Posted: 8/14/23 | August 14th, 2023
For many of my travels, I’ve been a hostel man by way of and thru. And, whereas I nonetheless keep in hostels once I journey, since I run a enterprise from the street, I typically want a bit extra privateness and quiet than what a hostel can present.
However motels can get expensive and I’m nonetheless an inexpensive backpacker at coronary heart. I hate spending cash on a room I’m solely going to be in for a couple of hours a day. To economize on motels, I began journey hacking. By utilizing factors and hotel-branded bank cards to get free stays, I’ve saved hundreds and hundreds of {dollars} in lodging through the years.
Nonetheless, it may be a little bit of a ache to search out resort award availability. Every resort has its personal calendar of award nights (nights that you may e-book utilizing factors), and it may be time-consuming to flip by way of these digital calendars to search out the very best deal.
That’s the place Awayz is available in.
This instrument searches throughout resort applications that will help you discover the very best place to make use of to your hard-earned factors in your subsequent resort keep.
Till now, there’s been nothing this complete for locating resort award nights, so I’m tremendous excited that it lastly exists. Out of the opposite (few) resort award instruments on the market, it’s essentially the most user-friendly, searches throughout essentially the most resort applications, and has the very best options and filters.
On this evaluation, I’ll present you what the positioning is all about and how you can use it to search out free resort stays to your subsequent journey!
What’s Awayz?
Awayz is a instrument particularly for reserving motels utilizing factors. In case you’re accustomed to the points-and-miles reserving instrument Level.me, it’s like that, however for motels as a substitute of flights (when you’re not accustomed to level.me, take a look at my evaluation to study extra).
Like different reserving instruments, you merely put in your location and dates, and out pop a ton of choices for motels that you may e-book with factors. It additionally reveals you a side-by-side comparability of the variety of factors wanted, alongside the money worth, and offers its advice relating to which is the higher deal. This can be a massively useful function when you don’t wish to spend time and vitality crunching the numbers your self.
At the moment, Awayz helps Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, IHG, and Accor, with Wyndham and Option to be added quickly. Having the ability to search throughout a number of resort chains is one other nice function, particularly when you’re making an attempt to make use of a transferable foreign money, like Amex Membership Rewards or Chase Final Rewards, which might be transferred and used at numerous resort chains.
Listed here are among the foremost options that Awayz presents:
- Availability alerts
- A 12-month award availability calendar
- A map function
- A money vs. factors comparability
- The power to enter your current factors applications to tailor the outcomes
- Free-night award availability is highlighted
How Awayz Works
To make use of Awayz, all you must do is put in your required particulars (location, dates, and so on.). It then brings up all of the accessible motels you might e-book with factors. You may then filter your outcomes till you discover a resort that works greatest for you.
Awayz operates on a subscription mannequin. There’s a free trial, although, so you possibly can strive it out earlier than signing up. With the free trial, you’ll get 5 searches and 5 resort availability alerts, in addition to entry to all of Awayz’s options, aside from resort deal alerts.
The Journey Go ($4.99) is basically the higher choice if you wish to strive Awayz to its full potential, because it offers you the power to do 50 searches in 72 hours (the 5 searches on the free trial can be gone earlier than you already know it), in addition to 10 availability alerts.
In case you journey and seek for motels usually, you’ll need the premium subscription ($8.33/month when paid yearly, or $11.99 when paid month-to-month). This tier offers you 250 month-to-month searches, 10 availability alerts, and resort deal alerts (the one tier that provides this).
You may see the complete breakdown of the distinction between plans right here:
In case you join an annual plan utilizing the code nomadicmatt, you’ll get $10 off the annual Premium plan.
Setting Up Your Awayz Pockets
Earlier than you begin looking out, you’ll wish to arrange the pockets and awards part. Right here, you possibly can add your resort loyalty applications, bank cards, and the variety of factors you could have in every.
That is vital for a couple of causes.
First, you possibly can then filter by your accessible factors when looking out. There’s no sense in mentioning motels that you may’t e-book!
Second, Awayz will consider perks like free nights (a perk on a lot of the greatest resort bank cards), financial institution switch bonus promotions (e.g, get 30% extra factors when transferring Membership Rewards to Hilton Honors), or currencies the place you need to use factors as money (akin to Chase Final Rewards).
Awayz presently helps the next:
- Lodge applications: Hilton Honors, IHG One Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy, World of Hyatt, Accor Stay Limitless
- Transferrable currencies: American Categorical Membership Rewards, Chase Final Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One Miles, Citi ThankYou factors, and Altitude Reserve factors
You don’t have so as to add any figuring out data when including your applications. This can be a constructive for these involved about safety, however a damaging for many who need the benefit of computerized syncing of their level balances.
As a substitute, you’ll have so as to add in your present balances your self, as you possibly can see on this instance:
You may search motels with out including this information however including this data in makes it lots simpler to see what your choices are with out guessing.
Methods to Search and E-book Accommodations with Awayz
For our pattern search, let’s say we wish to get some summer season solar by going to Miami for a protracted weekend in January. By firing off a fast search with simply your dates and placement, you’ll get the next:
However since this primary search brings up extra motels than you’ll wish to wade by way of, the next move is to filter the outcomes.
The accessible search filters are:
- Lodge manufacturers
- Transferable currencies and resort loyalty applications
- Free-night certificates availability
- Your current factors (the numbers you enter on the pockets and awards part)
You can too kind by distance from the middle of the vacation spot in addition to by level or money values.
Right here’s what it appears like (grayed-out applications are ones you haven’t entered level values for):
When it brings up the search outcomes, Awayz makes use of its personal algorithm to additionally spotlight whether or not it thinks utilizing factors or money is a greater worth, which is tremendous helpful data as you weigh your choices.
