Hotel loyalty programs are rarely complex, until you take a closer look.
What most hotels put across is a pretty simplistic overview of their program - stay these many nights or spend xx and you get yy.
Unfortunately, that’s almost never the case. There’s always a long list of terms and conditions to comb through to fully grasp a program’s intricacies.
Thankfully, IHG Rewards is not like that.
It looks simple. And it is simple. Which is probably why it is a popular program.
Let’s start with an overview.
IHG Rewards Levels - Overview
IHG Rewards program is divided into 5 levels - 1 base level and 4 elite status levels.
| IHG Rewards Levels |
|---|
| Club (Base Level) |
| Silver Elite |
| Gold Elite |
| Platinum Elite |
| Diamond Elite |
Silver and Diamond Elite tiers have been added in 2022. Spire Elite was removed at the same time.
How to upgrade to a higher IHG Rewards level?
There are 2 ways you can upgrade to a higher IHG Rewards status.
- By staying the required number of nights OR
- By earning required base points
| Status | Nights Required | Points Required |
|---|---|---|
| Club (Base Level) | 0 | 0 |
| Silver Elite | 10 | NA |
| Gold Elite | 20 | 40,000 |
| Platinum Elite | 40 | 60,000 |
| Diamond Elite | 70 | 120,000 |
The nights and base points are calculated on a calendar year basis. i.e. you need to earn required number of points or nights within a calendar year.
Sooner you earn, longer you can enjoy the status for.
As soon as you hit the required number of nights or points, your account is upgraded to the respective elite tier. And it remains good for the current year as well as the full following year.
e.g. If you complete 20 nights between Jan and April, you will earn IHG Gold Elite status immediately. And it will be good till December next year. Sometimes till Feb as well (extra 2 months).
Elite rollover nights
Once you earn a status, you will want to stay more and more at the chain to enjoy the elite perks.
But what about the nights that you stay after you have earned the status?
Luckily, they don’t go waste.
Let’s say you finished your 40th stay with IHG in October and got upgraded to Platinum.
Between November and December, you stay for another 5 nights.
These 5 nights (over and above the nights used for your status) will carry forward to your next year pool.
So next year, you will start with 5 and can get to Gold for 15 more or Platinum for 35 more.
Benefits of IHG elite statuses.
Generally all hotel loyalty programs offer a mix of guaranteed benefits and a few ‘best-effort’ benefits.
For IHG, the only guaranteed benefit is bonus points. But lots of them.
| Status | Bonus Points per stay |
|---|---|
| Club (Base Level) | NA |
| Silver Elite | 20% |
| Gold Elite | 40% |
| Platinum Elite | 60% |
| Diamond Elite | 100% |
How bonus points work is pretty straightforward.
Say you are eligible for 1000 base points for a stay, then as a Silver Elite, you will get 200(20%) extra or if you are a diamond, you will get 1000 extra points (100% bonus).
Other benefits include early check-in, late check-out, upgrades to a better room etc but they are all subject to availability and the training of staff at the hotel.
Some are pretty amazing and some would look down on you as some freeloader even for mentioning that you are a Diamond member. That’s just how it is.
Summary
| Status | Nights Required | Points Required | Bonus Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Club (Base Level) | 0 | 0 | NA |
| Silver Elite | 10 | NA | 20% |
| Gold Elite | 20 | 40,000 | 40% |
| Platinum Elite | 40 | 60,000 | 60% |
| Diamond Elite | 70 | 120,000 | 100% |
