The Starwood Preferred Guest Program was last reviewed on 12th July 2008
Earn Points - The Starwood Preferred Guest Program allow members to earn two points for every dollar spend at eligible hotels. These hotels include Sheraton Four Points by Sheraton. St. Regis, Luxury Collection, Le Méridien, W Hotels Westin. One of the key attraction of the Starwood program is that you can transfer points to airmiles on many airlines at a one for one ratio. Though other programs allow you to do so, it is mostly not for a one for one ratio. This means that every dollar you spend at Starwood could potentially be double miles for you. (we shall touch on this point later).
Earn Points via Credit Card - Savvy travelers have made the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express and the Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express one of the most popular travel reward credit card. With this card, you earn one starwood point for every dollar that you spend on the card. That means if you use your card at Starwood Hotel chains, you will earn three points for every dollar you spend on the card (two points for being a Starwood member and one point for using the card). For other purchases, you will also earn one point for every dollar you spend.
Earn Miles via Point Transfer - Unlike the Hilton HHonors program which allows you to "double dip" (ie earn hotel points and miles at the same time), the Starwood Preferred Guest program only allows you to earn points. However, unlike other Hotel programs, you can convert your points to miles on a one point for one miles basis. This is a big deal because you earn two starwood points for every dollar you spend at their hotels. Plus, if you have the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card, you earn an extra point when you use your card at Starwood Hotels and one point for every dollar you spend elsewhere. The airlines which you can transfer points are :
Aeroplan Air Canada, Air China Companion, Air New Zealand and Air Points, Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, Alitalia Mille Miglia, All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club, American Airlines AAdvantage, Asiana Airlines, British Airways Executive Club, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Continental Airlines OnePass, Delta Airlines Skymiles, Emirates and Sri Lankan Airlines Skywards, Flying Blue, Hawaiian Airlines, Japan Airlines (JAL) Mileage Bank, KLM Air France Flying Blue, LAN LANPASS, Lufthansa Miles and More, Mexicana Frecuenta, Northwest Airlines Worldperks, Qantas Airways Frequent Flyer, Qatar Airways, Saudi Arabian Airlines Alfursan, Siangapore Airlines Krisflyer, Swiss Travel Club, Thai Airways International Royal Orchid Plus, US Airways Dividend Miles, United Airlines Mileage Plus, VARIG Smiles, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
All of the above airline partners allow one starwood point to be converted into one miles with the exception of United Airlines Mileage Plus (2:1), Varig Smiles (2:1), LAN LANPASS (1:2), Japan Airlines Mileage Bank (3:2) and Air New Zealand and Air Points (65:1).
For every 20,000 miles you transfer, you get 5,000 bonus miles! 25,000 miles is enough to get you a economy roundtrip ticket within the Continental USA.
Other Ways to Earn Starwood Points - There are a few other ways to earn Starwood Points. Members can earn over 200,000 Starpoints when they buy, sell, finance, and refinance your home or business, as well as earn thousands of additional Starpoints for home warranty and van line moving services through the Awards For Mortgage And Real Estate® program.* You will work directly with your choice of one of the nation's four leading home loan providers: CitiMortgage, Chase Home Finance, Washington Mutual Home Loans, and Wachovia Corporate Mortgage Services.
You can also earn Starwood points simply by opening an account with TD Waterhouse. You are allowed to earn up to 20,000 points.
Spending $1 at 1800-Flowers.com will earn you 10 Starwood points, as will purchases made with Avis, Boston Coach and Sixt Rent a Car.
Redeeming Points
Starwood Preferred Guest program was the first program that had no blackout dates, which meant that if they had a room, they will give it to you. You need 2,000 points for a weekday stay at a category 1 hotel and 3,000 points for a weekend stay. You could also use a combination of points and paying cash. For example, you can use 1,250 points and $25 for a category 1 hotel stay. Starwood also allows you to get a fifth night stay free at category 3,4,5 and 6 hotels. The minimum points required is 28,000 points for a category 3 hotel. Room upgrade requires a minimum of 1,000 points. You can also get 50% off regular rates by using just 1,000 points for any category hotel. Points can be used to redeem for an entire vacation - with hotel stays and flights as well.
Other Redemption Options - Starwood Points can also be redeemed at the the following merchants : Amazon, Banana Republic, Bliss, Brookstone, Conde Nast Publications, GAP, Hasbro Games, Nordstrom, Starbucks, Westin At Home, PGA Tours, Avis and SIXT rent a car.
Points transfer to Charities - Starwood Points can also be transferred to the following charities : Camp Sunshine, The American Red Cross, The Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, The Maske-A-Wish Foundation, UNICEF.
Membership Levels
Preferred Guest - At the normal Preferred Guest level, members get the usual benefits like no blackout dates, point transfer to air miles, instant paperless redemption of Starwood Points.
Gold Preferred Guest - To earn Gold Preferred Guest status, you need to stay either 10 times a year or 25 nights in a year. But you get better benefits. For example, you earn three points for every dollar you spend at Starwood Hotels. You also get automatic room upgrades when they are available (no need to use your points). While Preferred Guest members need to transfer a minimum of 2,500 points into airmiles, Gold Preferred members only need to transfer 1,500 at a clip. Gold members also get benefits like a morning newspaper, 4 p.m. late checkout when available, check-cashing privileges up to $300, and access to the Gold Preferred Guest special customer service telephone number for reservations and information.
Platinum Preferred Guest - If you stay 25 times in a year or 50 nights, you will qualify for the Platinum level. The extra privileges you will get include automatic upgrades to the best rooms upon check-in, platinum concierge service, access to hotel gyms and executive clubs at the Westin® and Sheraton® Hotels & Resorts, and complimentary gifts upon arrivals.
Verdict - The Starwood Preferred program has won more Freddie Awards than other hotel frequent guest program. It is the only hotel program with no blackout dates (some like Marriott have followed with no blackout dates but require more points for certain periods). The most attractive feature of the program is the ability to transfer points to air miles at a one-for-one ratio for most airlines. This is extremely attractive and flexible for the frequent traveler. It is no surprise that the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express and the Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express has come in the top 3 position for many years in the Freddie Awards "Best Affinity Card" category as frequent travellers take advantage of the card to earn more points and transfer them to miles.
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