Embassy Suites Anchorage

The Embassy Suites Anchorage is located fairly close to the airport although you will need a shuttle to get to the hotel. Make sure to give them a call when you arrive as the shuttle does not run periodically. The hotel is located a few miles away so it will take some time for the shuttle to arrive at the airport.

As a Category 8 hotel, one night did cost a pricey 50,000 Hilton HHonors points (although you will find most other Anchorage hotels also charging exhorbitant amounts for what they offer as well). Likely the best compromise would be the Sheraton Anchorage which probably offers better value for their points.  Sadly, I had already run out of SPG points so I had 'settle' for this hotel.

Four Points by Sheraton Vancouver Airport

Last year when I was looking for a cheap points redemption in Vancouver, one of the properties that stood out was the Four Points by Sheraton Vancouver Airport.  At the time, it was an SPG category 2 property requiring just 4,000 points on weekdays and 3,000 points on weekends when it regularly goes for ~$140 USD giving a fabulous redemption ratio of ~3-4 cents per SPG point.  It has now (as of 9/7/2014) gone up to a category 3 property requiring 7,000 points per night which is still reasonable but not as good of a steal.

Grand Hyatt Incheon

Having seen pictures of the Grand Hyatt Incheon (formerly the Hyatt Regency Incheon), awarded Best Airport Hotel' by Global Traveler magazine and ranking #4 on Tripadvisor's Top 25 luxury hotels of South Korea for 2013, I had made sure to include this hotel as part of my trip to Seoul during my stopover in Incheon. As a category 2 (which deservedly moved up to category 3 earlier this year), this hotel was an amazing value for just 8,000 Hyatt Gold Passport points (and I would argue that it still even at 12,000 points)! There is a lot of focus on service (almost too much I'd say) when there are at least 3 people greeting you as you enter the lobby, asking if you need help with your luggage and leading you to the check-in desk (which was not difficult at all to locate).

Aston Lakeland Village Lake Tahoe

The Aston Lakeland Village is located very centrally in the South Lake Tahoe area. They offer a variety of lodging options from lodges to lakefront town homes. The complex has a very communal feel with the buildings grouped fairly close together while the trees make you feel right at home with nature.

Sheraton San Jose

The Sheraton San Jose, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, is a Starwood Category 4 hotel located near the Great Mall in Milpitas and about an hours drive from both San Francisco and Santa Cruz. The hotel is located near a few business parks and fairly close to a major freeway.

St Regis Princeville & Hanalei Bay

Located on the north shore of Kauai are the towns of Princeville and Hanalei. Together, they provide a breathtaking view, one of the most formidable I've ever seen. The St Regis Princeville, a Starwood Category 7 property just down the road from the Westin Princeville, sits high up overlooking Hanalei Bay.

Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas

This gorgeous Category 6 Starwood vacation property on the Hawaiian Island of Kauai was a steal as a (then) category 5 redemption at 12,000 points/night (before it moved up to a category 6 on March 5, 2013). When combined with with the 'redeem 4 nights get the 5th free', this made for one of the best aspirational value redemptions I've ever made at 'just' 48,000 SPG points.

Best Western Shinjuku Astina Hotel Tokyo

The Best Western Shinjuku Astina Hotel Tokyo is located about a 10 minute walk north east of Shinjuku station. It might be a little hard to find but generally once you're out of the station (say on the west side), just head north until you see the bridge for the train, then turn east onto Yasukuni Dori past the Kabukicho area (bright neon red light district area) until you see the Shinjuku ward office (government-like building) on your left (north). Turn in here and make your way up 2 blocks and you should be able to see the hotel sign. The hotel is located just above the Lawson's store. You'll need to take two escalators up to get to the lobby or you can just take the elevators straight up to the 3rd floor to check in. The lobby is quite modern and pleasant, with the decor being a little unusual for the Best Western brand here in America.

Hilton Tokyo Executive Lounge Breakfast

I just had to do another piece on the Hilton Tokyo's executive lounge breakfast as it was really quite an nice experience. As mentioned, the executive lounge is only opening to those residing on the executive floors although they seemed to be a bit lax on the checks. In any case, the lounge had your typical assortment of western items such as scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon and there was actually a nice international variety of stuff like siu mai and stir-fried noodles.

