Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy

Comments (117)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Ian says:
    10 Nov10 November 06:17

    To be fair to BA I was in the Concorde Room on Tuesday and didn’t notice any disgusting furniture

    • Save East Coast Rewards says:
      10 Nov10 November 06:44

      I’m sure it doesn’t look as bad in person and it’s a decent lounge on my occasional visits but Cathy can do a better lounge in T3 shows BA should up their game.

      • Will says:
        10 Nov10 November 10:13

        Given the CCR is first class and CCR card holders only it’s a very poor effort from BA.

        Someone needs to take a trip to Hong Kong and try to emulate the first/emerald lounge offerings at the pier and the wing.

  • Gareth says:
    10 Nov10 November 06:20

    Train station lounges in general seem much worse than even the basic airport lounges most having the charm of a Servisair lounge of 10 years ago minus the free booze. Does anyone value access to a train lounge?

    • Save East Coast Rewards says:
      10 Nov10 November 06:49

      Railway station first class lounges serve a different market to airport lounges. As walk up fares are now very expensive most people buy advance fares if they can and so may want to get there a little earlier to ensure they don’t miss their train. I guess the average wait in a station lounge is less than 30 minutes.

      Also as it’s easy to get access to a first class lounge by buying a short distance ticket people could easily drink more than their ticket price in alcohol if it was free so it could be abused more easily.

      So for a shortish wait all I really want is some well maintained facilities and a choice of soft or hot drinks. Some lounges sell alcohol too which is a bonus for longer waits.

    • Drav says:
      10 Nov10 November 08:08

      people value any lounge access for the exclusivity factor.

    • CV3V says:
      10 Nov10 November 08:29

      I recommend the DB lounge in Munich, german beer on tap, when i walked in it seemed a mandatory requirement to be having a pint, at 11am.

      But dont try and fill your travel mug up from the coffee machine, they will see you and they will stop you.

      • Philip White says:
        10 Nov10 November 08:57

        And what great beer it is.

      • Lady London says:
        10 Nov10 November 13:42

        It also opens quite late in the evening if your train is a late one. I found it definitely had the feel of a Business Class space.

      • RussellH says:
        10 Nov10 November 14:20

        Sounds a bit nicer than the DB lounge at Frankfurt Airport, though still not at all bad. It was always quiet and had decent WiFi when I was there.

        (Yes, I do mean the rail lounge, not an airport lounge. FRA is often a great place to change trains – quite compact, excellent signage and well set up for those with heavy luggage. I often changed to to/from trains to Brussels, for a Eurostar connection, typically when travelling from Dresden or Leipzig to London.)

    • Oh! Matron! says:
      10 Nov10 November 09:09

      Virgin Lounge at Piccadilly isn’t too bad, and great views! Gold with VS gets you in too. I’d I’d rate it above the serviceAir lounges any day of the week. Anyone remember the service air lounge at T1 LHR?

      • Save East Coast Rewards says:
        10 Nov10 November 09:22

        That’s Virgin Money, not Virgin Trains East Coast. No status will get you into the King’s Cross lounge, you need to either have a first class ticket or be ‘surprised and delighted’ by being sent a lounge pass. Previous operators GNER/NXEC would give you a card with lounge access if you met certain spending targets and East Coast used to let you buy a lounge pass with points. Now those with a standard class only travel policy can’t get into the lounges regardless how much they spend.

      • Rob says:
        10 Nov10 November 10:12

        The Virgin Money lounge at Piccadilly Circus in London isn’t bad either!

    • Tom H says:
      10 Nov10 November 15:38

      Commuting every weekend between KX and York with my three year old lounge access was a great help, and with an advance ticket wasn’t that costly, plus the staff on the Virgin train were excellent for most part

  • David S says:
    10 Nov10 November 06:55

    I wonder if they have refurbished the toilets in the Concorde room as well? I have been to better looking and managed public toilets than these.

    • Paul says:
      10 Nov10 November 07:10

      Absolutely. BAs toilets, much like most toilets at LHR are disgusting.

    • Scallder says:
      10 Nov10 November 17:13

      Would rate the toilets on the A380s better than the CCR ones! Put to an absolute shame when you compare to lounges by Cathay (and dare I sat Delta at ATL…)

  • adey says:
    10 Nov10 November 07:01

    Difficult to tell from those photos, potentially an improvement. Not planning to be back to the Concorde Room ’til March. Hope BA took the opportunity to provide more power outlets……

    • Save East Coast Rewards says:
      10 Nov10 November 07:19

      From what I’ve heard, I’ve been doing a bit of reading up on it this morning, there’s no extra sockets but they do provide mobile battery packs on request to charge your phone.

  • Paul says:
    10 Nov10 November 07:07

    BA CCR- it’s amazjng what you can with photoshop and lightroom!

  • Lee says:
    10 Nov10 November 07:37

    Paying for the Hilton non cancellable rates is rarely worth it unless it is a busy hotel.

    Hilton normally increase the price before these sales so take it with a pinch of salt.

    I stay at Hiltons up to 100 nights a year and I watch prices constantly as often they come down. You can save big time if you keep watching.

    • TripRep says:
      10 Nov10 November 08:56

      Lee – good tips, any particular sweet spots, ie timing when to book and for specific hotels?

      Rob – there’s also the Public Sector & Corporate rates that can offer better prices…

  • Anna says:
    10 Nov10 November 07:45

    OT but lounge-related, which seems to be a theme today! We’re flying with AA from the US to the Caribbean next year and will have a couple of hours layover in Miami. I know MIA is a singular hellhole where the length of the queues can mean you actually miss your connection, however if we’re lucky enough to have time for a lounge visit, does anyone know which terminal we are likely to be using? There a few different options on the Lounge Club website (we’ll be using Amex gold free passes).

    • mark2 says:
      10 Nov10 November 08:17

      Have been in Centurion in Seattle and it was excellent but was recently extended/refurbished.

    • Anna says:
      10 Nov10 November 09:11

      Not planning on applying for Platinum just yet, possibly in another 4 years or so (if it’s still around) when we’re working less and have more time to travel.

      • the real harry1 says:
        10 Nov10 November 09:20

        you could time an in-&-out to perfection

        ie 20K bonus for Gold—>Plat

        use 2 or 4 Priority Pass lounge passes

        cancel after a few days

        keep hotel status

  • Catalan says:
    10 Nov10 November 08:11

    Rob, so could that pic you posted earlier this week of the Concorde Room have been a fake then?

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Got any questions? Ask them in our forums.

Get 25,000 Avios with the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

GET A SIGN-UP BONUS OF 18,000 VIRGIN POINTS!

Latest Forum Posts

Get 80,000 bonus points (worth 80,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card (Offer ends 27th May)

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Get up to 10,000 bonus Hilton Honors points

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.7 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

SME? GET THE ONLY FREE SMALL BUSINESS CREDIT CARD WHICH CAN EARN AVIOS

Get points worth 30,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold (ends 27th May)

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.

Got it!