Miles and Points Auctions: A Beginner's Guide

You've been collecting airline miles or hotel points for years. Maybe you've redeemed them for flights, maybe they're just sitting there. Either way, there's a whole corner of loyalty programs you might not know about: experience auctions.

What are points auctions, and how do they work?

A few major airlines and hotel chains run auction platforms where you bid on experiences using your miles or points instead of cash. We're talking backstage concert passes, VIP sporting events, luxury travel packages, celebrity meet-and-greets, stuff that often isn't available to buy at any price.

The format works like any other auction. You place a bid in points, someone else bids higher, and it goes back and forth until the close date. Highest bidder wins.

Which programs run them?

The ones worth knowing first:

• Marriott Bonvoy Moments is the deepest catalog by volume, heavy on luxury travel, sports, and hospitality.

• Hilton Honors Experiences leans hotel and travel, with a lot of resort packages.

• Delta SkyMiles Experiences runs smaller and curated, strong on music and dining.

• United MileagePlus Exclusives spreads across sports, entertainment, culinary, and travel.

• IHG One Rewards covers travel and entertainment experiences.

• Wyndham Rewards is worth watching for solid value plays.

• Alaska Mileage Plan runs unique adventure and Pacific Northwest experiences.

• Choice Privileges is newer to the auction space, with a growing catalog.

Plus a couple dozen more, including Qatar Airways Privilege Club, Accor ALL, World of Hyatt, and a growing roster of airline and hotel programs. You can see every program that's live right now in one place.

Five things I'd tell a first-time bidder

1. Look at the bid history first. PointAuctions.com tracks how bids have moved over time, and you can see what past auctions actually closed at to set your expectations. If an auction jumped from 5,000 to 50,000 points in the last day, you're probably walking into a bidding war.

2. Set a ceiling and stick to it. Decide the max you're willing to spend before you bid. Auction fever is real and points are still worth something.

3. Watch the final hours. Most auctions see a spike in bidding right before they close. If you want to understand why last-second bids often backfire, read the Marriott Moments sniping breakdown. If you want to avoid overpaying, the close is also when to walk away.

4. Read the details carefully. Some experiences have blackout dates, travel windows, or age requirements. A "VIP Weekend" might not include flights or hotels.

5. Do the CPP math. Here's exactly how to run the numbers: figure out what you'd normally get per point on flights or hotels and compare. If you're getting 1.5+ cents per point on an experience you genuinely want, that's a strong redemption. If you're getting 0.3 cents per point on something you're lukewarm about, your points are better spent elsewhere.

Why check PointAuctions.com instead of each site individually?

Every program runs its own site, its own interface, its own listing format. That's the problem PointAuctions.com solves: everything in one feed, filterable by program, category, location, or date. You browse here, you bid on the source site. If you want the full picture of how the bidding and closing mechanics work, start with how point auctions work, and if you're deciding where to focus, which loyalty programs are best for experiences breaks it down.

No account needed, nothing to sign up for. See what's live across every program and go.