Best Western Rewards Review

Who is the Best Western Rewards card for?

The Best Western Rewards card is a solid choice for any frequent travelers who often stay at a Best Western hotel. The lack of a foreign transaction fee makes it easy for people who like to travel to avoid pesky fees while they are abroad. This card also does not have an annual fee, making it a great card for anyone who is fee-averse.

For such little fees, this card comes with big perks. By signing up for this card, you will receive 16,000 bonus points with an additional 16,000 points after your first stay at a Best Western hotel. You will also benefit from being automatically updated to gold status. 

Gold status members receive all the perks of blue status, plus additional benefits such as:

• A total of 11 points earned for every $1 spent on eligible stays
• Room upgrades
• Thank-you gifts or additional bonus points

However, you will also earn an additional 2 points by using your rewards card, meaning that you will make 13 points for every $1 spent on eligible Best Western stays. If you are not at a Best Western hotel, there is still the option to earn 2 points on every other purchase.

To add to the benefits, the points you earn can be redeemed for a variety of different things, including gift cards, free hotel stays, and one-of-a-kind adventures. Your points will also never expire, which is a valuable feature for those who like to save.

Welcome Bonus

Owning this card allows for points to be earned effortlessly. For starters, cardholders will earn 16,000 on their first purchase. Paired with this, cardholders will receive an additional 16,000 points from booking their first stay at a Best Western hotel. For no annual or foreign transaction fees, you will be making money at no cost.

Besides the welcome bonus, you will also be able to earn points constantly. Whether it is 13 points earned for every $1 at a Best Western hotel or 2 points on all other purchases, cardholders will be able to earn on anything they desire to purchase. 

This, combined with the never-expiring points policy, makes it a great card for people looking to save and maximize their points earned.

Intro APR

There is, however, no intro APR for purchases or balance transfers. The regular APR varies between 20.24% and 24.24%, depending on your creditworthiness. This APR is relatively high, so if your goal is to finance a large purchase or transfer your balance between accounts, other cards are more suitable.

Rewards

One major perk of owning this card is that you will be automatically upgraded to Best Western gold status. This comes with all of the perks of blue status, which includes:

• 10 points for every $1 spent
• Booking awards without any blackout dates
• The ability to request early check-in or late check-out
• Redeeming points for free nights

These blue perks are all included for gold status members. Additionally, members receive the option for free room upgrades, if available, a thank-you gift or additional points, and an extra point for every $1 spent.

These rewards are extremely valuable for people who frequently visit a Best Western hotel. We recommend, to get the most out of this card, to stay at only Best Westerns to maximize the points you can earn.

However, 2 points are also earned for every $1 on all other purchases, making this still a great card for everyday purchases.

Fees

Another attractive feature of this card is that it does not require an annual fee or a foreign transaction fee. This means that all of the previously stated rewards and bonuses come at virtually no cost to the cardholder.

However, there are some fees to take note of. For starters, on top of the interest on balance transfers, there is also a balance transfer fee of $10 or 5%, whichever is greater. There is also a late payment fee of up to $39 and a return payment fee of up to $35. This makes it extremely important to make your payments on time, since failing to do so will result in extra unnecessary fees.

Conclusion

Ultimately, this card will be appealing to a variety of different people. Specifically, frequent travelers and those who often stay at Best Western Hotels will benefit the most from owning this card. With no annual or foreign transaction fees, this is a solid choice card for individuals who prefer to avoid fees. This card’s easy to earn points system and never-expiring rewards makes it great for those who like to earn a lot without spending much. 

However, we advise people who need a card to finance large purchases or transfer balances look at other cards with a lower APR and balance transfer fee.