I Booked a Castle with Points. My Friends Booked a Super 8.
From Motel to Medieval: I swapped a bland roadside motel for an 800-year-old castle stay—all booked with points. While my friends paid cash for fluorescent lights and vending machines, I enjoyed turrets and butlers without spending a dime. Here’s how points can turn your trip into a royal adventure.
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Using 30,000 Hyatt points per night through the Small Luxury Hotels (SLH) partnership can unlock luxury stays worth $1,000+ per night, such as an 800-year-old castle in Ireland. Transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Hyatt allows travelers to access this tier of redemption, offering a return of over 3 cents per point—far above the average hotel redemption rate of 0.6–1.5 cents per point. In contrast, paying cash for budget motels at $140 per night delivers low value and forgettable experiences, even though both options may be within reach for someone holding the same travel credit card and point balance.
Aspirational redemptions offer not just higher financial value but greater emotional return—creating unique, memorable experiences that basic redemptions cannot. Many travelers fall into the “points poverty mindset,” hoarding points indefinitely or using them conservatively, missing out on premium stays with built-in perks like free breakfast, room upgrades, early check-in, and late checkout. These benefits are often automatic when booking SLH properties through Hyatt, or when leveraging elite status from programs like Hilton or Marriott.
To maximize redemptions: target high-end properties in less tourist-saturated areas, use flexible date searches, and book 6–12 months ahead for rare inventory. Collections worth exploring include Hyatt’s SLH, Hilton’s LXR and Curio, and Marriott’s Autograph Collection. Strategic use of points can turn travel into a zero-cost, luxury experience valued in the thousands—no extra spending required, just planning and program knowledge.
Everything else you need to know is just below 👇🏻
When we landed in Ireland, my friends grabbed their rental car and headed for a beige motel off the highway. It had flickering fluorescent lights, questionable carpet stains, and a vending machine that looked—and sounded—haunted. I, on the other hand, was whisked off to an 800-year-old castle. Turrets. A four-poster bed. A butler who insisted on calling me milord. My friends paid $140 a night; I paid 30,000 Hyatt points. The difference? Loyalty. While they endured ice machines and polyester sheets, I sipped Earl Grey in a drawing room that may or may not have housed a ghost in tweed.
This is the story of how travel hacking turned a very normal vacation into a surreal, regal experience—and how it could easily do the same for you.
The Backstory: Why a Castle?
I’m not going to pretend I’ve always dreamed of sleeping in a castle, though I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t fantasized about it while watching Downton Abbey. The idea was born from a group chat about our upcoming trip to Ireland. The conversation went something like:
“We should do a castle tour!”
“Too expensive.”
“What if we booked something insane—for free?”
It started as a joke. We were all card-carrying points nerds—each of us with a Chase Sapphire Preferred in our wallet and a healthy pile of points collecting digital dust. One night, down an internet rabbit hole, I stumbled upon Dromoland Castle—a real 16th-century fortress in County Clare, bookable with World of Hyatt points through their partnership with Small Luxury Hotels (SLH). My jaw dropped. This wasn’t just a fancy hotel with a turret in the logo. This was thecastle. Moats. Falconry. Afternoon tea in a drawing room. The kind of place where you expect someone to gallop in shouting about dragon sightings.
It cost 30,000 Hyatt points per night.
The Redemption: How I Made It Happen
Step 1: Finding the Castle
I started on Hyatt’s website. Their SLH partnership opens up some of the most incredible properties in the world, many of which look nothing like the standard Hyatt. These include alpine chalets, tropical villas, and yes—castles. Dromoland Castle appeared in the search results like a mirage: available, 30,000 points per night, and bookable immediately.
Step 2: Transferring the Points
I moved 90,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points (earned mostly through dining and travel spend on my Sapphire Preferred) into my Hyatt account. The transfer was instant. Three nights in a castle—for free.
Step 3: Booking Tips and Tricks
Here’s what I learned through the process:
- Search Early: Award nights at unique properties disappear fast. Book 6–12 months in advance.
