Summary of Hotel Loyalty Programs - SPG, HHonors, IHG, Accor

[Jonno Oon]

Hi Everyone,

I've been doing a ton of research into Hotel Loyalty Programs as I try to pick the one that suits me the best.
Thought I'd post up my summary of the programs I'm studying at present and hopefully it can benefit others.

Please note, this was done by a FF Newbie, so please correct as necessary
Also, most of my travel will be to Sydney, so I've put a bit of a focus on this, please feel free to add on!

Loyalty Name
Hilton Hhonors

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
4 NZ
14 AU

Status tiers/Benefits
Blue: Automatic
- Late Check Out
- In room internet access
- Express Check out
- 2nd Guest Stays Free

Silver: 4 Stays or 10 Nights
- 15% Bonus on Points
- Gym Access
- 2 Bottles of Water Free

Gold: 20 Stays or 40 Nights or 75,000 Base Points (Generally considered best value, best mid-level loyalty program)
- 25% Bonus
- 5th night free on Reward stays of 5 nights or more
- Room Upgrades
- Complimentary Breakfast

Diamond: 30 stays, 60 nights, 120,000 Base Points
- 50% Bonus
- 48 hr Room Guarantee
- Lounge access

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
$250-$500 AUD; Varies incredibly depending on dates

Range of properties in Sydney
None, only the Hilton Sydney

Additional Comments
One of the better Hotel Loyalty Programs in Australia in terms of great perks for elite Status
Gold often considered the best value in this program (not many additional perks for Diamond)

Status Boosters
Macquarie Platinum Hhonors card gives instant gold status for holders


Loyalty Name
SPG

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
11

Status tiers/Benefits
Preferred: Automatic
· In Room internet access
· Bottled water
Gold: 10 Stays or 25 Nights
· 3 Starpoints per USD vs 2 points
· Late checkout
· Room upgrades
· Welcome Gift (250 points, free drink or internet)
Platinum: 25 stays or 50 nights
· Welcome gift (500 points, local gift or breakfast)
· Best available room upgrade (Including suites)

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
Four Points by Sheraton: $260 - $320
Sheraton: $280 - $480
Westin: $375 - $400

Range of properties in Sydney
Good, Four Points offers a more budget friendly option, with the Sheraton and Westin offering the more luxurious options.

Additional Comments
Often considered to give the best luxury perks of the hotel loyalty program
Fastest path to very elite treatment (only 50 nights)
Hotels generally very expensive; even Four Points
Upcoming merger with Marriott, some concern about the program

Status Boosters
World mastercard holders obtain instant gold status after one night in a SPG hotel

Loyalty Name
IHG Rewards (intercontinental hotels)

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
22

Status tiers/Benefits
Club: Auto
· Late check out
· Complimentary newspaper
· Internet
Gold: 10 Nights or 10,000 Points
· 10% Bonus on Points
· Priority check in
Platinum: 40 Nights or 40,000 Points
· 50% Bonus on Points
· Room upgrades
· Guaranteed room availability (but not really applicable on peak periods)
· Excess Nights “roll-over” into following year’s status
Spire: 75 nights or 75,000 Points
· 100% Bonus on Points

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
Holiday Inn Darling Harbour: $240
Holiday Inn Old Sydney: $340
Intercontinental Hotel Sydney: $350 - $370

Range of properties in Sydney
Not bad, but both very central locations (HI Old Sydney and Intercon) are rather expensive options.
Budget friendly option in HI Darling Harbour, but for me personally, not as good a location as the other two.

Additional Comments
Numerous complaints about elite status not being recognised
Numerous complaints about elite status not providing sufficient benefits
Good feedback regarding value of redeeming points for free nights

Status Boosters
Able to purchase gold level benefits with Ambassador ($200)


Loyalty Name
Accor Leclub

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
Too many to count .. well over 60

Status tiers/Benefits
Blue: Auto
Silver: 10 Nights or 2500 Points
· Free internet worldwide
· Welcome Drink
· Late Check out
Gold: 30 Nights or 10,000 Points
· Late check out OR early check in
· Guaranteed Room up to 3 days before arrival
· Room upgrades
· “VIP Treatment” – depending on hotel; often a free gift in room
Platinum: 60 Nights or 25,000 Points
· Late check out AND Early check in
· Guaranteed Room up to 2 days before arrival
· Access to executive lounge if available (Except Sofitel Melbourne)

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
Sofitel: $260 - $310
Pullman harbour: $360
Pullman Hyde Park: $200 - $220
Novotel Darling Harbour: $186 - $250

Range of properties in Sydney
Large range, in addition to the properties above, numerous Ibis hotels cater to budget travellers.
Numerous luxurious hotels from Pullmans, MGallery and Sofitels also present, as well as middle market brands such as Mercures and Novotels.

