Update: click here to read Part 2 after reading this article.
I recently checked my Verizon points account and was astonished to learn that I had over 150,000 points! If these points were American Airlines miles, I could fly round-trip to anywhere in the world that OneWorld alliance partners fly to. I could also fly round-trip to Europe in business class or I could fly on the Ethiad A380-800 in First Class (complete with showers!). These are all excellent uses for American miles.
Unfortunately, Verizon points are not American miles and they cannot be transferred to American. In fact, Verizon has no transfer partners. Fortunately, there are a few decent redemption options and a savvy planner can receive up to 1 cent per point in value on award redemptions. Part 2 (a future post) will follow up with this article by talking to a Verizon Rewards specialist and evaluating cruise options.
Hotel Discounts (up to 1 cent per point)
If you want to maximize the value of your Verizon points, you should redeem them for discounts on hotel rooms. I searched for rooms available in Washington DC on a Friday night and pulled up results for Hyatt Place, Four Seasons, and Fairmont. Verizon slightly exaggerates it’s listed “Hotel Rate” price, so I’ll use the respective hotel’s website price for calculating point values. You should note that Verizon’s “Hotel Rate” price does not include tax.
(price of the hotel on the hotel’s website – price of the hotel with Verizon points) / (number of points required) = value per point
- Hyatt Place discount $20 / 4,600 points = 0.4 cents per point
- Four Seasons discount $136 / 13,600 = 1 cent per point
- Fairmont discount $68 / 7,000 points = 0.97 cents per point
Gift Card Discounts (1 cent per point)
Verizon also allows you to redeem points for a discounted gift card. Verizon points are worth 1 cent per point when redeemed for discounted gift cards.
(Gift card value – your price) / (required Verizon points) = value per point
- Carnival discount $10 / 1,000 = 1 cent per point
- JCPenney discount $15 / 1,500 = 1 cent per point
- AMC discount $70 / 7,000 = 1 cent per point
Auctions – DO NOT USE THE AUCTIONS
Auctions offer one of the worst redemption values for Verizon points. I assume that the winning bid for a gift card near the end of its auction will not rise much further (which I realize is not 100% true).
- Verizon $50 / 245,000 points = 0.02 cents per point
- Walmart $100 / 290,000 points = 0.03 cents per point
- Restaurant.com $50 / 26,500 points = 0.19 cents per point
- Exxon Mobile $10 / 33,000 points = .03 cents per point
Conclusion
Since I can easily get 1 cent per mile out of my Verizon points, my 150,000 points are worth $1,500. Not bad eh? Since you can buy gift cards at a better rate than Verizon offers (cardcash.com and cardpool.com), I would probably stick to redeeming Verizon points on hotels.
Update: click here to read Part 2 after reading this article.