When you’ve filtered and seemed by way of the outcomes to discover a resort that you simply’re taken with, choose it to get much more particulars. You’ll see the very best worth, money worth, the worth when you use factors as money, and buttons to see the whole award availability calendar or to set an availability alert in case your most well-liked dates aren’t presently accessible.
On this case, the very best deal is utilizing Hyatt Rewards factors, which you’ll switch from Bilt or Chase (as indicated within the backside right-hand “Switch Accomplice” field).
In case you’re versatile together with your dates and wish to see the whole award availability calendar for this resort, merely hit that black button and up it pops. It’ll spotlight the dates you’re presently looking out, however you can even scroll by way of the whole 12-month calendar to see if there are higher offers on the market. The bottom charges (in each money and factors) are highlighted in inexperienced, whereas the very best charges are highlighted in purple:
On this case, you possibly can see that when you may shift your lengthy weekend journey again by simply two weeks, you might save 9,000 factors.
In spite of everything that digging, let’s say you’ve determined that that is the resort you wish to e-book. Hit “e-book now,” and also you’ll be dropped at the resort’s web site. You’re by yourself from there, however even when you have to switch factors, it’s usually a really simple course of.
Execs of Awayz
1. The power to look throughout many applications directly
The obvious professional of utilizing Awayz is the power to tug up all motels you might e-book with factors to your desired dates and placement. With out this instrument, you’d have to look throughout all of the applications by which you could have factors (or may have factors when you transferred them there). That entails logging into every web site, discovering the award charts, factoring in any charges, and evaluating throughout all applications. It’s not that tough, nevertheless it does take time.
2. Factors-to-cash comparability
This function is one other main profit to utilizing Awayz. Once more, evaluating money and level values is a time-consuming course of, particularly if you’re new to utilizing factors for resort stays. Awayz takes the guesswork out of this course of through the use of its personal algorithm (which is regularly up to date with the most recent knowledge) to find out the very best worth.
3. Simple-to-use interface with useful filters
The web site may be very simple and straightforward to make use of, and the filters make fast work of serving to you discover motels that work to your wants. The power to enter awards applications and current factors helps you slim your search down much more.
Cons of Awayz
1. It’s a paid instrument
Awayz does have a restricted free trial, however if you wish to get essentially the most out of this instrument, you’ll should pay: both $4.99 for a 72-hour Journey Go, or $8.33/11.99 (annual billing vs. month-to-month billing) for Premium.
Nonetheless, when you’re new to journey hacking and haven’t fairly memorized the ins and outs of every program, it’s a discount when you think about the potential financial savings in not solely cash however the time you’d spend making an attempt to determine and search throughout applications.
And, as a Nomadic Matt reader, you may get $10 off an annual subscription with the code nomadicmatt.
2. It doesn’t routinely sync together with your loyalty applications and currencies
This could be a professional to those that don’t wish to give exterior entry to their accounts, nevertheless it additionally provides an additional step within the course of. It’s additionally straightforward to neglect to replace if you do use your factors.
3. Not all manufacturers are supported (but)
Whereas Awayz helps many main chains — Hyatt, Marriott, Hilton, IHG, and Accor — it doesn’t but assist all of them. Wyndham and Selection should not presently supported, although these needs to be added quickly. Nonetheless, if these are your most well-liked manufacturers, you won’t discover Awayz to be helpful to you simply but.
Who’s Awayz for?
Awayz is very nice for vacationers which are newer to redeeming factors for award nights. Utilizing Awayz saves you time (and cash) within the resort award search and reserving course of, which is very helpful if you’re first beginning out studying how you can get free stays. The cash-to-points comparability function is very key for this.
However even skilled journey hackers can get plenty of worth out of the instrument. You probably have plenty of factors in numerous currencies, you know the way time-consuming it’s to look throughout applications. Plus, the power to set alerts can assist you discover elusive stays with out having to consistently preserve tabs on the resort.
Awayz is a welcome addition to the rising scene of award reserving instruments. Whereas there are a selection of complete instruments for locating award flights, to date, nothing comparable has existed for locating resort stays you possibly can e-book with factors. With a rising suite of filters and options, in addition to side-by-side comparability of factors vs. money pricing, Awayz helps you save each money and time — vital sources it doesn’t matter what kind of traveler you’re!
Whereas it’s a paid instrument, there’s a free trial accessible, and even paid variations develop into value it after they assist you discover an awesome free keep.
And bear in mind to make use of code nomadicmatt to get $10 off!
E-book Your Journey: Logistical Suggestions and Tips
E-book Your Flight
Discover a low cost flight through the use of Skyscanner. It’s my favourite search engine as a result of it searches web sites and airways across the globe so that you at all times know no stone is being left unturned.
E-book Your Lodging
You may e-book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you wish to keep someplace apart from a hostel, use Reserving.com because it persistently returns the most affordable charges for guesthouses and motels.
Don’t Neglect Journey Insurance coverage
Journey insurance coverage is one factor you WILL wish to purchase. It’s there when you get sick, robbed, delayed, or a visit cancelled. I by no means go on a visit with out it since you by no means know what may occur. Don’t skip it. I’ve seen too many vacationers remorse doing so. My favourite corporations are:
Need to Journey for Free?
Journey bank cards mean you can earn factors that may be redeemed at no cost flights and lodging — all with none additional spending. Try my information to selecting the correct card to get began. For US residents, right here’s how one can get factors on lease too.
Able to E-book Your Journey?
Try my useful resource web page for the very best corporations to make use of if you journey. I checklist all those I take advantage of once I journey. They’re the very best at school and you’ll’t go flawed utilizing them in your journey.
