I’ve been writing about the Club Carlson Big Night Giveaway recently and have received many questions about the promotion. Instead of having to sift through the comments amongst multiple posts, I figured I’d answer the questions for all of you in this post here. Originally this was going to be a top 10 list, but I thought of additional questions as I was going along and others have posted questions in the comments section which I am including in this main post. Maybe it will be the top 20 questions soon?!
Q1: Do AAA, Government rates, or Senior rates qualify for the promotion?
Yes! All rates that earn regular points for your stay qualify for the bonus points as part of the promotion.
Q2: Do Friends & Family rates qualify for the promotion?
No. Friends & Family rates do not earn regular points, thus do not qualify for the promotion.
Q3: Do reservations booked with Cash & Points qualify for the promotion?
Yes! Club Carlson is unique where the Cash portion of the stay earns the 20 points per dollar spent. Since you are earning points on your stay, you will receive the bonus points as part of the promotion. This is the only hotel program currently where you earn points for the cash portion.
Q4: How does the Best Rate Guarantee work?
If you fine a rate on another site lower than the best rate available on clubcarlson.com (by at least $1.00 USD, €1 EUR or £1 GBP) Club Carlson will match the lower found rate and discount it by 25%. The rate you find MUST be for the same dates, same room type, same number of guests, same hotel, and same rate terms/restrictions (i.e., non-refundable, refundable, etc.). This lower rate must be found within 24 hours of your original booking and at least 48 hours prior to your arrival at the hotel.
If you find a lower rate, you must submit a claim form including the lower rate, the web address you found it on, the date found, and any additional comments you feel are necessary. Here are the respective claim forms: Radisson® Claim, Country Inns & SuitesSM Claim, Park Inn by Radisson Claim, and Park Plaza® Claim
If your claim is approved, keep in mind that the cancellation terms of the reservation fully change. The full prepayment will be billed to the credit card provided when making your reservation and $25.00 becomes non-refundable, even if you cancel your reservation well in advance. Regardless of the initial cancellation terms when you booked, cancellations made within 3 days of arrival will be charged 1 night plus tax.
For example, if the best rate available on clubcarlson.com for non-refundable King room at the Country Inn & Suites in Bentonville is $89 on June 3, 2012, but hotels.com has this same room type on June 3rd for $79, if the claim is submitted within 24 hours of your booking on the clubcarlson.com website, they will drop your final rate to $59.25 (25% less of the $79.com rate found at hotels.com).
Q5: Am I able to take advantage of all three Club Carlson promotions, or can I only register/qualify for one?
You can register and qualify for all three promotions and get a total of 138,000 points per person. The three promotions include:
- Radisson: “Big Night Giveaway” – Earn 50,000 bonus points after a stay at a Radisson or Radisson Blu hotel between May 15-July 15 – limited to the first 100,000 people who register
- Country Inn & Suites: “Stay 1 Get 1 So Go Promotion” – Earn 44,000 bonus points after a stay at a Country Inn & Suites by Carlson hotel between May 15-July 15 – limited to the first 35,000 people who register
- Park Inn Promotion: “Stay 1 Plus 1 Promotion” – Earn 44,000 bonus points after a stay at a Park Inn by Radisson hotel between May 22-July 22 (registration does not begin until May 22) – limited to the first 20,000 people who register
Q6: Will reservations I made prior to registering for the promotion qualify for the bonus points?
Yes! The original terms and conditions stated that only new reservations qualified for the promotion, however, after a few days that was changed and now ALL reservations count regardless of when they were made.
Q7: Is there a way to fully maximize this promotion by using one of the online shopping portals?
Yes! Prior to making your reservation you should scout out which shopping portal will work the best for you – you can earn either go for a site where you eran bonus points/miles and get cash back. This is just one quick and easy extra step to making your reservation. Once accessing the shopping portal, search for “Radisson” and then click the link that will take you directly to the Club Carlson/Radisson website. You will then make your reservation as you normally would but will receive commission in points or cash back just by going through the portal. I’ve compiled some of the portals and their perks:
- TopCashBack.com – 10% cash back
- Mrrebates.com – 7.5% cash back
- ebates.com – 3.5% cash back
- American Express Membership Rewards – 3x points per $1 spent
- US Airways – 1x point per $1 spent
- United – 1x point per $1 spent
Q8: If both myself and my significant partner are staying at a hotel can we book two rooms and get the points twice?
Absolutely, but you must book two rooms, not one! You will need to book each room under the respective person’s Club Carlson account number and check into both rooms. If you are staying at the hotel and actually only occupying one room, you will still need to pay for both rooms.
