Choice Hotels Choice Privileges Comfort Inn Monterey Peninsula

Choice Privileges Changing Reward Rates mid-season

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Something with Choice Privileges reward night rates I have noticed several times over the past year is reward rates increased at a specific hotel mid-season after weeks of the hotel posting a lower reward night rate. Three of these instances were higher reward rates posted after I had booked lower priced reward nights during the posted season.

The latest occurrence is Comfort Hotel Carmel-by-the-sea, California where the posted rate for weekend reward nights using points from Sep 20 to Nov 30 was 12,000 points for weekend nights. Today I checked the property to see weekend rates are now 25,000 points through Nov 30. I booked 4 reward nights at this hotel two weeks ago. The reward night increase from 12,000 points to 25,000 points happened sometime in the past week.

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Comfort Inn Carmel reward nights calendar from August 25

 

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Comfort Inn Carmel-by-the-sea reward rates posted October 22, 2019.

This Comfort Inn Carmel hotel was available for 12,000 points on Fri-Sat nights through November 30 as recently as October 13. At 12,000 points this hotel offered a terrific discount on the $300+ nightly rates for weekend nights in peak-season October. For those not too familiar with the Monterey Peninsula area, the month of October is reliably the warmest weather of the year and 2019 has been a particularly spectacular good weather month in this part of California with most days in the low to mid-70s and several days this month hitting 80s.

Tip: Book Choice Privileges reward nights when the price looks good. They can change without notice.

This is the third time in the past year I have stayed at a Choice Hotel on a low reward rate that was no longer available by the time I arrived at the hotel for my reward night stay. The previous occurrences were a 6,000 points hotel in Atlanta that went up to 10,000 points and in California an 8,000 points hotel rising to 12,000 points. Another two times in Europe I had planned to book hotels using points only to find the reward rate increased 4,000 points per night mid-season before making my reward booking.

Three other hotels in California where I booked reward stays in October and November did not change their reward rates this past week.

Of note, I have not encountered the reverse situation of a Choice Hotel dropping its reward price mid-season. Might also be happening at some properties, although I have not noticed that happen yet for hotels I was considering for reward nights. Certainly worth checking any reward nights you might have booked in the days before arrival to see if there is a reward price drop you can take advantage of for fewer points.

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Comfort Inn Carmel-by-the-Sea
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