Best Western Offers Double, Triple Points for Fall Stays

If it feels like all hotel promotions, all the time, that's because fall is traditionally a bonus-rich period as hotels struggle to keep rooms occupied in the post-summer travel falloff.

And this year, that predictable seasonal decline in travel demand is exacerbated by the ongoing travel slump, adding an extra degree of urgency to the hotels' marketing initiatives.

Next up on the growing list of major hotel chains offering bonuses for fall stays: Best Western.

Offer Details

The promotion has several variants, as follows:

• Best Western Rewards members who complete two stays between September 12 and November 21 will earn double points.
• If the qualifying stays are booked at bestwestern.com, members earn will triple points.
• And if the stays are charged to a Best Western Rewards MasterCard, program members will earn an additional 1,000 bonus points.
• Regular Rewards members can only earn the bonus once, after two stays. Elite members can earn the bonus twice, after four stays.

Registration is required.

Deal or No Deal

The promotion offers decent value, assuming you earn triple points by booking the qualifying stays on Best Western's website. But there are two negatives in the terms and conditions.

First, the offer's duration. Limiting the promotion period to 2.5 months potentially spoils the offer for infrequent travelers, who may have trouble squeezing two stays into the relatively short eligibility period. (For comparison, Marriott's fall MegaBonus promotion will be in effect from September 15, 2010, and January 15, 2011. And Starwood's fall offer applies for stays between September 8 and December 15.)

At the other end of the spectrum, potentially limiting the offer's value to frequent travelers is the limit on the number of times the bonuses may be earned. Road warriors may well look at the earning cap and opt for offers from other hotels with no bonus constraints.

Reader Reality Check

This promotion seems intentionally designed to appeal to those who travel just enough, but not too much. Is that you?