Loyalty Traveler lays out the Hilton first quarter promo.

The registration link will be http://hiltonhhonors.com/anightonus but it’s not yet active.

The offer is a free night for every four stays or 10 nights at a Hilton brand property beginning with check-ins on Thursday, January 7 and ending with check-outs through March 31.

It’s no Hyatt Faster Free Nights, the gold standard in hotel promos at a free night ever two stays. But it’s impressive coming from Hilton (if somewhat derivative).

I’m likely to earn a single free night under the promo, and the high qualification threshold makes it difficult to make mattress runs using cheap paid stays to redeem for expensive free nights. Plus, we don’t yet know all the details (such as whether there are any restrictions on the properties where the free nights can be redeemed).

But it’s a start in the promo game for Hilton in 2010 nonetheless.