Hilton Tokyo

This was my first visit to Japan and knowing how expensive Tokyo can get, I decided to make use of some of the points I had stashed up. Of the major programs, Starwood and Marriott both had relatively few offerings in the vicinity and all of those were quite high up in category so I decided to stay at the Hilton Tokyo, a Category 6 hotel. This would usually go for 40,000 HH points per night but with the AXON code (for Hilton American Express card members), a 4-night stay was redeemed for just 125,000 points, a discount of almost 9,000 points (or almost 22%)! That meant this cost even less than my Category 5 redemption at the Embassy Suites Montreal! And given that a regular room generally costs at least $300 USD, I was getting pretty much getting 1 cent / HH point which was outstanding value, especially at a top tier hotel in Japan!

The Hilton Tokyo is located near the major Shinjuku Metro/Rail station and almost right next to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, known for its observation deck on the 45th floor, which is free to the public but which I unfortunately didn't get a chance to use this time around.

Vdara Hotel Las Vegas

Took a short break from work during Thanksgiving to head to Vegas. Our first hotel stop was the Vdara hotel, a casino-free hotel located in the CityCenter complex near the Aria, the Cosmopolitan and the Bellagio. Tucked away at the back, one can get to the Vdara via the drop off roundabout area shared by the Vdara and Aria, or you can take the short covered walkway between the Vdara and the Bellagio. If you look for signs for the tram in the Bellagio, head in that direction and you'll quickly locate the Vdara.

Trump International Hotel Las Vegas

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend! I'd been waiting for this past weekend with great anticipation as we'd be staying at the Vdara Hotel and the Trump International in Las Vegas. More on the Vdara in the next post but whatever you may think about the Donald's hair, the hotel is DEFINITELY pretty swanky. Here's a picture from outside:

Room Key Hotel for the Holidays Sweepstakes

Room Key is running a sweepstakes for a $500 gift card to use at one of their sponsor hotels.  Sign up here for your chance to win!  Sign up quickly as the contest closes on Oct 28, 2012!

Westin St Francis San Francisco

The historic Westin St Francis is one of the more prolific and storied hotels in San Francisco and it was a pleasure for us to be able to stay at this gorgeous Starwood Category 5 property.  Located in the heart of the city right in Union Square, the hotel boasts a majestic historic lobby in the Landmark Building where stands an extraordinary Viennese Magneta grandfather clock.

Hyatt House Belmont/Redwood Shores

The Hyatt House Belmont/Redwood Shores is conveniently located near Highway 101 between San Jose and San Francisco and is situated in the Belmont/Redwood Shores area next to its own small lake.

San Francisco Airport Marriott Waterfront

The San Francisco Airport Marriott Waterfront was a great airport hotel for an overnight stay.  As a Category 5 Marriott, I was redeeming my annual Category 1-5 free night award here and it was certainly well spent.  The prime waterfront location and its proximity to the airport make its location truly ideal especially if you're looking for a place to stay near SFO located between San Francisco and San Jose.

Crowne Plaza Times Square

Located about 3-4 blocks away from Times Square is the classy and modern Crowne Plaza Times Square hotel. The lounge and atrium area are quite spacious and roomy.

Sheraton LaGuardia East

The Sheraton LaGuardia East hotel is located in the bustling Queens Chinatown area and a very close 2 minute walk from the Flushing Main St Metro station. While it is about a 35 minute train ride into downtown Manhattan, it is surrounded by plenty of shops and restaurants in case you need anything.

Andaz West Hollywood

After two nights at the Category 2 Hyatt Place Ontario/Rancho Cucamonga, we decided to splurge a little on the points and go for the Hyatt Category 4 (requiring 15k points per night) Andaz West Hollywood (aka Riot House) located on the world famous Sunset Boulevard. Parking can set you back a bit though at their rather pricey $32/night overnight valet-only rate.

Hyatt Place Ontario/Rancho Cucamonga

Just recently spent a brief weekend for fun in Los Angeles and decided to try out the new Hyatt Place. This was the Hyatt Place Ontario/Rancho Cucamonga located near Ontario Airport next to the rather large Ontario Mills mall. As a Hyatt Gold Passport member, you can redeem one free night here for 8k points as a Category 2 hotel. The only knock against this hotel might be its location as it is rather far from most of the attractions in the greater Los Angeles area although its pricing definitely offsets that.