Additional Comments
Numerous complaints about elite status not being recognised
Difficulties getting points to post
Difficulties getting staff to acknowledge status at many hotels
Points redeem at 2000 = 40 Euros, which may not be the best value IMO

Status Booster
Gold status with Ibis Business Card (90 Euros)
Amex Platinum Charge Card gives platinum status with Leclub

 

[drron]

Nice summary.
I am SPG plat so a few points on that.Hilton did have the best footprint in Australia but the lead is narrowing.There are another 8 SPG hotels in the pipeline including an Aloft in Sydney.
I can virtually always get a better price in SYD with SPG than Hilton.EG for January the SOTP is from $219 a night.
Add to that various discount rates that I have been able to use in SYD at times.As well probably the best Best Rate quarantee.
Also if you do get to 50 nights you can get 10 SNAs quaranteeing a night in a suite.

The gorilla in the room though is the takeover by Marriott.No one knows how that may pan out.Not so good for Australia as only 4 Marriott properties.
New Zealand is a problem as neither SPG nor Marriott have a presence there.

My travel though is predominantly OS where I have received better recognition with SPG than Hilton as a diamond in the past.

 

[Jonno Oon]

Definitely the case for me too, unfortunately Hilton doesn't seem to have much of a presence in Sydney and the Hilton Sydney can get wildly expensive depending on dates. I do like the Hhonors program though.
Leaning towards SPG personally, due to better range of hotels in the cities I travel, but potentially with some stake in Leclub vs IHG as a backup when even four points is too much for my budget and if I need a hotel where SPG doesn't cater to (Deciding between those two for my backup);


My thoughts so far on Leclub vs IHG;
Both chains supposedly vary widely in terms of quality of hotels and inconsistent in elite recognition.

- Leclub offers a wider range of hotels
- Often cheaper than IHG hotels, Holiday Inns (depending on location) can still be almost as expensive as a Pullman in the Accor Group, and the Holiday Inn Old - Sydney costs more than the Sofitel Sydney.
- Platinum accor leclub does offer lounge access and more perks than IHG
- IHG offers better value in terms of redeeming, Accor comes in at 2000 Points (800 Euros at basic status) for 40 Euros off, which is not great.
- IHG status is often available for status match with other chains, but Leclub is almost never mentioned in the list of status matches - which may not be ideal.

 

[andye]

Might be worth adding that you get Accor Platinum status with Amex Platinum Charge

 

[TonyHancock]

I would very much like to hit the lofty levels of SPG Platinum but with a fair proportion of travel to the UK it is just not practical. (SPG barely has a footprint in the UK. )

HH Diamond, for me, is a must. The guaranteed lounge access is the driver. (It also comes free with VA Plat, when you first qualify, and is a nice little bonus with BA GGL - ongoing.)

IHG I shake my head at. Every year I dupe myself into reaching the top level - this time Spire. IHG has promised an improvement in it's top tier offerings but I am not holding my breath.

Accor Plat, as stated by Andye, comes with the Amex Plat charge card and has proven itself very useful...but the recognition is a bit hit and miss.

 

[Jonno Oon]

Might be worth adding that you get Accor Platinum status with Amex Platinum Charge

Good point! I will edit the original post with an additional section on credit cards/other cards that may help obtain elite status.

IHG I shake my head at. Every year I dupe myself into reaching the top level - this time Spire. IHG has promised an improvement in it's top tier offerings but I am not holding my breath.

Accor Plat, as stated by Andye, comes with the Amex Plat charge card and has proven itself very useful...but the recognition is a bit hit and miss.

I have no idea why, but for some irrational reason, I also find myself drawn to try out the IHG group over LeClub .. I did enjoy my stay at the Intercon Sydney but the Accor group offers a far better range of hotels at better rates with what seems to me more perks in the loyalty program

 

[NZflygirl]

Add in hotels.com to your portfolio. For hotels that don't fit into the above programmes then use this. They have quite an extensive list of hotels to choose from but basically it's pay for 10 and get 1 free - which is really just an average of $ spent on your 10 nights divided by 10 and that amount put towards the night you want free.

