What happened when my son joined the Hilton Honors training day at Chelsea FC

On Thursday morning I headed down to Stamford Bridge with my son for a special tour of the stadium and a training session with some of the club coaches, organised by Hilton Honors.

This event was bookable for Hilton Honors points as we wrote about here although Hilton offered us a place for free.

We thought it was worth showing you what went on as it was a unique ‘behind the scenes’ experience and may be repeated next season.

At 8.30am we arrived at Stamford Bridge and were taken to the press room for a briefing, familiar from many contract signing photo shoots. The Chelsea mascots were there to greet us for a photo opportunity.

We started with a tour of the dressing rooms for the Home and Away teams. As you would expect, they are not the same.

Here is the rather sparse Away changing room:

…. and here is the substantially plusher Chelsea changing room!

As we entered the Home dressing room we got to see a beautiful replica of the Champions League trophy:

The kids headed onto the Chelsea pitch for an hour of skills training, entering down the players tunnel to the (recorded) sound of thousands of cheering fans.

Apparently Chelsea spends more than £1 million on keeping the pitch in shape every season.

The parents took seats in the stands while the kids were split into age groups. My son was put into a group of 12-14 year olds to practice dribbling, shooting and general ball skills:

and

After the training we all headed to the Chelsea museum. This includes an experience where you could take penalties to recreate the Champions League final shootout vs Bayern Munich in 2012.

There is also a display of historic boot styles worn by famous Chelsea players from past seasons:

It was a genuine ‘once in a lifetime’ experience for my son and pretty cool even for a non-football loving parent. You can’t fail to be impressed by being out there on the pitch and seeing behind the scenes.

If your child is a football fan then this is a Hilton Honors redemption worth looking out for if it returns next year. The 125,000 points cost included a night at the Hampton London Waterloo hotel, transfers to the stadium and a large pile of Chelsea goodies to take home. We didn’t stay at the hotel as we live nearby but Rob reviewed Hampton London Waterloo here in 2020.

Thank you to Meriel @ Tin Man and the Hilton Honors team for the invitation.

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How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (April 2025)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit and debit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

There are two dedicated Hilton Honors debit cards. These are especially attractive when spending abroad due to the 0% or 0.5% FX fee, depending on card.

You also receive FREE Hilton Honors status for as long as you hold the debit cards – Gold status with the Plus card and Silver status with the basic card. This is a great reason to apply even if you rarely use it.

We reviewed the Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card here and the Hilton Honors Debit Card here.

You can apply for either card here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 30th April 2025, the annual fee on the basic Hilton Honors debit card is halved from £60 to £30. The sign-up bonus is also easier to earn – you need to spend £1,000 either in the UK or abroad within three months. The usual bonus rule requires you to spend the full £1,000 outside the UK.

There is another way of getting Hilton Honors status, and earning Hilton Honors points, from a payment card.

Holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card.  It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy 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.

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with:

• American Express Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Rewards Credit Card (10,000 bonus Amex points)

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

and for small business owners:

• American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Business Platinum (50,000 bonus Amex points)

The conversion rate from American Express to Hilton Honors points is 1:2.

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