Third unannounced award increase at Japan properties in three months

10,000–20,000 points (affected hotels, per night) → 15,000–30,000 points

Around August 6, 2026 (date approximate), Choice Privileges raised award prices at additional hotels across Japan for the third time since early June, again without notice. Following this round, five properties price at 30,000 points per night — including Comfort Suites Tokyo Bay (up from 15,000) and the Ascend Collection hotel in Takayama (up from 20,000) — while Comfort Hotel Hakata moved from 15,000 to 25,000, roughly a dozen hotels in Sapporo, Kyoto, Kobe, Osaka, Nagoya, and Takamatsu moved from 15,000 to 20,000, and around twenty more properties newly price at 15,000, including former lower-rate hotels in Naha (12,000 to 15,000) and Yokohama (10,000 to 15,000). Choice has 101 affiliated hotels in Japan. Choice Privileges receives transfers from Citi ThankYou Rewards (1:1.5 since April 2026) and Wells Fargo Rewards.

What to do: Treat the June pricing as gone for good; compare every Japan award against cash before transferring, and note the mid-tier 15,000-point hotels are now the sweet spot rather than the exception.