This is part of our What Does It Take series, where we cover earning top-tier rewards on the best hotel brands. Check out our post on Hyatt, Club Carlson, SPG, Marriott and IHG hotels and stay tuned for next week’s edition.
Ritz Carlton is one of the most upscale hotel chains out there. While it’s affiliated with Marriott Rewards, Ritz Carlton has a separate rewards program. Redemption rates for a free night at a top-tier Ritz Carlton hotel are quite steep at 60,000 – 70,000 points per night, even factoring in the 5th night free. Luckily, with credit card sign-up bonuses and a
Earning Free Nights Via Credit Card Sign-up Bonus
At the moment, the Ritz Carlton Credit Card comes with two complimentary nights at any at any Tier 1-4 Ritz-Carlton hotel, after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. That’s probably the easiest way to score a free night (or two), considering a top-tier award night requires 60,000 – 70,000 points per night.
Earning Free Nights Via Paid Stays
Ritz Carlton Rewards members earn 10 points per $1 at Ritz Carlton hotels worldwide, which is pretty generous. At this rate, it takes $6,000 – $7,000 worth of paid stays before you earn enough points for a top-tier award night. Combine this 10 point earning rate with the 5 points per $1 spent at Ritz- Carlton Rewards and SPG hotels with the Ritz Carlton credit card, and a free night is just $4,000 – $4,666 away.
Earning Free Nights Via Credit Card Spending
The Ritz Carlton Credit Card earns 1 point per $1 spent on all purchases or 2 points per $1 on direct airline tickets and car rental purchases, as well as restaurants. At this rate, earning a free night requires $30,000 – $35,000 worth of bonus category spending or $60,000 – $70,000 worth of regular spending. Pretty steep, but luckily there is another way…
Transfer SPG Points to Ritz Carlton
SPG points currently transfer to Ritz Carlton Rewards at a 1:3 ratio, which works out quite nicely. Rather than spending $70,000 on the Ritz Carlton Credit Card, you can instead spend $20,000 – $23,333 on the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express and then transfer those points to Ritz Carlton in order to earn enough points for a top-tier award night.
Utilize Ultimate Rewards
If you don’t quite have enough points after transferring Starpoints to your Ritz Carlton account, you can also move some points over from your Ultimate Rewards account. I wouldn’t do this in large quantities, but it’s an option if you’re a few thousand points short. On the same note, the Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal can offer tremendous value when it comes to booking Ritz Carlton hotels with points. If you have a Sapphire Reserve card, your points are worth 50% more! So if a top-tier Ritz Carlton hotel costs $500 per night, you can redeem just 33,333 points through the Ultimate Rewards points.
Promotional Bonuses
Bonus point promotions offer the easiest way to accrue lots of hotel points in general, and Ritz Carlton Rewards is no exception. At the moment, Ritz Carlton Rewards is running a double point promotion through April 15, 2017. What’s great about these promotions is that they apply to Marriott hotel stays as well, which is great since it offers way more earning opportunities.
Rewarding Events
Got an upcoming work event you’re planning? Wedding? Family reunion? Choosing a Ritz Carlton hotel has the venue could turn into a point bonanza of you. Registered Rewarding Events members earn the following bonuses on events:
- 3 points for each U.S. dollar spent. Maximum of 50,000 points per event
- 1 airline mile per U.S. dollar spent. Maximum 15,000 miles per event
At this rate, spending $20,000 – $23,000 on events at Ritz Carlton hotels could generate enough points for a free night at a top-tier hotel.
In addition, it’s possible to earn elite status through this program:
- Silver Elite – 1 meeting or event
- Gold Elite – 5 meetings or events
- Platinum Elite – 8 meetings or events
Have you ever saved up points for a free night at a top-tier Ritz Carlton award? Which method did you utilize?
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Delta® Reserve for Business
- Annual Fee: $450 fee
- Foreign Fees: No
- Card Type: Travel
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- Earn 40,000 bonus miles and 10,000 MQMs after you spend $3,000 in purchases with your new Card in the first 3 months.†
- Earn 15,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) and 15,000 bonus miles after you reach $30,000 in eligible purchases on your Card in the calendar year.
- Earn 2 Miles per dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta. Earn 1 mile on every eligible dollar spent on purchases.
- Settle into your seat sooner with Priority Boarding and enjoy 20% savings on eligible in-flight purchases in the form of a statement credit.
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Delta® Reserve for Business
- Annual Fee: $450 fee
- Foreign Fees: No
- Card Type: Travel
| FTG Review | Reward Breakdown | Points Breakdown |
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Breakdown
Earn (pt.)
Spend
3 months
0
$3,000
Per dollar on eligible purchases with Delta Purchases
2.00
$1
All Purchases
1.00
$1
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