Celebrate Best Western's 65th Birthday With Free Nights, Bonus Points and Giveaways

PHOENIX, Feb. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- THE WORLD'S BIGGEST HOTEL FAMILY(SM) invites members of its free loyalty program Best Western Rewards® to help celebrate the brand's 65th birthday and the launch of three descriptors -- BEST WESTERN®, BEST WESTERN PLUS® and BEST WESTERN PREMIER® – in North America. The 65-day event begins Feb. 6 and runs until April 11, and gives Best Western Rewards members several opportunities to stay, earn and win.

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Register at www.bestwestern.com/spring (the site will be live on Feb. 6), stay three separate times during the promotional period, and earn a voucher for a free night toward a future stay. Vouchers can be redeemed at any of the brand's 2,200 hotels in the United States, Canada or the Caribbean before June 30, 2011. Pay for the three stays with your Best Western Rewards MasterCard® and earn an additional 1,000 bonus points.  

Best Western is also offering guests a special incentive to try its three new brand descriptors during the promotion. Those who qualify for the spring promotion and complete their three stays at at least two separate descriptor hotels will receive an additional onetime bonus of 6,500 Best Western Rewards points.

Each of the first ten Best Western Rewards members who registers for the promotion and stays at a BEST WESTERN, a BEST WESTERN PLUS and a BEST WESTERN PREMIER hotel during the promotion will receive a grand prize of 650,000 Best Western Rewards points.

Every Best Western Rewards member registered for the promotion will be automatically entered into a daily prize drawing. One winner will be drawn each day for the following giveaways:

• On days 1 through 32, win 6,500 Best Western Rewards points, which can be redeemed for a $25 gift card to Walmart, Shell, one of the program's 60 other retail partners, or a Best Western Travel Card®.
• On days 33-48, the prize doubles to 13,000 Best Western Rewards points – which can be redeemed for a $50 gift card.
• On days 49-60, one daily winner will receive 26,000 Best Western Rewards points – equal to a $100 gift card.
• The daily winners on days 61 and 62 will be awarded Lifetime Diamond Elite status in Best Western Rewards. Once the status is activated, they will be eligible for a 30 percent points bonus on each stay, room upgrades, check-in /check-out privileges and other special offers.
• The winners on days 63, 64 and 65 will each receive 260,000 Best Western Rewards points, which can be redeemed for a $1,000 gift card to Macy's, The Home Depot or another retail partner; or could potentially be worth a month of free hotel nights.

"Best Western is 65 years young--we've been around long enough to know what our guests expect, yet we've never been more dynamic in terms of enabling guests to get the most out of our large and diverse hotel portfolio," said Dorothy Dowling, senior vice president of marketing and sales. "We want our Best Western Rewards members to celebrate with us in a big way. Folks are gearing up for spring travel making now the perfect time to thank our members for their loyalty with many opportunities to earn and win."

Best Western Rewards is one of the industry's most generous rewards programs and one of few that is truly international. With more than 4,000 locations in 80 countries, Best Western makes it easy for members to earn points that can be redeemed for global free room nights with no blackout dates, dining, shopping and entertainment gift cards, gas cards, airline miles and more. Best Western's Status Match...No Catch ® program will match members' elite status in any other hotel loyalty program free of charge. Rewards program members can book their award nights and purchase travel at www.bestwestern.com.

ABOUT BEST WESTERN INTERNATIONAL, INC.

Best Western International, Inc. is THE WORLD'S BIGGEST HOTEL FAMILY(SM), providing marketing, reservations and operational support to over 4,000* BEST WESTERN®, BEST WESTERN PLUS® and BEST WESTERN PREMIER® hotels in 80* countries and territories worldwide. Each Best Western-branded hotel is independently owned and operated. Now celebrating 65 years of hospitality, Best Western has grown into an iconic brand that hosts 400,000* worldwide guests each night. Equally committed to the business and leisure traveler, Best Western recently embarked on a mission to lead the hotel industry in customer care. World Vision is the charity of choice for Best Western in building the world's biggest family, with our hotels and staff sponsoring children in need around the globe. Our partnerships with AAA/CAA, Michael Waltrip Racing™ and Harley-Davidson® help guests make the most of every trip. For the fastest way to a free night globally, join Best Western Rewards®. For more information or to make a reservation, please visit www.bestwestern.com.

*Numbers are approximate and can fluctuate.

SOURCE Best Western International, Inc.