Independent hotels often offer a unique and authentic experience that cannot be found in large hotel chains. However, unlike Marriott Bonvoy or Hilton Honors, there is no single rewards program to earn free nights at these establishments.
Fortunately, there are several strategies for saving money on independent hotel bookings, whether through rewards portals, loyalty programs or the judicious use of points. Discover our best tips for reducing the cost of your next stay.
To earn more points or cash back on your hotel nights, consider booking through online rewards portals.
AIR MILES offers an online travel agency for flight, hotel and car rental reservations. Payments by credit card and/or AIR MILES miles are accepted.
When you book through AIR MILES Travel, you’ll earn approximately 1 AIR MILES per $10 on the room rate, before taxes and fees.
Promotions are frequent and change throughout the year. For example, you could receive hundreds of bonus miles or a discount on your reservations to certain destinations.
In the past, we’ve seen promotions for Orlando, Miami, New York, San Diego, Los Angeles and other popular U.S. destinations.
You can also use your AIR MILES Dream Miles to save on a hotel booking. Miles can be redeemed at an approximate rate of 10 AIR MILES = $1 discount in this case. Even if you use your miles to pay for your room, you will still earn bonus miles.
To collect thousands of AIR MILES quickly, consider the following credit cards:
Each issuer has a website or portal where you can book travel with your credit card. Most of the time, you’ll receive extra reward points. This is the case with:
You can then use the bonus points by redeeming them for a statement credit or to save on a future trip.
Even if your card issuer doesn’t offer bonus points when you book with their online agency, it’s worth checking whether they offer certain discounts for the hotel you’re interested in.
Rocketmiles is another rewards portal that allows you to earn points from around 40 different loyalty programs with your hotel stays.
Programs of interest to Canadians include Aeroplan, Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, Asia Miles, Emirates Skywards, Eithad Guest, Flying Blue, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and more.
Rakuten is Canada’s largest online shopping rewards portal with hundreds of partners. For accommodation bookings, you can receive cash back of :
Create your Rakuten account with the Milesopedia link and receive a $30 bonus on your first transaction over $30.
Airlines also offer ways to book hotels and receive point discounts at the same time. For example, with Air Canada, you’ll receive 2 Aeroplan points for every dollar spent on hotel nights.
Additionally, the Aeroplan HotelSavers program is advantageous for luxury hotels. With this program, you can book hotel nights using Aeroplan points, following a fixed-rate chart.
In addition, Aeroplan credit cardholders can get the fourth night free on stays paid for in points, for bookings made up to December 31, 2024.
Finally, British Airways is offering 10 Avios for every £1 spent on hotels via its online booking platform. Air France offers much the same thing with its Hotels for Miles program. The bonuses are generous, so take a look!
The major online travel agencies also have loyalty programs. Such is the case with Booking.com’s Genius program, which rewards members with discounts, upgrades and breakfasts.
With Hotels.com, you’ll receive a coupon equivalent to a free night when you stay 10 nights. Finally, Expedia’s One Key program works more like cash back on every stay. In any case, choose your favorite platform and make most of your bookings on it to earn rewards faster.
You can also double up by using Rakuten to receive cash back while also collecting your benefits from Booking.com, Hotels.com, or Expedia!
Many credit cards offer annual travel credits that can be applied to accommodation expenses. Here are just a few examples:
Be sure to check the terms and conditions of your travel credit, as restrictions may apply to some cards.
Holders of a American Express Platinum Card® or Business Platinum Card® from American Express have access to the Fine Hotels + Resorts program. When you book your luxury hotel through this platform, you’ll enjoy a host of benefits, including free breakfast for two, room upgrades, property credit and late check-out.
Learn more about this partner program with over 1,300 luxury accommodations worldwide:
If you look hard enough, you can always find special offers on accommodation. For example, every year, the StayVancouverHotels website offers prepaid Mastercard cards on reservations for certain hotels in Vancouver.
At the same time, American Express often offers online accommodation packages. In the past, we’ve seen credits for reservations at Marriott, Fairmont, Shangri-La, Sofitel, or even any of the hotels available on Amex Travel. There aren’t any at the moment, but this kind of offer comes up almost every year.
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In addition, tourism agencies sometimes run promotional campaigns. It’s worth checking your destination’s tourist office website to see if you can find a bargain.
