The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card's resort credit pays up to $200 in statement credits in each half of the year, January through June and July through December, for up to $400 back annually. It only pays on eligible purchases made directly with a participating Hilton Resort, and "participating" is the word that decides whether you ever see it. It doesn't work at just any Hilton, only at the resorts on Hilton's own list, and even there some rates and charges don't count.
Here's which hotels are on that list, what counts at them, and how to line up your stays so the credit actually posts. Everything below comes from American Express's benefit terms and card page for the Aspire and Hilton's list of eligible resorts, all read on September 30, 2026. Amex and Hilton can change any of them, so check the list before you book.
Which Hilton Hotels Count for the Resort Credit
Hilton publishes the list of participating resorts at hilton.com/en/aspireresortcredit, and you can browse it by hotel brand or by region. The brands it lists are Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Curio Collection by Hilton, DoubleTree by Hilton, Embassy Suites by Hilton, Hampton by Hilton, Hilton Grand Vacation Club, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Homewood Suites by Hilton, LXR Hotels & Resorts, Signia Hilton, Tapestry Collection by Hilton and Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts.
A brand being on that list doesn't make every one of its hotels eligible. The credit is for a participating resort, so the property itself has to appear. Look it up by name before you book, not by brand.
A few of the United States properties on Hilton's list show how wide it runs: Grand Wailea, A Waldorf Astoria Resort; Arizona Biltmore, LXR Hotels & Resorts; Conrad Orlando; Casa Marina Key West, Curio Collection by Hilton; and Embassy Suites by Hilton Waikiki Beach Walk. In Mexico and the Caribbean, it includes Conrad Tulum Riviera Maya, Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal and Caribe Hilton. Hilton Grand Vacations Club properties are on it too, such as Hilton Grand Vacations Club Whistler in Canada.
The terms also rule out one group of hotels by name: Small Luxury Hotels of the World properties aren't eligible.
What Counts at a Participating Resort, and What Doesn't
Being at the right resort is only half of it. The purchase has to reach Amex looking like a charge made directly with that resort, on your Aspire card. The terms rule out several common ways of paying:
- Advance Purchase and Non-Refundable rates don't count. Book a rate you can cancel if you want the room itself to earn the credit.
- Restaurant, spa and shop charges only count on your room. Incidental charges at the resort's restaurants, spas and other outlets have to be charged to your room and paid with the Aspire. Amex's own example of a purchase that won't be identified as made directly with the resort is one at a restaurant or convenience store inside it.
- Book and pay with the resort itself. A purchase made through a third party, such as an app store, may not get the credit.
- How you pay at the desk matters. Amex says you may not get the credit if the transaction is made with an electronic wallet or if the merchant uses a mobile or wireless card reader.
The practical version: book a refundable rate you pay at the resort, sign restaurant and spa bills to the room, and settle the whole folio at checkout with your Aspire card, not a phone wallet.
How the $400 Is Split Across the Year
The credit runs on two fixed periods, January through June and July through December, with up to $200 in each. Additional cardmembers can make eligible purchases too, but the account as a whole gets no more than $400 in a calendar year.
The date that decides the period is the date the resort processes the charge, not the date you stayed. Amex gives the example itself: a purchase made on December 31 that the merchant processes as January 1 gets a statement credit from the January through June period, if one is left. A New Year's Eve checkout can land in the wrong half.
Don't expect it on your next statement. Amex says to allow 8 to 12 weeks after the charge posts for the statement credit to appear. It can also be reversed if the purchase is returned, refunded, canceled or modified, and it may not post if the account is canceled or past due when the credit is issued.
How to Get the Full $400
The simplest pattern is one paid stay at a listed resort in each half of the year, booked at a refundable rate, with everything charged to the room and paid on the Aspire at checkout. Each half pays up to $200, so a big stay in March can't earn more than March's half.
If you only take one resort trip a year, it falls in one half, and that half pays up to $200. That's worth knowing before you count the full $400 against the card's $550 annual fee. Our Hilton Aspire review covers the fee and the rest of the card's credits, and our guide to Hilton Diamond status with the Aspire covers the status that comes with it.
When the Resort Credit Is Worth Planning Around
It depends on one thing: whether you already take trips to resorts on Hilton's list. If you do, book one refundable stay in each half of the year, put everything on the room and pay with the Aspire, and up to $400 comes back without changing your plans. If your Hilton stays are city hotels or airport nights, check the list first, because the credit may be worth nothing to you. If the Aspire fits how you travel, you can apply for the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card here.
Sources
- American Express: $400 Hilton Resort Credit, Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card benefit terms (browser read 2026-09-30)
- Hilton: Hilton Resort Credit Eligible Hotels, by brand and by region, with the full resort credit terms (browser read 2026-09-30)
- American Express: Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card page, $550 annual fee (read 2026-09-30)
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