Q9: Can I check into both a Radisson and Country Inn & Suites on the same night and still get the bonus points?
While this is not confirmed, I do not see why not. There have been many times when I had multiple stays across the country on the same night at the same hotel chain and got the points and bonus points for those nights. I have never tried this at a Club Carlson brand hotel though, so I cannot confirm for sure. You might need one location for the evening and another location for the morning, right?!
Q10: If I have a three night stay, for example, is there a way to get this bonus more than once?
If you are staying with another person, make three separate reservations. Person X will be the first night, Person Y the second and third night. If there are three people in the room, the third night can be Person Z. Just make sure you check in and out each morning and the correct account number is on each bill. They might make you change rooms, but if you be-friend the person at the front desk and explain that you’d prefer to stay in the same room and that it will make it easier on the hotel itself you will probably get lucky – no guarantees though.
Q11: If I earn the bonus points at a Country Inn & Suites hotel, can they only be redeemed at Country Inn & Suites properties?
No! All points and bonus points earned will go into the same Club Carlson account. While the promotion is advertised as “Stay 1, Get 1” you are essentially getting the 50k (Radisson) or 44k (Country Inn & Suites and Park Inn) deposited directly into your Club Carlson account that can be redeemed amongst any of the Club Carlson brand hotels. This includes: Radisson Blu, Radisson, Country Inn & Suites, Park Inn, and Park Plaza. You can see all the hotels and the number of points needed to redeem at this Club Carlson site here. Keep in mind that on May 31st some hotels will be moving categories (up and down).
Q12: In addition to the bonus points earned, what other points do I earn when staying at a Club Carlson property?
You will earn 20 points per dollar spent plus bonus points for booking your reservation online. All members will receive 1,000 bonus points for booking online, Silver and Gold members will earn 2,000 points for booking online, and Concierge members will earn 3,000 points. If your room costs $99/night and you are staying 1 night, the regular points you will earn is 1,980 plus the booking bonus of 1,000-3,000 points. On top of this you will earn the 50,000 or 44,000 bonus points for the current promotion.
Q13: If I have status with another hotel chain, will Club Carlson match this status?
Typically yes. Email Club Carlson at goldpointsplus@carlson.com requesting a status match and include a screenshot of your current hotel status at another chain. Make sure to include your Club Carlson number.
Q14: I am currently a Club Carlson member, how do I join?
If you are not currently a member you can create a new Club Carlson account here – this will give you a 2,000 bonus once you complete your first stay within 90 days.
Q15: If I took part in this promotion in November/December 2011, can I participate again?
Absolutely! This is the 2nd time they’ve offered this promotion (although last time only Radisson hotels qualified) and everyone is able to take advantage again.
Q16: Do I have to physically check in and check out to earn the points?
Like almost every other hotel chain, you must physically check into the hotel to be a registered guest. If you book a room and do not show up to check in they will mark you as a no-show. Typically, no shows are charged one nights rate (although it depends on the hotel) and points are not awarded. You will ONLY earn the promotional points when you earn regular points for your stay.
Regarding physically checking-out, ideally this promotion is catered towards getting folks to actually stay and experience their hotel. With that said, I typically do not physically check out of hotels when I stay and if I need the bill for any reason I call later and ask them to email or fax it to me.
Q17: If I book my stay through a third party booking site, like hotels.com or expedia.com, will I still be eligible for this promotion?
No, unfortunately, when you book through a third party booking site, you will not earn regular points for your stay. You will only receive the bonus points on a stay where you are earning the typical regular points. While there are times these stays slip through the cracks and some do earn points on these stays, I would not risk it. Anyways, when you do find a site that is cheaper than what is on clubcarlson.com, just book your reservation on Club Carlson and then submit the lower rate found via their Best Rate Guarantee (BRG) claim form (from Q4).
Any other questions you might have? Let me know! Also, as a final disclaimer, while I personally am very excited over this promotion, take a minute or two to see if this promotion works for you. Will you actually use these points? Is there a particular hotel that you desire to stay at?
Enjoy!
The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
This is great!!
This answers about every potential question one might have.
thanks!!!
@Puppydogs – glad this helps!
Does brg scenario require physical check-in/ check out when stay is prepaid?
@Fauxblogger – To earn points with Club Carlson you must physically check into the hotel. They do not award points on “phantom” stays and instead you will be charged a no show fee. The no show fee does not earn points, thus you will not earn the bonus points.
