How I used a transfer bonus to get 5 nights in Bora Bora for free!!
What’s a transfer bonus?
Every month credit card issuers release transfer bonuses. A transfer bonus gives you a deal on transferring points from a credit card to a partner airline or hotel. For example, for the month of September American Express had a 30% transfer bonus to Hilton. For every 1,000 American Express Rewards points you transfer to Hilton, you would receive 1,300 Hilton points. Sometimes transfer bonuses are not that exciting but in this case, it worked to my advantage.
I have had two Hilton hotels on my bucket list, The Conrad Bora Bora and the Grand Hotel Victoria Concept and Spa in Lake Como Italy. Hilton is not my first choice of hotels to stay at because typically they are A LOT of points, and the value isn’t the best.
But this transfer bonus made it much more reasonable.
Here’s how I did it:
For Bora Bora I found some nights in August 2025 that were priced at 120,000 points per night. This is a great deal, for reference other nights were over a million points per night.
As an American Express Platinum card holder I get automatic Hilton Gold Status. The BEST perk of this status is that you get the 5th night free when you book 4 nights. So 4 nights at 120,000 points per night is 480,000 points. With the transfer bonus I only had to transfer 185,000 American Express Rewards to Hilton to get 480,000 Hilton points!!!
The cash rate of the room we booked in Bora Bora is $1,855 per night. The hotel for 5 nights would have been $9,275 plus taxes and fees!!
The current welcome offer for the American Express Business Platinum card is 250,000 points. So with this transfer bonus, you could open one card, met the minimum spend (with your normal everyday expenses) and get a free hotel in Lake Como Italy or Bora Bora!!!
Sound confusing? That’s where I can help, I keep an eye of welcome offers for every bank each month and have a great understanding of what is a good value and what is not. I can help make your dream vacation a reality!