Hilton Launches Unique Travel Rewards Debit Card at Currensea – Is It Any Good?

Hotel giant Hilton has launched two new debit cards that allow you to earn points just like a credit card. The cards are powered by travel debit card platform Currensea.

The cards are the first of their kind as they are debit cards that work just like a regular bank card and earn you Hilton Honor Points.

Both cards have an annual fee and low foreign transaction fees.

We take a look at what the cards have to offer and how they compare to giants like American Express and Barclaycard, the latter of which has a Hilton Honors credit card.

What do the cards offer?

Rob Burgess of frequent flyer website Head for Points said: ‘This is really something different.

‘A debit card that works like an existing debit card from your bank. With every transaction you make, money is debited from your bank account. The only difference is that with every purchase you earn Hilton Honors loyalty points and you only pay 0.5 percent or 0 percent if you make transactions in a foreign currency.’

There are two versions: the Hilton Honors Debit Card, which carries an annual fee of £60, and the Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card, which carries an annual fee of £150.

The cards are linked to your existing current account (almost all UK banks participate) and transactions are posted to your existing current account as if you were using your normal debit card.

Unlike most rewards cards, there is no APR (annual percentage rate) because they are debit cards and not credit cards.

Both cards offer instant Hilton Elite status (more about this below) and a sign up bonus.

Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card

For £150 per year, this card gives customers Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card.

Gold status gets you free breakfast for two with any stay outside the US (worth £30-£50 per day), daily food and beverage credits for stays in the US, and a room upgrade (where available).

Typically, you must stay at least 20 separate stays or 40 nights within the calendar year at Hilton Honors participating hotels or earn 75,000 base points to achieve Hilton Honors Gold status, unless you have an American Express Platinum Card.

There is a sign-up bonus of 12,000 Hilton Honors points if you sign up before November 30, 2024. This is activated by foreign currency spending and you need to spend £2,500 in foreign currency in your first six months to receive the bonus.

A major advantage of this card is that there are 0 percent currency conversion fees.

Burgess says: ‘The Hilton Honors cards work best when used outside the UK, where you can earn up to 4.5 Hilton Honors points per pound spent.

‘For spending in the UK (1 to 1.5 Hilton Honors points per £1) it’s more rewarding than a regular retailer credit card with cashback, which typically gives you 0.1 to 0.2 percent back on your spend.’

Head for Points values ​​a Hilton point at 0.33p.

Below is a breakdown of the Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card rewards percentage:

• 1.5 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent in the UK
• 3 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent at Hilton properties in the UK
• 3 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent in foreign currency
• 4.5 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent at Hilton properties outside the UK

Burgess said: ‘If you and your partner stay at Hilton Honors hotels five or more nights a year, paying £150 for Gold to get free breakfast during your stay is a good deal.’

Hilton Honors Debit Card

This card has a lower annual fee of £60, but offers fewer attractive benefits than the Honors Plus.

With this card, cardholders receive Hilton Honors Silver status for as long as they hold the card.

Silver status offers benefits such as 20 percent bonus points on purchases made directly with Hilton, 15 percent spa discounts on all-inclusive stays and the fifth night free on Hilton reward stays.

There is a sign-up bonus of 3,500 Hilton Honors points if you sign up before November 30, 2024. You must spend £1,000 in foreign currency in your first six months to receive the bonus.

The card charges a low exchange rate fee of 0.5 percent on foreign spending.

Below is a breakdown of the Hilton Honors Debit Card rewards percentage:

• 1 Hilton Honors point per £1 spent in the UK
• 2 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent at Hilton properties in the UK
• 2 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent in foreign currency
• 3 Hilton Honors Points per £1 spent at Hilton properties outside the UK

Burgess said: ‘There’s nothing to get excited about in terms of the benefits, although it’s clearly better than no status at all.

“The only exception would be if you were planning to redeem five nights of Hilton Honors points. Silver status activates ‘five nights for the points of four’ (all Silver, Gold and Diamond members get this), which can result in a significant saving on your booking.”

Hilton Honors Basic Cardholders can upgrade to the Plus Card at any time.

How do they compare to the Hilton Honors Barclaycard and other competitors?

Hilton Honors Barclaycard holders may also hold Currensea issued debit cards.

If you already have a Hilton Honors Barclaycard, which has been closed to new customers for six years, it’s probably not worth getting rid of it now and switching to one of these cards.

That’s because the Barclaycard is free, earns more points for spending in the UK (two for £1) and earns you a Gold Card when you spend £10,000 a year.

Burgess said: ‘It’s only worth buying Plus Debit if you’re not going to reach the £10,000 target for Gold and still want to guarantee the status you get with the Plus Debit card.

‘But even then you would still have to pay £150 for the Plus card to get Gold status, but you can continue to spend in the UK with the Barclaycard as you earn more.’

If you have an airline credit card such as British Airways American Express, Barclaycard Avios or Virgin Atlantic Reward, the returns offered by the Hilton cards are not as valuable.

Head for Points values ​​a Hilton Point at 0.33p, making one Hilton Honors Point per pound spent in the UK less valuable than 1 Avios or 1 Virgin Point per pound spent.

Burgess said: If you currently pay £650 a year for the American Express Platinum card, partly to get Hilton Honors Gold status, you could decide to switch now and save.

‘It’s also interesting for students, pensioners and other groups who may not have the £20,000 income requirement for, say, an American Express card.’