One of the most amazing benefits of the Starwood Preferred Guest program (and one that has yet to be fully matched) is the Cash and Points program that allows members to spend as few as $25 and 1,200 Starpoints to save on room rates at over a hundred properties, including some Conde Naste Traveler magazine Gold List properties. Property offerings change quarterly (similar to saver type awards with Hilton and Marriott) with only a 3-4 month booking window. SPG has now enhanced the benefit by allowing members to view and book a full year’s worth of participating hotels for redemption any time throughout 2005. Look online to see which properties will be participating come summer vacation time and plan ahead. Imagine spending $60 and 4,000 points for $239 nightly room rate at a Category 4 property.

But if we could give you some advice – don’t forget the 50 percent Off Regular Rates award for 1,000 Starpoints that allows you to stay at any participating Starwood hotel or resort for up to five consecutive nights for 50 percent off the regular rate. We’ve found that members need to compare both benefits to find the best value for this type of award redemption.