- Use Flexible Dates: Mid-week stays often have more availability.
- Check SLH Properties: Not all SLH hotels are created equal. Read reviews and understand what’s included (SLH bookings through Hyatt typically include free breakfast and early check-in).
- Avoid Pitfalls: Don’t hoard points waiting for the “perfect” redemption. Amazing opportunities exist if you just look.
And yes, Dromoland Castle really did include afternoon tea, falconry, and a ghost tour.
My Friends’ Experience: The Super 8 Diaries
While I was sipping champagne in a clawfoot tub, my friends were engaged in a slightly different kind of adventure. Let’s call it: The Super 8 Diaries.
Their motel, a last-minute booking near the airport, featured:
- Fluorescent hallway lights that never turned off.
- A vending machine that took coins and souls.
- A front desk guy named Rick who may have been asleep with his eyes open.
- A room where the only “room service” was the sound of teenagers yelling in the hallway at 2 a.m.
They paid $140 per night for five nights—$700 in total. And the kicker? Each of them also had Chase points. They could have booked the same castle. They just didn’t think to look.
I asked them later why they didn’t redeem any points. The answer? “We were saving them for flights.” Respectable. But there’s a difference between smart saving and being stuck in a loyalty purgatory where nothing ever feels worth it. Meanwhile, I was eating duck confit on a velvet chair in a dining hall with a harpist.
The Case for Aspirational Stays
Most people use their points for two things: economy flights and airport hotels. And that’s totally fine. But if you only use points to shave $120 off a layover night in Newark, you’re missing the magic.
There’s something uniquely satisfying about using points for a stay that would otherwise be wildly out of budget. A $1,000-a-night castle isn’t just a bed—it’s a story you’ll tell forever. It’s the time you stepped into a fairy tale, and the only thing you paid for was dinner.
This is what I call emotional ROI.
Emotional ROI > Cent Per Point
Yes, we all love maximizing point value. But sometimes, the best redemption isn’t the one with the highest “cents per point” calculation—it’s the one that makes you feel like a time traveler or a movie star or royalty. Travel is about moments. Use your points to make them unforgettable.
Ditching the Points Poverty Mindset
Many travelers fall into the trap of hoarding points, always waiting for a better deal. But points aren’t investments—they’re a tool. Use them before they devalue. Use them before you forget why you collected them in the first place.
Pro Tips for Booking Castles (or Other Insane Places)
If the idea of staying somewhere absurdly cool for free has sparked your interest, here’s how to get started:
1. Know Your Chains
Different hotel chains have partnerships that open the door to amazing properties:
- Hyatt + SLH: Castles, villas, remote luxury.
- Hilton + LXR or Curio: Boutique upscale properties.
- Marriott Autograph Collection or Luxury Collection: Often unique, historic hotels.
2. Look Beyond City Centers
Some of the best redemptions are in the countryside, where points go further and the properties are more extravagant. Rent a car. Explore.
3. Book Early and Often
These are unicorn redemptions—rare and valuable. Treat them as such. Use alerts, check frequently, and be flexible.
4. Stack Elite Status Perks
If you have elite status (e.g., Hyatt Explorist or Globalist), you’ll often get:
- Room upgrades
- Late checkout
- Free breakfast (already included on SLH bookings)
- Welcome amenities
You can even get temporary status through credit cards or promos.
Final Thoughts: Points Are Your Passport to Absurdity
At the end of the day, travel should make you feel something—awe, wonder, glee, disbelief. And points can be your secret weapon in turning an ordinary trip into something unforgettable. You don’t have to be rich. You just have to be willing to learn, plan, and book with intention.
So here’s my advice:
If you’re going to travel, travel weird. Travel well. And—whenever possible—travel with turrets.
P.S. The vending machine in the motel? Turns out it wasn’t haunted. Just jammed with Skittles from 1998. Still, I’ll take a haunted castle library over a possessed Pepsi machine any day.
