Earn Double Hilton HHonors Points at Elara in Las Vegas

I received an offer for double Hilton HHonors points at Elara, which is the newest Hilton Grand Vacations hotel in Las Vegas, if you book and stay by September 30, 2012. This promotion doesn’t appear to be targeted since the email directs me to sign up for HHonors if I’m not already a member.

This was an intriguing offer since I may be headed to Vegas later this year. However, Hilton Grand Vacations is Hilton’s timeshare brand. Having never stayed at one of those before, my initial interest was tempered by the fact that timeshares are notorious for making you sit through a sales presentation in exchange for a special gift/offer. After reading the T&C very carefully, there was no mention of a sales presentation so I decided to check the rates and see if this would be worth taking advantage of.

There is a slight twist to this double points offer. Normally all you have to do is pay a valid rate, whether it be the Best Available Rate, a AAA rate, etc. In this case, there is a Double Points rate. If you’re interested, use offer code “H0″ (that is a zero).

A check of my travel dates and of some random dates found that there is no difference in price between the Best Available Rate and the Double Points rate. Where you’ll encounter some problems is if you have AAA.

For my preferred dates, the AAA rate is $135 for a Studio and the Double Points rate is $159, a $24 difference. Here’s a look at how the earnings stack up:

• $135 x 10 HHonors points = 1,350 HHonors points
• $159 x (10 HHonors points x 2) = 3,180 HHonors points

The difference in points between the two rates is 1,830 points. Assuming a half cent valuation for HHonors points, the 1,830 points is worth $9.15. You’d actually lose $15 if you paid more for the Double Points rate. If you’re in Las Vegas, the last thing you want to do is willingly put yourself in the hole.

I checked other random dates and found instances where the difference between the Double Points and AAA rates were $12 and $16. Even though the difference is less, the math simply won’t work out in your favor.

Not everyone has AAA so this could be a good offer if you plan to be in Las Vegas before October. The rates in the middle of the summer and even on the weekends are pretty good compared to what you’ll pay at other popular Las Vegas hotels. Of course the trade-off is not being able to go downstairs and immediately be right in the middle of all the action.