Should You Buy Wyndham Points for 0.98 Cents Apiece?

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As a general rule, I don’t cover the news when it comes to points/miles sales. Well, unless the deal is smokin’ hot. My advice is to first make travel plans, and then see if there are any points on sale that would allow you to save money. And of course, I recommend you try to use up what you have first before investing your cash in this very iffy currency.

But Wyndham sale is a possible exception, so I wanted to briefly mention it here on the blog. Through July 2nd, you can save 40% on purchase of Wyndham points. That works out to a price of about 0.98 cents apiece.

You are allowed to purchase up to 60k points per year/per account. Assuming you have a family and haven’t yet made any summer travel plans, this is something you may want to investigate.

Vacasa partnership is the best bang for your Wyndham point

I’ve written about a few properties I’ve personally stayed at myself. In fact, just recently I’ve mentioned how I was very happy with a vacation rental in Siesta Key. It wasn’t anything fancy, but the proximity to a beautiful beach made it a great deal IMO.

I’ve mostly done research on Florida, since that’s the state where we live. I can tell you that there are many great deals to be had. Like this rental in Key West, located in downtown area. I haven’t personally stayed in it, but it looks really nice. In general, Key West is one of the most expensive areas in Florida for tourists.

If you enjoy ocean views, the Panhandle area has a ton of condos. Whether they will be available during spring break season or major holidays will depend. That’s why I recommend calling Vacasa at 1-800-441-1034  to see if your desired rental is bookable for your dates, before purchasing the points.

The best deal: cabins in the mountains

This is something that was covered by Nick at Frequent Miler, and I consider it a truly incredible deal. The reason  I haven’t taken advantage of it is because we usually drive to Smoky Mountains with in-laws, and need at least three bedrooms. At 45k points per night, it simply doesn’t make sense to go this route.

If you are fortunate, you may find a cabin that has a loft, which is effectively a second bedroom without the extra cost. Some cabins even have hot tubs. So, you can potentially snag one of these for less than $150 per night, cleaning and all fees included. That is an incredible deal.

I’ve found nice cabins near Yosemite and other national parks, but you will see the most options around Smoky Mountains. Do keep in mind that the rental needs to cost $350 or less per night in order to be eligible for 15,000 points/per night redemption. I’ve asked several agents about this limitation, and none have said that this is indeed the policy. But it seems to be the case because more expensive rentals will usually be blacked out.

Of course, there are downsides to this deal and I recommend reading this post. The biggest negative is the fact that you lose all of your points if you cancel within thirty days of your stay. That’s why it’s not for those who want to keep flexibility in their travel plans. It’s possible that you may be able to insure the trip based on the cash cost of the rental, but I recommend reaching out to the company and getting the commitment in writing.

If you don’t intend to book a Vacasa property via Wyndham program right away, you may want to apply for one of their co-branded credit cards instead of buying points.

Right now the offers on personal versions are not as high as they were last year, so I suggest to wait. The business version, however, is worth considering. Right now you can get 65k points after spending $1k in 90 days, and an extra 10k points if you add an employee. Application link (doesn’t pay us commission).

Do keep in mind that Barclays is tough when it comes to approvals. Right now several of their business cards come with increased sign-up bonuses, so choose wisely. Personally, I would pick AAdvantage Business card (see Nancy’s post for details). But it really depends on what you are looking for. If you are swimming in miles, but lack hotel points, then Wyndham card may be preferable.

Personally, I feel like this deal will eventually be devalued. So take advantage of Vacasa partnership while you still can.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW VARIOUS CREDIT CARDS AND AVAILABLE SIGN-UP BONUSES