For our recent HK trip, I was able to redeem my Delta Skymiles in exchange for free hotel stays. I didn't know about this option before until I browsed the Delta website to check for any good deals similar to Asia Miles. Luckily, they had just started the Delta Skymiles Marketplace early this year to allow fliers who earned miles not enough for a free trip to redeem them instead for merchandise or hotel stays. Unfortunately for my account (as I am based in the Philippines), my only options for redemption are hotels and car rentals (no merchandise available for redemption).
I did some search for how much miles are needed for hotels in HK. Am glad to see that there were a lot of options. Aside from the miles required, information such as hotel rating, location (including map), and even amenities are also provided. Booking on your preferred date is also immediate. The available accommodations change daily (probably updates real-time). You can also opt to sort the search results by amount of miles required, rating, etc.
I was surprised to see one day that there were also hostel options. This is good news for me, as my miles were only good enough for 1 night in a hotel but for a hostel, it's already good enough for 3 nights. So for our 3-night stay in HK, I chose USA Hostel. I got this for 15,990 miles (for a double deluxe room).
I did some search for how much miles are needed for hotels in HK. Am glad to see that there were a lot of options. Aside from the miles required, information such as hotel rating, location (including map), and even amenities are also provided. Booking on your preferred date is also immediate. The available accommodations change daily (probably updates real-time). You can also opt to sort the search results by amount of miles required, rating, etc.
I was surprised to see one day that there were also hostel options. This is good news for me, as my miles were only good enough for 1 night in a hotel but for a hostel, it's already good enough for 3 nights. So for our 3-night stay in HK, I chose USA Hostel. I got this for 15,990 miles (for a double deluxe room).
In addition to using miles, one also has the option to add cash if your miles are not sufficient. I did some mock checking for hotels to see how much I would need to add. The rates are still a good deal. This allows more flexibility in using your miles. You can either use them all up or just set a fixed amount for redemption.
After booking, a confirmation page will appear as well as support contact information in case of questions. The downside is that the 2 contact numbers provided did not work for me. I tried contacting both but they do not seem to work outside of the US. I didn't attempt to make an overseas call as it might be too expensive.
I tried to email through their support email but the reply just referred me back to the same contact numbers. I was frustrated with this. If you have changes or additional questions, then you're at a dead end.
Because of this, I attempted to contact the hostel directly 2 days before our flight. Fortunately, the hostel acknowledged the booking through the booking number that was provided in the confirmation page/email from Delta. I then inquired all my questions directly with them.
Upon checkin, the hostel noted correctly that the accommodation has been fully paid. So we did not pay any more additional fees / taxes (just the key deposit which was returned upon checkout and surrender of the key).
Overall, I consider the experience pleasurable, as we were able to get free accommodation for 3 nights and had no hassle in checking in. The only problem is trying to contact Delta in case one needs to make changes to the booking if you're outside of the US.
I tried to email through their support email but the reply just referred me back to the same contact numbers. I was frustrated with this. If you have changes or additional questions, then you're at a dead end.
Because of this, I attempted to contact the hostel directly 2 days before our flight. Fortunately, the hostel acknowledged the booking through the booking number that was provided in the confirmation page/email from Delta. I then inquired all my questions directly with them.
Upon checkin, the hostel noted correctly that the accommodation has been fully paid. So we did not pay any more additional fees / taxes (just the key deposit which was returned upon checkout and surrender of the key).
Overall, I consider the experience pleasurable, as we were able to get free accommodation for 3 nights and had no hassle in checking in. The only problem is trying to contact Delta in case one needs to make changes to the booking if you're outside of the US.
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