I have signed up to the 4 programmes you have just this year and Rydges also - I seem to have the most upgrades with Rydges and I don't even have any significant status! I don't think I'll reach any significant status with these programmes as location and price are too important to me to drag my butt half way across town just for a loyalty programme if the hotel is situated elsewhere. This is where hotels.com comes in. I also use it if we're flying in from somewhere and just need a transit hotel ie we arrive, dump bags, go out for dinner, come back and sleep and then fly out the next day - it's not worth paying lots of $$ for a nice room you're barely in IMO.

I have a stay in PER coming up with SPG to activate the world card but I was told that status is just for a year, it's not an annual benefit. Maybe that's just here in NZ. When I looked at Mastercards offerings last year they pretty much offered what looked to me like gold status on stays anyway. Upgrades, late checkout eg4pm, free breakfast etc. My only downside is I got the card for work purposes so I won't be able to book personal Mastercard stays with it or else it will look dodgy!

I think buying Ambassador is good even if you only have 1 stay in an intercontinental (yet to do this but the conclusion I came to), but you have to make sure you book it well in advance of your stay so you can apply it. You get the free weekend night also, and the 5,000 extra points. I think it's good for getting you to gold elite as you get 10% bonus points which counts down the track when you want to redeem so even if you have just a couple of nights a year at the intercontinental but more at other IHG properties then I would use it to get yourself to gold elite faster and buy it earlier in your year. Redemption wise they have the point breaks where you can stay for 5,000 points but they don't really seem to offer these in NZ and probably not so much Oz either, but that's just for the point break stays. I like Crowne in NZ and I've not stayed but I'd probably like the Wellington Intercontinental. I believe reward nights count towards status also in this programme - at least that's what my spreadsheet says!

My spreadsheet has some differences to yours but I wonder if they are country specific so I'll keep mine as is. Not sure I'll be reaching any lofty heights. Just building up points for personal freebies at some point.

Remember you need at least 1 stay in each programme for your account to remain active each calendar year.
There are actually some good deals on rental cars and extra points associated with these hotel programmes. eg Europcar get 20% off and get 1000 points towards Accor
You can also earn with Uber towards SPG.
There are some hotels you can earn points on the food and beverage if it's charged to your hotel room eg Hilton or even when not staying eg SPG
Hilton gives double the points to VA vs QF on stays so set your account to VA (given I see you're going to fly both). It's the one programme you can double dip on Hilton points and FFP points.
Sounds like you may well hit VA gold or platinum and then apply for the equivalent gifted status to Hilton or IHG.

Sometimes you get good deals via the airline or other websites but remember the hotel programme is really only obliged to honour your status if you book directly through them. If you're flying QF they pop up with $30 off vouchers etc and I have to admit price wise I would have been better going with the QF voucher rather than direct through the hotel site. This does vary of course.

Do you have a headache yet?!?! I certainly did!!

 

[Jonno Oon]

Add in hotels.com to your portfolio. For hotels that don't fit into the above programmes then use this. They have quite an extensive list of hotels to choose from but basically it's pay for 10 and get 1 free - which is really just an average of $ spent on your 10 nights divided by 10 and that amount put towards the night you want free.

I have signed up to the 4 programmes you have just this year and Rydges also - I seem to have the most upgrades with Rydges and I don't even have any significant status! I don't think I'll reach any significant status with these programmes as location and price are too important to me to drag my butt half way across town just for a loyalty programme if the hotel is situated elsewhere. This is where hotels.com comes in. I also use it if we're flying in from somewhere and just need a transit hotel ie we arrive, dump bags, go out for dinner, come back and sleep and then fly out the next day - it's not worth paying lots of $$ for a nice room you're barely in IMO.

I have a stay in PER coming up with SPG to activate the world card but I was told that status is just for a year, it's not an annual benefit. Maybe that's just here in NZ. When I looked at Mastercards offerings last year they pretty much offered what looked to me like gold status on stays anyway. Upgrades, late checkout eg4pm, free breakfast etc. My only downside is I got the card for work purposes so I won't be able to book personal Mastercard stays with it or else it will look dodgy!

