Guide to the Radisson Rewards Program (2021)
Hotel Strategies, Hotel Loyalty Program Reference Guide
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Quick Guide
- Radisson Reward points are worth about .4 cents each. A night at one of their nicer hotels might require 40-50,000 points.
- It is hard to take advantage of the Radisson Rewards program in the United States. They don’t have that many hotels and hardly any of the ones they do have are really nice. But if you travel to Northern Europe, where their hotel collection is more useful, it is a much more interesting program.
- Unfortunately, Radisson will be splitting into two programs, one focused on the United States and many countries in the Western Hemisphere and another on the rest of the world. Points will need to be transferred between the programs in order to book hotels in the other program. Not many details have been released yet.
- If you do have good opportunities to take advantage of Radisson Hotel Group hotels, they offer a nice collection of credit cards. Not only do you get a bunch of points when you sign-up, you can get 40,000 points every year you renew the card. This easily covers the cost of the annual fee and you can take advantage of automatic Gold status (or 15 nights credit towards higher level status) on an ongoing basis.
- You can also earn a free night certificate for every $10,000 per year you spend on the card (up to 3 certificates per card per year). But their free night certificates can only be redeemed at Radisson-family hotels within the United States (not their international hotels). Because of the scarcity of high-end domestic options, it can be hard to redeem them for good value.
Radisson Brands
Radisson Rewards is not one of the more useful hotel programs in the North America. However, it is strong in Europe, particularly Scandinavia, England, and Germany.
Starting in mid-2021, there are two different Radisson programs: one in the Western hemisphere (called Radisson Rewards Americas) and the other for the rest of the world (called simply Radisson Rewards).
- You'll need to use separate websites, points, accounts to book hotels in the two different programs. The Radisson Americas website and reward program will only allow you to access hotels and earn and redeem points in the Western Hemisphere. The other Radisson Rewards website and reward program will work elsewhere in the world.
- But you can freely transfer your points between the programs. By opening a second account and transferring your points as needed, you can use your points on any of their hotels worldwide and will earn points on all your stays.
- Elite night credit and status are tracked separately for each part of the world. For example, a hotel stay in Europe won't help you earn status in the Radisson Americas program and a hotel stay in the United States won't help you earn status in the rest-of-the-world program.
This nonsensical situation is supposedly the result of US regulations relating to the Chinese ownership of the Radisson program.
Free Night Certificates
Every year that you have the Radisson Rewards credit card, you’ll earn 40,000 points, good enough for a free night in a mid-category hotel.
In addition, for every $10,000 you spend on the card over the course of the year, you'll get a free night certificate (up to maximum of 3), that you can use at any of their US locations.
Unfortunately, most of the Radisson Hotel Group's nicest hotels are in Europe. Unless you regularly travel to one of the few US locations that have super nice Radisson hotels, it is hard for many people to get good value from these certificates.
There are three different Radisson Rewards cards, so you could possibly earn up to 9 nights per year. Depending on the card you use, you’ll earn 1x to 5x points on your spending, worth from .4 – 2%. So for each $10,000 you spend, you’ll be giving up $50–200 in rewards compared to a general-purpose reward card. With annual-fees ranging from $0 - $75, the best value is the Premier Rewards card, with a $75 fee and $50 worth of lost rewards per certificate.
For more information about Radisson Free Night Certificates see our detailed guide.
Award Chart
If there are “standard” rooms available, you can always book them with your points.
| Category | Standard | RewardSaver | Premium | Cash & Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15,000 | 10,000 | 22,500 | 5,000 + cash |
| 2 | 30,000 | 20,000 | 45,000 | 10,000 + cash |
| 3 | 45,000 | 30,000 | 67,500 | 15,000 + cash |
| 4 | 60,000 | 40,000 | 90,000 | 20,000 + cash |
| 5 | 75,000 | 50,000 | 112,500 | 25,000 + cash |
There are no fixed dates for RewardSaver rates. Sometimes they will be available and sometimes they won't.
Points + Cash Awards
Points + Cash award aren't always available. When they are, they are sometimes a good option. The required cash co-payment is different for every hotel and there are no fixed rules that determine the value you would be getting from your points.
You need to evaluate each reservation on a case-by-case basis. Sometimes, the best option is a normal award reservation, sometimes the best option is cash and points, and sometimes the best option is to pay for the reservation, and keep your points for a later date. The best approach is to multiple the points component of a full award and a Points + Cash award by your Radisson point value, add in the cash component, and compare to the full cash rate. Book whichever of the three "prices" is lowest.