Finally, online travel agencies such as Scene+ Travel, Expedia for TD or AIR MILES offer periodic promotions for bookings in certain cities or destinations. For example, this was the case last winter with Scotiabank’s Scene+ Travel program, which offered discounts on accommodations at ski resorts around the world.
The grocery store gift card technique also works for hotel reservations. In fact, Hotels.com gift cards are available at IGA, and by paying with an American Express Cobalt® Card or a Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card, you’ll maximize your collection of points.
However, before adopting this strategy, be sure to check your insurance certificate and the conditions under which coverage applies. If the accommodation has not been paid for in full with the credit card, certain coverages may no longer be valid, such as hotel burglary or trip cancellation insurance.
The number 1 tip for saving money on independent hotel bookings is to use credit card reward points. These accumulate rapidly with your daily spending and welcome bonuses when you open a new card.
For an overview, here’s a list of Canadian programs that allow you to redeem fixed-value points for hotels. Details of each program are given in the following sections.
The vast majority of points have a variable value depending on their use. The value shown in the table is the value when redeeming points for statement credit or for a discount on the card issuer’s online travel agency.
BMO Rewards points can be used to reimburse an accommodation reservation. The value of your BMO Rewards points redeemable for travel will be :
15,000 points = $100 (or 0.67¢/point) back on your credit card.
The National Bank À la carte Rewards program allows you to book an independent hotel on any platform and then apply your points as a statement credit. The redemption ratio is 12,000 points per $100 redeemed on your card or 55,000 points per $500.
Check out this article that explains how to apply your National Bank points to travel.
Aventura points can be used to book an independent hotel.
It’s all about paying the way you want with a CIBC Aventura card. Then, when the transaction is pending, you can use your points to pay it off right away!
TD’s travel platform is called Expedia for TD. Here you’ll find a variety of products, including a large selection of independent hotels. The most cost-effective way to use TD Rewards points is by booking travel directly on this site. 200 points are worth $1 off.
TD Rewards points can also be applied as a Statement credit if you book your accommodations elsewhere. The point value will be 250 points for a $1 refund on your credit card.
RBC Avion Rewards points can be exchanged for hotel nights as you see fit on the Avion Rewards site.
Your points will have a value of 100 points = $1 discount.
The best way to use MBNA Rewards points is to apply them to purchases made through their online travel agency:
10,000 points = $100.
The most lucrative way to use Scene+ points remains applying the points to travel purchases previously charged to the card (hotel, airplane, Airbnb, VRBO, cruise, etc.).
10,000 points = $100 less to pay on your credit card.
These points are accumulated with American Express credit cards.
The American Express Cobalt® Card is one of Canada’s best options for earning points fast. It offers 5 times points on restaurant spending, food delivery and groceries. This equates to a 5% return on these expenses.
What makes this card even more attractive is the way you can use the points you’ve accumulated. Once you have enough points, you can redeem them for a credit that will be applied directly to your statement.
10,000 Membership Rewards points translate into a $100 statement credit.
All cash-back credit cards are excellent for saving on independent hotels.
Promotional offers often include cash rebates of up to 10% on expenses during the first few month after account opening. Find the best offers of the month here.
To pay less on your next independent hotel reservation, consider one or more of the following strategies:
Savings, bonus points and budget vacations are yours!
The most effective strategy combines the use of a rewards portal with a credit card that maximizes points on travel spending. For example, book through Rakuten to get up to 6% off, then pay with a card offering additional points or discounts on travel (such as the Scotiabank Visa Infinite Passport Card).
Yes, it is possible to accumulate several advantages, for example with the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card on Expedia for TD: you can use your TD Rewards points, accumulate 8 points per dollar by charging the expense to your card and use the annual travel credit, all on the same reservation!
To maximize your savings on independent hotels, choose cards offering flexible points such as:
These cards allow you to book wherever you like and apply your points as a credit on your statement.
To benefit from your credit card’s travel insurance (cancellation and interruption), you must generally pay in full with your credit card. The use of rewards points from the card issuer is also accepted. A few cards (such as National Bank World Elite Mastercard) offer coverage even if you only pay for part of the reservation. In all cases, consult your insurance certificate for the exact conditions that apply to your card.
Booking directly with the hotel generally allows greater flexibility for changes, personalized customer service and recognition of your loyalty status. You may also have access to exclusive rates. Rewards portals, on the other hand, offer points accumulation, additional discounts and special promotions, often resulting in a more advantageous price. Our advice: always compare the two options by calculating the total value (price + points + benefits).
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