I think buying Ambassador is good even if you only have 1 stay in an intercontinental (yet to do this but the conclusion I came to), but you have to make sure you book it well in advance of your stay so you can apply it. You get the free weekend night also, and the 5,000 extra points. I think it's good for getting you to gold elite as you get 10% bonus points which counts down the track when you want to redeem so even if you have just a couple of nights a year at the intercontinental but more at other IHG properties then I would use it to get yourself to gold elite faster and buy it earlier in your year. Redemption wise they have the point breaks where you can stay for 5,000 points but they don't really seem to offer these in NZ and probably not so much Oz either, but that's just for the point break stays. I like Crowne in NZ and I've not stayed but I'd probably like the Wellington Intercontinental. I believe reward nights count towards status also in this programme - at least that's what my spreadsheet says!

Remember you need at least 1 stay in each programme for your account to remain active each calendar year.

There are actually some good deals on rental cars and extra points associated with these hotel programmes. eg Europcar get 20% off and get 1000 points towards Accor
You can also earn with Uber towards SPG.
There are some hotels you can earn points on the food and beverage if it's charged to your hotel room eg Hilton or even when not staying eg SPG
Hilton gives double the points to VA vs QF on stays so set your account to VA (given I see you're going to fly both). It's the one programme you can double dip on Hilton points and FFP points.
Sounds like you may well hit VA gold or platinum and then apply for the equivalent gifted status to Hilton or IHG.

Sometimes you get good deals via the airline or other websites but remember the hotel programme is really only obliged to honour your status if you book directly through them. If you're flying QF they pop up with $30 off vouchers etc and I have to admit price wise I would have been better going with the QF voucher rather than direct through the hotel site. This does vary of course.

Do you have a headache yet?!?! I certainly did!!

Definitely do have a headache haha! My hotel decision changes almost daily, there seems to be something new everyday that sways me towards one program or the other.

May be a bit misleading on my flights, 90% of my flights are on QFF as work gives us Qantas Club membership, which is nice to enjoy.
Occasional VA flights for personal travel home when they are on sale though!

Is Rydges part of the GHA loyalty program? I looked into that, loveee the hotels they have in their portfolio and quick to get status with room ugprades etc, but no points system for free nights, instead you get "local experiences" ...

At present just trying to pick one primary hotel program to stick to for the most part and accumulate status with them quickly!
Hotels.com sounds like an excellent back up though, that is a good and simple deal.

I agree about staying at more modest accommodation, for personal travel I tend to frequent cheaper spots, I hit up mostly Ibis Styles while in Europe recently, most of which were more than sufficient for my needs!

 

[quokka77]

Hotel loyalty schemes probably only make sense if someone else is paying. There are those who make them work on their own coin but it seems A LOT of effort with BRGs, certs, promo registrations, following up on incorrectly posted points etc. All of which has opportunity cost. One exception seems to be corporate codes -- sshhh, secret, if you've got any PM me, I don't have any . Hotels.com (and the other consolidators) often have sharper pricing, which can be painful or impossible to replicate through a BRG. As an alternative to the "stay 10, get 1 free" welcome rewards, I have recently just been using promo codes for 10 to 12% off (but no welcome rewards), in addition to cashrewards cash back. For longer stays, I find VRBO and similar to be much more suitable. Y mattress MV.

 

[puppysparkes]

Hi Everyone,

I've been doing a ton of research into Hotel Loyalty Programs as I try to pick the one that suits me the best.
Thought I'd post up my summary of the programs I'm studying at present and hopefully it can benefit others.

Please note, this was done by a FF Newbie, so please correct as necessary
Also, most of my travel will be to Sydney, so I've put a bit of a focus on this, please feel free to add on!

Loyalty Name
Hilton Hhonors

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
4 NZ
14 AU

Status tiers/Benefits
Blue: Automatic
- Late Check Out
- In room internet access
- Express Check out
- 2nd Guest Stays Free

Silver: 4 Stays or 10 Nights
- 15% Bonus on Points
- Gym Access
- 2 Bottles of Water Free

Gold: 20 Stays or 40 Nights or 75,000 Base Points (Generally considered best value, best mid-level loyalty program)
- 25% Bonus
- 5th night free on Reward stays of 5 nights or more
- Room Upgrades
- Complimentary Breakfast

Diamond: 30 stays, 60 nights, 120,000 Base Points
- 50% Bonus
- 48 hr Room Guarantee
- Lounge access

