Four co-branded credit cards were first announced by Hilton Honors and American Express on Wednesday, November 1, 2017, which are designed to give consumers and small businesses more choice, more benefits and more value while simultaneously further enhancing travel experiences and rewards.
Welcome Offers For Hilton Honors American Express Cards — October 2020
Along with a recapitulation of the benefits of each card for your convenience in this rare article pertaining to credit cards of any type here at The Gate — no links are affiliate links in this article, as this is purely for information only — the details of the sign-up bonuses are highlighted in bold blue type at the bottom of the list of each card.
Hilton Honors American Express Card
Designed for the occasional traveler, this card has been upgraded from its predecessor — including the removal of foreign transaction fees — while maintaining the same name and benefits of the original card.
The full benefits include:
- Seven times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at hotel and resort properties which are part of the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- Five times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at grocery stores, restaurants and fuel stations within the United States
- Three times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Silver elite level status; and earn Gold elite level status after spending $20,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- No foreign transaction fees
- No annual fee
- SIGN-UP BONUS: Earn a $100 Statement Credit after your first purchase on the Hilton Honors American Express Card within your first 3 months. Plus, earn 75,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $1,000.00 in purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership.
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card
For what Hilton calls “the savvy and established traveler”, this card will deliver maximized travel rewards — including elevated Hilton Honors elite level status; the ability to earn more Hilton Honors points; and ten Priority Lounge passes at no extra charge.
The full benefits include:
- Twelve times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at hotel and resort properties which are part of the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- Six times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at grocery stores, restaurants and fuel stations within the United States
- Three times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold elite level status; and earn Diamond elite level status after spending $40,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort property within the Hilton worldwide portfolio after spending $15,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- Ten Priority Pass Lounge passes are included at no extra charge to ease your experience at the airport
- No foreign transaction fees
- $95.00 annual fee
- SIGN-UP BONUS: Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points and a free weekend night after you spend a minimum of $2,000.00 during the first three months of card membership.
Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
This card is designed to address the needs of 25 million small business owners in the United States by getting the most out of every dollar spent and every mile traveled to invest back into their businesses. Although this card is similar to the Ascend card in many ways, it will allow the user to maximize card rewards related to business expenses and travel and includes access to the American Express OPEN platform designed specifically for small business owners.
The full benefits include:
- Twelve times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at hotel and resort properties which are part of the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- Six times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at
- Restaurants and fuel stations within the United States
- Wireless telephone services purchased directly from service producers in the United States and purchases in the United States for shipping
- Flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com
- Car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies
- Three times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold elite level status; and earn Diamond elite level status after spending $40,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort property within the Hilton worldwide portfolio after spending $15,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- A second Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort property within the Hilton worldwide portfolio after spending $60,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- Ten Priority Pass Lounge passes are included at no extra charge to ease your experience at the airport
- No foreign transaction fees
- $95.00 annual fee
- SIGN-UP BONUS: Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after you spend a minimum of $3,000.00 during the first three months of card membership.
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
Frequent travelers seeking premium services and elevated experiences will enjoy instant Diamond elite level status, lounge access, airline credits, free nights and concierge access at all times — and you can earn as many as 14 times the Hilton Honors bonus points.
The full benefits include:
- 14 times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent at hotel and resort properties which are part of the Hilton portfolio worldwide
- Seven times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent on
- Flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com
- Car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies
- At restaurants in the United States
- Three times the Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Diamond elite level status
- One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort property within the Hilton worldwide portfolio with your new card and each year of card membership thereafter
- A second Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort property within the Hilton worldwide portfolio after spending $60,000.00 in purchases on the card within a calendar year
- Unlimited Priority Pass lounge passes are included at no extra charge to ease your experience at the airport
- $250.00 airline incidental fee statement credit
- $250.00 Hilton resort statement credit
- $100.00 on-property credit at Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts and Conrad Hotels & Resorts properties when booking the exclusive Aspire Card package
- Access to an American Express concierge 24 hours per day, seven days per week
- No foreign transaction fees
- $450.00 annual fee
- SIGN-UP BONUS: Earn 150,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after you spend a minimum of $4,000.00 during the first three months of card membership — but please note that this offer is permanently ongoing and is not new or temporary as part of this promotion
Some Suggestions on How to Spend the Bonus Hilton Honors Points You Earn
To explore ways to use Hilton Honors points for travel and beyond, visit PointsExplorer.HiltonHonors.com; and for more information and details on how to use this tool, you can read this article which I wrote. For more exceptional, money-can’t-buy experiences from sports, culinary and cultural offerings, to entertainment and adventures, visit Experiences.HiltonHonors.com…
…but Hilton is providing its members even greater value when Hilton Honors points are redeemed on stays across the portfolio of 18 brands of lodging options by lowering point redemption pricing at many hotel and resort properties in the United States. A few property examples for stays in October and November of 2020 are:
- Mountain Getaway: Take a weekend or extended Work from Hotel trip to or to view the autumn leaves, explore the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and drive the Blue Ridge Parkway.
- Hilton Garden Inn Gatlinburg — starting from 23,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- DoubleTree by Hilton Asheville – Biltmore — starting from 25,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- Beach Retreat: For those who love summer year-round to enjoy the sun, sea and sand. October is also National Seafood Month — so these locations are just a few ideal spots to sample fresh seafood with their proximity to the ocean. Head to either:
- Baker’s Cay Resort Key Largo, Curio Collection by Hilton — starting from 42,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort — starting from 44,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- City Staycation: Craving a change of scenery, but close to home? Create a new meaning to Work from Hotel with a reward stay in:
- Dallas at the Hilton Anatole — starting at 29,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- Tampa at the Hilton Tampa Downtown — starting from 25,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- Denver at the Hilton Denver City Center — starting from 21,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- Take a road trip to Palm Springs and explore Joshua Tree National Park — which is less than an hour from the following two hotel properties at which you can stay:
- La Quinta Resort & Spa, a Waldorf Astoria Resort — starting from 44,000 Hilton Honors points per night
- DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Golf Resort Palm Springs — starting from 29,000 Hilton Honors points per night
Summary
The original sign-up bonuses for the then-new four cards of the Hilton Honors American Express Card portfolio were then introduced on Thursday, January 18, 2018. Some of the sign-up bonuses were then permanently revised and improved on Friday, September 7, 2018.
Keep in mind that even the bonus of 150,000 Hilton Honors points for the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card is only good for one night and some change at some aspirational hotel and resort properties. For example, you will need a minimum of 95,000 Hilton Honors points to stay for one night at Conrad Maldives Rangali Island — and you can now use Hilton Honors points to book water villas at this resort property. For example, the Sunset Water Villa is the most expensive option for award nights at 1,691,000 Hilton Honors points per night if you do not want to pay $4,200.00 per night.
Then again, you only need as few as 5,000 Hilton Honors points to stay at some hotel properties worldwide — which means as many as 30 nights with that same bonus; or as few as 10,000 Hilton Honors points to stay at some hotel properties worldwide — which means as many as 15 nights with that same bonus. It is all a relative matter of perspective.
As a disclaimer — other than what I typically earn from views of articles at The Gate and through affiliate links — I have received absolutely no compensation for anyone who signs up as a new cardmember for any of the Hilton Honors American Express cards.
Source: Hilton Honors.