Acquiring Points
Acquiring last minute points
You can purchase up to 80,000 points per year, in 1,000-point increments, for .7 cents per point, and receive another 40,000 points purchased by another member. Radisson Rewards frequently offers point purchase promotions that drop the cost of buying points. During better promotions, it can be worth stockpiling some points for later. Get a Discounted Room Rate by Buying the Points for an Award Night.
Earning points from your stays
Members earn 20 points for every dollar spent at Radisson Hotel Group hotels. Silver, Gold, and Platinum members earn bonuses of 10%, 25%, or 75% on stays. You can earn points on up to 3 rooms. However, you'll only earn status credits for a single room.
If you use your Radisson Rewards Credit Card, you’ll earn up to an additional 10 points per dollar. 10x Radisson Reward points are worth about 4 cents per dollar. This is a better return than you’ll get from a general-purpose reward card, but not as good as you can get from a card that earns one of the highest reward rates on travel spending. Best Credit Cards for Travel Spending.
Other ways to earn points
The best way to quickly earn a bunch of Radisson Reward points is by signing up for one or more Radisson Rewards credit cards. There are three different options. The normal signup bonus for the Premier Rewards and Business cards is 85,000 points ($2,500 initial spending requirement). The normal signup bonus for the no-annual-fee card is 30,000 points ($1,000 initial spending requirement.) These cards are all issued by U.S. Bank, you should be able to periodically cancel them and re-apply. Credit Card Signup Bonuses: The Easiest Path to Free Airplane Tickets and Hotel Nights.
Other earning options. You can also earn points from purchases with Vinesse Wine Club and FTD. See all earning options.
Keeping your Points from Expiring
If you go two years without any account activity, you can lose your points. Our Keep Your Points from Expiring article provides more details about strategies for keeping track of upcoming expiration dates and keeping your points alive.
Member Benefits
Award nights count towards earning elite status. Like most other programs, you won’t earn credit for nights booked through 3rd parties like Expedia.
| Club (entry level) 5% food and beverage discount plus:
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| Silver (6 stays or 9n ights) 10% bonus points on stays, 10% food and beverage discount, plus the following benefits:
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| Gold (20 stays or 30 nights) 25% bonus points on stays, 15% food and beverage discount, plus the following benefits:
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| Platinum (30 stays or 60 nights) 75% bonus points on stays, 20% food and beverage discount, plus the following benefits:
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Shortcuts to Radisson Status
- The Radisson Premier Card gives you Gold status, which entitles you to a 25% bonus on points from stays, some possibility of a minor room upgrade, early check-in, late check-out, and an in-room welcome gift. It also gives you the option of earning free night certificates. $75 annual fee. The no-annual-fee Radisson card doesn't give you any level of elite status. Radisson Rewards Status Benefits.
- Radisson doesn't mention a status match program on their website, but they will reliably match your status up to their Gold level. You just need to email statusmatch@radissonhotels.com. You can only be matched once per lifetime.
Once you’ve hit an elite level, any extra nights will carry-over to the following year. For example, if you stay 22 nights, you’ll earn Silver status (after your 15th night), and will start the next year with 7 credits toward requalifying.
The Radisson Rewards Credit Cards
There are three different Radisson Rewards credit cards: a “premier” card, a no-annual fee card, and a business card, although the business card may no longer be available for new signups. These cards are all issued by U.S. Bank, you should be able to periodically cancel them and re-apply to earn the signup bonus.
| Premier | Business | No Annual Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical signup bonus | 85-120,000 | 85-120,000 | 30,000 |
| Automatic elite status | Gold | Gold | None |
| Earning rate at Radisson Rewards | 10 | 10 | 3 |
| Earning rate elsewhere | 5 | 5 | 1 |
| Renewal Points | 40,000 | 40,000 | None |
| Value of Renewal Points | $160 | $160 | $0 |
| Annual fee | $75 | $60 | $0 |
Factoring in the value of the points you get when you renew the card and the other benefits, if you are interested in holding onto one of these cards, you are better off with the Premier or Business card, rather than the regular version.
For every $10,000 you spend on the cards each year, you'll earn a free night certificate. (Maximum 3 per card per year). But these certificates can only be redeemed at hotels in the US and most of Radisson's nicer hotels are overseas. For someone that periodically stays at one of the more expensive US based hotels, this can be worthwhile. But most of our readers won’t have good enough opportunities to take advantage of it. If you trying to earn the certificate, you are best off with the Premier or Business version of the card, so you’ll earn 50,000 Radisson Reward points (rather than 10,000) on each $10,000 in purchases. Radisson Rewards Free Night Certificates.
The Premier and Business cards earn higher rewards for spending at Radisson hotels than a general-purpose reward card, but not as much as the cards that earns the very best reward rates on travel purchases. 10x Radisson Reward points are worth about 4 cents per dollar. Best Credit Cards for Travel Spending.
