This December, Indianapolis is playing host to a potential Top 10 non-conference men’s basketball matchup. The Arizona Wildcats are traveling to the mid-west to play the Purdue Boilermakers in the Indy Classic. In last season’s NCAA tournament, Purdue secured a #1 seed while Annie’s alma mater, Arizona, was a #2. Arizona doesn’t play around us very often, so we want to make the four hour drive to Indianapolis to see them play. While the game time hasn’t been set yet, we’re going to stay overnight and make a little trip of it.

The Plan and the Promotion

Of course, I immediately started thinking — how could we stay within walking distance of the arena for the least amount of money? I began researching hotel options near the Gainbridge Fieldhouse and Marriott had a couple nice options. The Hotel Indy, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel and Le Méridien are both located close to the arena and are premium Marriott brands. While they’re not luxury brands like Ritz-Carlton or St. Regis, I’d rank them in a group just a notch below.

I was planning for this trip in August while Marriott was running a promotion where you could earn a free night certificate after completing two hotel stays. I had already stayed once for a work trip, but had no other stays planned before the August 31 promotion end date.

So I opened the Marriott app and searched for the cheapest hotels I could find within 15 miles of my house. I found a hotel charging only $113, including taxes, and booked one night right before the promotion was set to end. After completing the stay, the free night certificate appeared in my Marriott account within two days.

Booking the Hotel Indy, Indianapolis, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel

The cash price for Saturday December 16 at the Hotel Indy was $325, including taxes.

On the other hand, Marriott was asking for 42,000 points to book the same room. Marriott points are generally worth around 0.8 cents per point, so those points are worth $336. Redeeming 42,000 points was actually a slightly worse option, value-wise.

The free night certificate I had earned was good up to 35,000 points. However, Marriott allows you to add up to 15,000 additional points as needed. So, I was able to book the Hotel Indy for the night I needed using the free night certificate plus 7,000 points.

Bottom Line

This of course wasn’t a completely free night, but I still saved a few hundred dollars! By paying to stay at a cheap hotel and earning a free night certificate, I saved $212.

It can really pay, in more ways than one, to think outside the box when making hotel reservations. This real life example required a little imagination but not a lot of time and effort. It’s worth doing a little research to possibly save hundreds of dollars!

Hotel Indy Redemption Table

	Retail Cost	Our Cost	Miles and Points Used	Points Source
1 night at the Hotel Indy, Indianapolis	$325	$113	1 free night certificate and 7,000 Marriott points	- Marriott promotion
Total	$325	$113	- 1 free night certificate - 7,000 Marriott points	- $212 in total savings - 65% off retail cost