Help with hotel loyalty programme.

[bsb]

I need some brains trust help here please re choosing a hotel loyalty programme this year.

I am Gold Accor and will retain this in 2017 with stays that I won't cover here. No hope of the next level and am happy enough with this level and I like Accor.

This year I also have a number of trips to new places, a combination of personal and work and these places have no Accor properties so I need to make some choices about which hotel chain I book with, or if I forget about loyalty and status bonuses (as I'll go to similar places the year after) and just go for the cheapest option.

I like getting elite status benefits, especially upgrades. I don't really care about points, but every now and then I'll redeem points for a free night in Sydney. I always book in advance and usually book on specials offered by the chains, I never pay top dollar for my rooms and usually get the cheapest option hence why I like the upgrades. I'm not precious about 5 star and as I'm self employed, I'm cost conscious but I do like a good gym in the building but apart from that, I don't really care about the level of hotel.

My my loyalty options are:

Hilton where I have had top level status and liked them but have basic status now.

Hyatt where I have very few points and basic status

SPG as above

IHC where I have some points and Platinum Elite (the second top) status from a credit card that they've never taken away over the past 5 yrs since I closed that card (thank you IHC)

My trips this this year are:

Fukuoka 6 nights personal expense
San Juan 6 nights personal expense
Charlotte NC 7 nights biz expense
Long Beach CA 8 nights biz expense (conf held at Hyatt but I can stay anywhere)
Chicago 4 nights biz expense
Belize City 4 nights biz expense

I'm leaning towards Hilton with their status match to Accor that's on offer, but their properties at the places I'm staying are charging top dollar and I can't see any sales on the horizon. IHG is also high on the list as I have that status already but I like the Hyatt properties in the places I'm staying and they have good prices.

Any my insights would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[samh004]

I would say it comes down to where you'll see the most upgrades, as that's what you're after most.

Each program that has a sub-forum on AFF currently has a wiki thread with the programs summarised. IHG, Hilton Honors, Accor, Hyatt & SPG or Marriott (noting that these two will be merging).

I'd also see if you can find any Hilton properties you would choose to stay at in this thread to see what your chances might be like of an upgrade: Hilton upgrade chances.

Lastly, here's a couple threads (with Wiki's) comparing different programs: Summary of programs & Summary of paid programs.

 

[bsb]

Lastly, here's a couple threads (with Wiki's) comparing different programs: Summary of programs & Summary of paid programs.

Thats awesome, thank you!

 

[NZflygirl]

I need some brains trust help here please re choosing a hotel loyalty programme this year.

I am Gold Accor and will retain this in 2017 with stays that I won't cover here. No hope of the next level and am happy enough with this level and I like Accor.

This year I also have a number of trips to new places, a combination of personal and work and these places have no Accor properties so I need to make some choices about which hotel chain I book with, or if I forget about loyalty and status bonuses (as I'll go to similar places the year after) and just go for the cheapest option.

I like getting elite status benefits, especially upgrades. I don't really care about points, but every now and then I'll redeem points for a free night in Sydney. I always book in advance and usually book on specials offered by the chains, I never pay top dollar for my rooms and usually get the cheapest option hence why I like the upgrades. I'm not precious about 5 star and as I'm self employed, I'm cost conscious but I do like a good gym in the building but apart from that, I don't really care about the level of hotel.

My my loyalty options are:

Hilton where I have had top level status and liked them but have basic status now.

Hyatt where I have very few points and basic status

SPG as above

IHC where I have some points and Platinum Elite (the second top) status from a credit card that they've never taken away over the past 5 yrs since I closed that card (thank you IHC)

My trips this this year are:

Fukuoka 6 nights personal expense
San Juan 6 nights personal expense
Charlotte NC 7 nights biz expense
Long Beach CA 8 nights biz expense (conf held at Hyatt but I can stay anywhere)
Chicago 4 nights biz expense
Belize City 4 nights biz expense

I'm leaning towards Hilton with their status match to Accor that's on offer, but their properties at the places I'm staying are charging top dollar and I can't see any sales on the horizon. IHG is also high on the list as I have that status already but I like the Hyatt properties in the places I'm staying and they have good prices.

Any my insights would be appreciated. Thanks

You know Accor you can buy the ibis business card (basically the same price as one hotel night) to receive Accor Gold. Means you don't need to chase status as you'll get the benefits anyway.

GHA doesn't seem to be present on your above destinations but from my experience (1yr) they are brilliant at the room upgrades. No free breakfast or points for free nights either but the fact you get the service/upgrades without asking is awesome to me. My Accor experiences have been coughpola but I stick with them for the fact they are where I need them for what I need at a reasonable price. PGR 10 stays is the easiest way to GHA black or 5 stays via PGR.

HH I'd go for the match if you think you're going to use them. Apart from GHA I think they are 2nd best at recognition. I value the free breakfast a lot. They can be pricey (especially NZ and Australia!) but sometimes you get to go through dates and find some good deals. I have never been to Japan and haven't used them in the US. If you're not going to use them then save it for another time.

I don't think I've ever stayed at a Hyatt property.

AMEX platinum charge might be worth looking into. You can apply for SPG Gold, HH gold, Shangri-La and Club Carlson which totally opens things up. Depends on if you can make the $1200 annual fee look attractive for work (it includes travel insurance).
There are Mastercard deals sometimes with SPG eg book 2 get 3rd night free which don't require loyalty. You can get Marriott Gold with the SPG gold status match given they bought them out last yr with more benefits than anticipated. I matched but haven't stayed. (It's tough being a kiwi!). There's a few other benefits which might be worth it depending on travel patterns.

IHG - guess depends on how much you value platinum. Ambassador comes with Gold which unless you're staying at an IC isn't going to get you much at other IHG properties. I bought them last year then did the accelerate IHG programme so paid subsequent year with points which comes with room upgrades for IC stays. I think 24,000 points but you get 5,000 IHG points so it's only 19,000 points really. But currently if they price out at what you want then I'd go with them.


Remember there are things like QF, VA, hotels.com etc for those places that don't fit into loyalty programmes.