If you’re familiar with the Starwood SPG program you know that category 1 & 2 hotels are insanely cheap. We’re talking 2,000 to 4,000 points for a night. SPG and Hilton seem to have the biggest gap between highest and lowest hotels.
Albeit nearly impossible to redeem only for category 1 weekends, but in theory, a night at a top tier hotel could be 17 nights at a category 1. Huge difference, and there are some even “off the chart” priced hotels in Santorini, Bora Bora, etc…
So what I did here is basically used the Complete Map of Starwood Hotels, and sorted so I could only see Category 1 and 2 hotels. And trust me when I say, there are some great hotels on the list… especially the Category 2 list.
Understand, that I’m choosing more “destination” hotels. Places I would want to stay. As someone who lives out of hotels and doesn’t own a car, what I’m looking for are hotels that don’t have an interstate in the name of the hotel. Don’t get me wrong, there are some great airport hotels on here that have great value, but I wouldn’t destination there.
Pricing Category 1 & 2 Hotels with SPG Starpoints
Basically, you have a weekend price and weekday price. For Category 1 hotels, the weekend price is 2,000 points and weekday price is 3,000 points. For Category 2 hotels, the weekend price is 3,000 points and weekday price is 4,000 points.
The Best Starwood SPG Category 1 Hotels
Le Méridien N’Fis, Morocco
I’ve never been to Marrakech or even Morocco but have been thinking about it. This hotel looks stunning and the town itself looks really interesting. It also looks like the hotel is going for $200 a night when I checked prices for October.
Sheraton Senggigi Beach Resort, Lombok, Indonesia
I’ve spent a lot of time in Bali and still have never been to Lombok, the next island over. It’s an easy ferry ride and I hear good things from people who love and live on Bali. Last time I was tempted to hop on over, but our 3 weeks flew by. Next time.
Best Starwood SPG Category 2 Hotels
The Westin Zagreb
This is my favorite hotel on the list… and I’ve never even been to Croatia. Every traveler I’ve met who’s been to Croatia absolutely loves it.
I can’t understand why this is a category 2 hotel, and why it’s lower priced than the cheaper Sheraton. It’s clearly in a great location and all the photos look amazing.
I hope this doesn’t change by the time I get there!
Le Méridien Angkor
One of my favorite places on earth is Angkor Wat. This is a killer redemption for anyone wanting to check out the ruins. This is my second pick for this list.
Aloft Cancun, Mexico
Cancun is easy to get to. 4,500 Avios from Miami and Avios transfer from Chase, Amex, and SPG. We’re looking at a Southwest flight for 8,000 points, plus we have a Companion Pass (read How to Maximize the Southwest Companion Pass).
But this hotel seems like it’s on the main Cancun strip/island and a real deal on points.
Le Méridien Chiang Mai & Le Méridien Chiang Rai Resort, Thailand
Not to get too SE Asia heavy, but these are well known as some of the best low category SPG redemptions around. Both hotels in northern Thailand are beautiful hotels/resort in a beautiful part of the country. I love the culture of northern Thailand so much, and these hotels try to capture that.
Other Cat 2 Redemptions
- Sheraton Athlone Hotel, Ireland
- Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral
- Sheraton Miyako Hotel Osaka
- Sheraton Hanoi Hotel
- Sheraton Adana Hotel, Turkey
- Sheraton Catania Hotel & Conference Center, Italy
Category 1 & 2 hotels in the USA:
Egypt Cat 1 & 2 hotels:
- Sheraton Luxor Resort – 79% TA rating
- Sheraton Miramar Resort El Gouna – 90% TA rating
- Sheraton Sharm Hotel, Resort, Villas & Spa – 68% TA rating
- Le Méridien Dahab Resort – 88% TA rating
- Sheraton Montazah Hotel – 64% TA rating
- Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel & Spa (Cairo) – 78% TA rating
- Le Méridien Heliopolis (Cairo) – 69% TA rating
- Sheraton Dreamland Hotel & Conference Center (Cairo/6th of October City) – 53% TA rating
Interestingly enough the Sheraton Miramar Resort El Gouna is the only category 1 in Egypt, the rest listed are category 2 hotels, but it has the highest TA rating. And it’s probably the most expensive hotel on cash.
India category 2 hotels:
We stayed at two of the ITC hotels and while I don’t recommend anyone ever visit Agra, they are good hotels.
- Le Méridien Kochi
- Le Méridien Coimbatore
- Sheraton Park Hotel & Towers, Chennai
- The Westin Chennai Velachery
- ITC Kakatiya, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Hyderabad
- The Westin Pune Koregaon Park
- ITC Rajputana, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Jaipur
- ITC Mughal, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Agra
Only 3 hotels in South America:
- Sheraton Mendoza Hotel
- Sheraton Lima Hotel & Convention Center
- Four Points by Sheraton Medellin
Conclusion
There are a ton of hotels in Asia, including two in Borneo and too many to count in China. So there are tons more options, if you just check out the Complete Map of SPG Hotels.
My picks are clearly the Westin in Zagreb and the hotels I mentioned in SE Asia – Angkor Wat (Siem Reap), Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai and Lombok.