Do you have to check-out the following morning? This promotion would work great for me (stay at an inexpensive place near the airport, then cash in for a great hotel in Europe). I’d like to checkin, go to the room then just leave – not staying the night at all. The T&Cs all mention “check-out”, but relating to check-out dates. Will I get points if I “check-out” 30 minutes after I check-in? Any thoughts/guidance is appreciated.
@Tim – While I cannot 100% guarantee anything, I can say that I did this last year. Typically when I stay at a hotel, I never officially check out as I am running out and see no reason to even stop at the front desk. If I ever need my bill, I call the hotel asking them to fax/email the bill. If you do this though, might want to make it look like someone slept in the bed 🙂
If I participated in the promotion from last year, can I participate again? Thanks
@Maury – Absolutely!
are you positive that a points & cash night qualifies for the promotion?
@Emily – Yes, 100% sure.
Wow, I didn’t know cash & points qualified for this promotion. Great FAQ!
@Justin – Yup! This is a great way to not have to spend as much out of pocket.
There are only 10 Park Inn in the US and non around me. but there is a Park Plazas. Can I stay at a Park Plaza and get the promotion for the Park Inn?
@clu – As of right now I am not 100% sure as the T&C have not yet been released, but I do not believe so.
Great Job! Just to add to Q1, senior rates count too, and as long as one of the guests is a senior, you can take advantage of the rate. (even if the CC member who is paying for the room is not a senior)
@ORD – TGU – Thanks for pointing that out, you are absolutely correct.
In the middle of the last promotion, they changed our Radisson to a Park Inn. We registered, booked 2 rooms, and then had to cancel because we were told the stay at the Park Inn wouldn’t count even though the resv pre-dated the change.
Well, now we have the Park Inn so I think we’ll go for it. The weirdness is that I can find low ($70-80) pricing in June for multiple days, but the same dates go to $129-ish when going for a single night. Conspiracy anyone??? However, I see that some dates this week are going for $69 (but not the weekends as this one – ABQ – has a water park.) We may have to go check in, let the kids use the pool, grab dinner and head home. To be safe I’ll make the 20 min drive at lunch the next day to check out. We have twin tots, so making the rooms look lived in will present no problem!
Not much chance to use the Radisson, but 94k points (x2) will serve us well.
Regarding the BRG claims, the club carlson T&C’s for BRG state that special rates do not qualify (AAA, government, etc). So be aware that the lowest available public rate must be booked to be eligible for a BRG claim.
thank you so much for this post!! i had no idea cash & points qualified for stays, this is going to save me a fortune 🙂
@Emily – You are welcome! Enjoy!
Do you know if corporate rates qualify?
@newbie – As long as the rate earns regular points, then yes, it qualifies. Typically these rates do qualify, just check the rate details and ensure no where does it state that the rate does not qualify for points. Typically these rates are limited to Friends & Family rates, although there are some exceptions.
thank you.
For this specific stay and promotion, I will book BAR, yes, they may be $5-$10 more expensive at the hotels I am looking at, so no real damage, but I will sleep better not risking the gain of 50k/44k/44k. On other stays I will get creative.
Will it count if I book all three (Radisson, Country inn and Park inn) thru topcashback or do I have to book the Park inn thru parkinn.com? Thx
@Hai – Yes, you can book all three through the Radisson topcashback.com site as it directs you to the general booking page for Club Carlson were you can book a hotel for any of the three chains.
Does anyone knows after BRG rate also qualify for this promotion?
@Kim – Yes they do.
[…] put together a top 10 list of questions and answers regarding these Club Carlson promotion, so make sure to check it out before taking part in this […]
@dealswelike – Thank you for your prompt replay and Im now waiting for my BGR result with much comfy mind. 🙂
Refining a point in your question Q16 of Top Questions: Do I have to physically check in and check out to earn the points? ….Regarding physically checking-out, ideally this promotion is catered towards getting folks to actually stay and experience their hotel. With that said, I typically do not physically check out of hotels when I stay and if I need the bill for any reason I call later and ask them to email or fax it to me. My wife and I will would like to use the Radisson LHR for a day room to get some real sleep between very long flights. If I book a regular 1 night stay and check in at 10am, then check out early at 7pm to use their shuttle to return to the airport for my flight, will this still count as a 1 night stay and count for the promotion? And how do you ” I typically do not physically check out of hotels when I stay”? How does the hotel you have left for good and are not returning? Thanks.
@Barry – Many hotels in Europe will charge you the night before if you check in as early as 10am, so I would just double check with the hotel that you will not be charged and that they’ll have a room available. Most check ins are around 3pm.
