How to Get Free Breakfast at Hotels

Starting the day with a good breakfast when traveling can mean the difference between a great day and a bummer of a day. Especially if you hit any snags like canceled flights. That’s why it’s a good idea to stay at hotels with free breakfast. Not only will you save money but you’ll be fueled for your day.

There are three ways you can get free breakfast at hotels without paying extra: having elite status, using certain credit cards, and knowing which hotels include breakfast.

But not all hotels with free breakfast are alike. Some hotels offer a free continental breakfast, others offer a limited hot menu, and some let you order anything you want.  Here’s how to get the best free breakfast at hotels.

Elite Hotel Status Gets You Free Breakfast

Some hotels give free breakfast if you’re an elite member of their loyalty program:

• Club Carlson Concierge status (free continental breakfast)
• Hilton Gold and Diamond status (free continental breakfast instead of points at Conrad, Curio, Doubletree, Hilton, and Hilton Garden Inn. Some hotels give you a free full breakfast aka order off the menu.)
• Hyatt Globalist status (free full breakfast aka order off the menu for hotels without a Regency or Grand Club)
• Marriott Gold and Platinum (Free full breakfast aka order off the menu for hotels without a lounge)

I know what you’re thinking, “I don’t stay at hotels enough to earn elite status.” But no worries, there’s a shortcut to getting hotel elite status.

Two words: credit cards

Free Hotel Breakfast From Credit Cards

Hilton and Marriott

Enjoy free breakfast at Hilton hotels if you have elite status

Not only do credit cards help your credit and get you free trips and lots of other benefits, you can also get free breakfast.

You get free hotel elite status with these credit cards which equals free breakfast at Hilton and Marriott hotels:

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
• Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
• Ritz-Carlton Rewards

Ritz-Carlton is part of the Marriott brand of hotels. You get Ritz-Carlton Gold status from the Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card which gives you free breakfast when you stay at Marriott hotels.

Free Breakfast at Other Hotels

You can get free hotel breakfast at other hotels as part of your American Express Platinum and Visa Signature card benefits.

American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts

Two people eat for free every morning by booking your hotel with American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts

If you have an American Express Platinum (The Platinum Card® from American Express) or (The Business Platinum Card® from American Express) card, you get free daily breakfast for two people when you book your hotel stay through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts.

There are no fees to use the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program because it’s a free added benefit of your American Express Platinum card.

Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection

Use Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection and get free daily continental breakfast

Like American Express, Visa also offers a hotel program that’s free for all Visa Signature cardholders. And when you make your hotel reservation through the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection you get free daily continental breakfast.

Here’s a list of several airline miles and credit card point cards that include the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection benefit:

• British Airways Visa Signature® Card
• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
• Club Carlson
• Fairmont
• FlexPerks Travel Rewards
• Chase Freedom Flex℠
• World of Hyatt credit card
• Ink Business Cash® Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card
• Ritz-Carlton
• Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card – You can fly free for two years with the Southwest cards.
• Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card
• United Club℠ Infinite Card
• United℠ Explorer Card

Hotels With Free Breakfast for Everyone

You can get free breakfast at certain hotels without having elite status, credit cards, or having to pay more for a room with a breakfast rate. All these hotels include free breakfast for everyone in the room.

But the type of breakfast varies depending on the hotel. So be sure to see which hotels with free breakfast serve the breakfast you want.

Best Western

Stay at Best Western and get free breakfast

Free breakfast is included with every stay at:

• Best Western (hot breakfast)
• Best Western Plus (hot breakfast)
• Best Western Premier (hot breakfast)

Choice

Comfort Suites hotels offer free daily hot breakfast

You get free breakfast when you stay at:

• Comfort Inn (hot breakfast)
• Comfort Suites (hot breakfast)
• EconoLodge (continental breakfast)
• MainStay Suites (continental breakfast)
• Quality Inn (hot breakfast)
• Sleep Inn (hot breakfast)

Club Carlson

Start your morning right with a free hot breakfast at Club Carlson’s Country Inn & Suites

Every guest at Country Inn & Suites gets free hot breakfast.

Hilton

Hilton’s Embassy Suites includes free hot breakfast

You get free breakfast at these Hilton hotels:

• Canopy by Hilton (continental breakfast)
• Embassy Suites (hot breakfast)
• Hampton Inn (hot breakfast)
• Home2 Suites (continental breakfast)
• Homewood Suites (hot breakfast)

Hyatt

Get free breakfast at Hyatt Ziva

Breakfast is included at:

• Hyatt House (hot breakfast)
• Hyatt Place (hot breakfast)
• Hyatt Zilara (all-inclusive hotel)
• Hyatt Ziva (all-inclusive hotel)

IHG – Intercontinental Hotels Group

You get free hotel breakfast at IHG hotels like Holiday Inn Express & Suites Calgary

Free hot breakfast is included at all Holiday Inn Express and Staybridge Suites hotels.

Marriott

Hot breakfast every morning at Towneplace Suites by Marriott

You get free breakfast at these Marriott hotels:

• Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott (hot breakfast)
• Residence Inn by Marriott (continental breakfast)
• SpringHill Suites by Marriott (continental breakfast)
• TownePlace Suites by Marriott (hot breakfast)

Starwood

Breakfast is included at Starwood Element hotels

A hot breakfast is included at Element hotels.

Wyndham

Many Wyndham hotels like Baymont Inn Statesboro give you free breakfast

You can enjoy free breakfast at:

• Baymont Inn (hot breakfast)
• Days Inn (hot breakfast)
• Howard Johnson (continental breakfast)
• Knights Inn (continental breakfast)
• Microtel (continental breakfast)
• Ramada (continental breakfast at most locations)
• Super 8 (hot breakfast)
• Travelodge (continental breakfast)

Conclusion

You can save money and start your day with a free breakfast when you travel, if you know which hotels offer free breakfast.

Some hotels include free breakfast with all stays. But make sure you know what type of breakfast you’re getting. Because some hotels offer a hot breakfast while others only offer a continental breakfast.

You can also get free breakfast at Club Carlson, Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and Starwood hotels if you are an elite member in their loyalty program.

All isn’t lost because you can still get free breakfast even if you aren’t loyal to a hotel, simply by having certain credit cards. The American Express Platinum (The Platinum Card® from American Express) or (The Business Platinum Card® from American Express) gets you free daily breakfast when you make your hotel reservation using the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program.

And if you have a Visa Signature card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, you get free daily continental breakfast when you book your hotel through the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection.

Which are your favorite hotels with free breakfast?

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