The Westin Zagreb is a few blocks farther away from shops/main train station/tram line than the Sheraton, that’s probably why it is cheaper.
Aw. Well, I wouldn’t pay double for the Sheraton. Although, there are some nice Sheratons.
Why do you say “I don’t recommend anyone ever visit Agra”?
It was years ago but I loved the Taj Mahal.
I liked the Taj, but personally, not my favorite site considering how out of the way it is. Or considering… Agra. I’d rather stay in Rajasthan or go to Amritsar.
Agra isn’t out of the way. Its barely 200kms (124 miles) from Delhi. There is a expressway which has opened up recently which further reduces the distance to 165 kms(102 miles). The trip can be easily made in 2 hours. And there are quite a few things in Agra apart from Taj. You can also head to Jaipur in Rajasthan which is approximately 250 kms ( 155 miles) from Agra.
The Vancouver Four Points is no longer a cat 2, which is a shame since it was my favorite hotel to redeem my Starpoints.
Well, that would have probably been the best location on my list. Although I’ve never been to Vancouver… But I want to. 😀
Great list. Being thrifty, I noticed that I’ve been to many. Just was at the Westin Zagreb a few weeks ago. Got a 2 room, 2 bath suite with 7 head shower. Great redemption.
Have also been to Sheraton Lombok, Athlone and LeMeridien Angkor, Chiang Mai and Rai. Loved Athlone. Easy to get to from Dublin. Had a great time in the non-touristy Irish town.
Add Four Points Ljubljana to the list. Hotel is just off the motorway. Got a great suite with amazing bathroom. Old town Ljubljana is nearby. Worth a visit! Loved Slovenia. ..
That’s funny. Is that because you get so many savvy redemptions or because you’ve been everywhere?
Aloft cancun is category two
Oops. Thanks!
Hi, great maps series for different hotels. Are you working on one for Marriott? That would be greatly appreciated for those of us trying to use the category 1-4 certificates.
Thanks in advance
Working on it! Hopefully within 2 weeks.
There is a decent Four Points Sheraton in Penang Malaysia that is a catagory 1. I was there last week and they have free daily shuttle service to downtown and other venues. Also, there is a good hawker stand just a few minutes walk. Plus great views as it is located right on the beach.
I’ve never been to Penang, almost made a stop there after KL this year. How is it? Worth a visit?
Absolutely. The people are friendly, transportation is reasonable and food is good and cheap. Also, there are lots to see and do. I actually have not left since my last comment. Picked up a good apartment on AirBnB and making sure we soak it all in before moving on to Vietnam.
I don’t stay in many SPG hotels (too expensive, both on room rates and on points), but I have stayed in many of these properties. Just as a correction, the Chiang Mai Le Meridien, while an excellent hotel, is not a resort (it’s a city hotel). The Chiang Rai hotel isn’t really a resort, but has barely enough “resort” features that they call it one.
One other thing to note is that hotels can quickly slip into and out of the Cat. 2 designation based on currency fluxuations. Like on our India trip just 2 years ago, none of the good SPG properties were Cat. 2 — the SPG chart hadn’t yet caught up with the devaluation of the rupee. I was able to buy some of these rooms for very little money using vouchers and such, but I couldn’t redeem points for them. And, of course, outsized value generally means the property is going to go up a level and you should try to redeem before that happens.
Thanks, changed the wording. Yea, I was surprised how expensive some of the ITC hotels were in India and yet how cheap other hotels were. Depends on the area I guess.
Sheraton Osaka was a STEAL!!! Super happy camper with the value we got out of cash + points in Osaka.
The fact that there is a Cat 1/2 hotel in Japan is a steal already. But yea, that is a great deal.
Like this list! I always look at category 1 and 2 lists and try to go to those places as well. I want to go to the category 1 Sheraton in Gambia.
Great glad you enjoyed it. Yea, totally interesting to have a category 1 in west africa. Would love to do that too.
The Four Points in Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) is Category 1. While somewhat reminiscent of an airport hotel, it is part of the Punta Cana Group, and guests have right of access to the whole Punta Cana complex via shuttle, including Playa Blanca and the Westin (with its great pool and its beach). And it is right across the street from Punta Cana Village, with a great range of restaurants (if you don’t want to eat at the beachfront places) from Wendy’s to a great French bistro. A killer redemption!
We just went to Medellín Colombia. My kids and I stayed at the category 2 hotel and it was perfect. It is close to the metro train, in a very safe neighborhood, and breakfast is included! It is also connected to a shopping mall, and a grocery store in a way that you don´t even have to go outside. We explored the many tourist attractions during the day (right after the giant breakfast), and went out to eat at the shopping center almost every night. No need for a car, as you can walk to the metro, or take a taxi there for only 1.25. The metro in itself was safe and fun. It is connected to the cable car and the street car.
Add the Aloft hotel in Costa Rica. It’s a Category 1. And if you’re Platinum, you get free breakfast (the food is excellent!) It’s not located downtown, but you can get affordable rides with Uber.
And I’ve also stayed at the Aloft in Cancun. Excellent choice.
Here’s another in South America. The Four Points By Sheraton Los Angeles, Chile. It’s a Category 1.