When it comes to travel rewards, people are willing to try bizarre things for a free night or VIP perks. Enter "mattress runs," a trend that sounds like a mad dash for luxury linens but is actually about booking hotel rooms you don’t plan to use—just to rack up loyalty points. But here’s the catch: it could totally backfire.
Let’s break down this trend, its risks, and whether it’s worth the gamble. Travel forums are full of hilarious (and tragic) tales of mattress runs gone wrong. One traveller took to Reddit and asked, “Hyatt Mattress Run - has anyone ever been penalised for doing a mattress run via digital check-in and never showing up? Does that work?” A person responded, “Yes, they didn't credit me the stay, and they charged me the cash rate.
It's very hit or miss.” Another Reddit user thought they hacked the system with a digital check-in—only to get hit with a “please visit the front desk” message. Another swore they succeeded but waited nervously to see if the points were posted.
Does It Really Work? Sure, the promise of travel perks sounds irresistible, but mattress running is always a gamble. According to Fox News’ report, many loyalty programs, like Hyatt’s and Hilton’s, have fine print designed to squash sneaky tactics. If you don’t physically check in—or worse, skip the stay entirely—you might end up with no points and no qualifying credits.
Hilton, for instance, spells it out: if you’re a no-show, forget about points or statu.