A hotel does not know whether you physically checkout – I see no issue with this.
@dealswelike – One more question about QS for this promotion… ADV(PRE-PAID) RATE also qualify?
Wells Fargo (Rewards) Earn More Mall you can earn 2x points per $1 spent at Radisson.
How long does it take for the points to post after check-out?
@Matt MSP – I have not yet completed by Radisson stay, but others have reported just a few days.
regarding posting time: I stayed at 2 separate properties ( Radisson and Country Inn) this past Tuesday and Wednesday. On business and it worked out that i could stay at both brands over 2 nights.
The Tuesday stay showed on my account this morning, earning over 58000 points, including the 50000 bonus.
Hopefully, the other one post over the next few days ( Country Inn) and i earn my base plus bonus.
awesome promo as this will pay for 2 nights in Europe next month where the room rate is over 200 Euros per night.
i am tempted to stay at the Park Inn where I live for 139.00 per night, which will give me the final bonus and this would be a 3rd night in Europe.
@terry – Thanks for sharing your point posting experience. You should absolutely stay at the Park Inn. if it is close to your house, however, wait to see if another sale comes to make it even cheaper.
Has anybody had any luck with the Club Carlson status match? I sent them an e-mail a week ago and never heard back.
[…] be very accessible by subway. If you have more questions about this promotion you can check our my “Top 10 Club Carlson Big Night Giveaway Questions” blog post – this should answer any questions you may […]
FYI- I just booked an AVD and was ensured it would count as long as it was booked directly thru radisson site. My ? – has anyone been successful in having someone else check in for them? Do they check ID?
@Kadence – When I checked into the Country Inn & Suites last week they even made a photo copy of my ID.
Hi,
I just double checked on their website:
https://www.radissonbignightgiveaway.com/
And it clearly says :
Complete a qualifying stay at any Radisson or Radisson Blu hotel around the world between May 15 and July 15,
So I dont think ParkInn etc work, it has to be a Radisson,
As anyone been sucessful getting the promo for a stay at a ParkInn?
Thanks
@Jobijoba – You need to register for the specific Park Inn promotion.
Does Advance purchase rate qualify? Thank you!
@HF – Yes! As long as the rate qualifies for points you are good to go.
[…] now is 15,000 after your stay. To learn more about the promotion you can also take a look at my “Top 10 Club Carlson Big Night Giveaway Questions” blog post – this should answer any questions you might have, but if not, feel free to […]
[…] Top 10 questions for Club Carlson’s “Big Night Giveaway” promotion […]
[…] Suites) stays. This is a great opportunity to get 10% cash back on all your stays for the current Big Night Giveaway Promotion! However, with any online portal there is always some hesitation. I’ve received a few emails […]
[…] Country Inn & Suites, Park Inn, and Park Plaza. The first three hotel chains currently have a promotion where you receive 50,000 or 44,000 bonus points after your first stay (assuming you already registered). The Park Plaza chain was originally left out, however, I just […]
so, if i signed up for the big night giveaway with Radisson and Country inn and suites promotion, but am ONLY staying at the country inn do i still get to redeem both promotions?
@amber – The points go into your Club Carlson account which can be redeemed for any Club Carlson property.
Yes, I know that piece, but I am wondering if I get the 50,000 point promotion from radisson if I stay at country inn and suites?
@Amber – You must stay at a Country Inn & Suites to get the 44,000 points and you must stay at a Radisson to get the 50,000 points. Only staying at one of them will get you one set of points. You can stay at both properties, however, to get the points for both.
[…] This is a reminder that you have just 5 days left for the amazing Club Carlson promotion! There are currently 4 versions of the promotion, each with different bonus points and expiration dates. You can also take a look at this previous post with the top 10 questions regarding this promotion. […]
My wife is traveling and I’m booking a room with cash and points (under my account and points), but booking the room in her name. Will I still get the points?
@Gens – I would probably book it under your name and call the hotel and give her permission to check in. You want to ensure that they do not de-link your account number from it. That one I am not 100% sure.
Great Thanks! I called the Country Inn & Suites, and they said my wife could check in for me, no problem (as we’re getting 2 rooms – one in her name and one in mine). But, also I just talked to my Mother who, last week, booked a Country Inn & Suites (while logged into her Club Carlson account), but put the room under my brothers name. She also called the hotel (or club carlson rep) to let them know he was checking in for her, and it was under booked his name, but via her account. She received her 44,000+ points when he stayed there. Anyway, thought I’d share. Thanks again for your help!