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
$250-$500 AUD; Varies incredibly depending on dates

Range of properties in Sydney
None, only the Hilton Sydney

Additional Comments
One of the better Hotel Loyalty Programs in Australia in terms of great perks for elite Status
Gold often considered the best value in this program (not many additional perks for Diamond)

Status Boosters
Macquarie Platinum Hhonors card gives instant gold status for holders


Loyalty Name
SPG

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
11

Status tiers/Benefits
Preferred: Automatic
· In Room internet access
· Bottled water
Gold: 10 Stays or 25 Nights
· 3 Starpoints per USD vs 2 points
· Late checkout
· Room upgrades
· Welcome Gift (250 points, free drink or internet)
Platinum: 25 stays or 50 nights
· Welcome gift (500 points, local gift or breakfast)
· Best available room upgrade (Including suites)

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
Four Points by Sheraton: $260 - $320
Sheraton: $280 - $480
Westin: $375 - $400

Range of properties in Sydney
Good, Four Points offers a more budget friendly option, with the Sheraton and Westin offering the more luxurious options.

Additional Comments
Often considered to give the best luxury perks of the hotel loyalty program
Fastest path to very elite treatment (only 50 nights)
Hotels generally very expensive; even Four Points
Upcoming merger with Marriott, some concern about the program

Status Boosters
World mastercard holders obtain instant gold status after one night in a SPG hotel

Loyalty Name
IHG Rewards (intercontinental hotels)

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
22

Status tiers/Benefits
Club: Auto
· Late check out
· Complimentary newspaper
· Internet
Gold: 10 Nights or 10,000 Points
· 10% Bonus on Points
· Priority check in
Platinum: 40 Nights or 40,000 Points
· 50% Bonus on Points
· Room upgrades
· Guaranteed room availability (but not really applicable on peak periods)
· Excess Nights “roll-over” into following year’s status
Spire: 75 nights or 75,000 Points
· 100% Bonus on Points

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
Holiday Inn Darling Harbour: $240
Holiday Inn Old Sydney: $340
Intercontinental Hotel Sydney: $350 - $370

Range of properties in Sydney
Not bad, but both very central locations (HI Old Sydney and Intercon) are rather expensive options.
Budget friendly option in HI Darling Harbour, but for me personally, not as good a location as the other two.

Additional Comments
Numerous complaints about elite status not being recognised
Numerous complaints about elite status not providing sufficient benefits
Good feedback regarding value of redeeming points for free nights

Status Boosters
Able to purchase gold level benefits with Ambassador ($200)


Loyalty Name
Accor Leclub

Number of properties in AU/NZ Capital Cities
Too many to count .. well over 60

Status tiers/Benefits
Blue: Auto
Silver: 10 Nights or 2500 Points
· Free internet worldwide
· Welcome Drink
· Late Check out
Gold: 30 Nights or 10,000 Points
· Late check out OR early check in
· Guaranteed Room up to 3 days before arrival
· Room upgrades
· “VIP Treatment” – depending on hotel; often a free gift in room
Platinum: 60 Nights or 25,000 Points
· Late check out AND Early check in
· Guaranteed Room up to 2 days before arrival
· Access to executive lounge if available (Except Sofitel Melbourne)

Approx. Cost of 1 night in a hotel in Sydney
Sofitel: $260 - $310
Pullman harbour: $360
Pullman Hyde Park: $200 - $220
Novotel Darling Harbour: $186 - $250

Range of properties in Sydney
Large range, in addition to the properties above, numerous Ibis hotels cater to budget travellers.
Numerous luxurious hotels from Pullmans, MGallery and Sofitels also present, as well as middle market brands such as Mercures and Novotels.

Additional Comments
Numerous complaints about elite status not being recognised
Difficulties getting points to post
Difficulties getting staff to acknowledge status at many hotels
Points redeem at 2000 = 40 Euros, which may not be the best value IMO

Status Booster
Gold status with Ibis Business Card (90 Euros)
Amex Platinum Charge Card gives platinum status with Leclub

Thanks for taking the time to collate the various schemes.

 

[Cynicor]

SPG gold is free with Plat Charge on a recurring basis.

HH Diamond has better recognition in Asia and EU than AU and USA but gold definitely the best "value" on an incremental benefits/nights level with HH.

Can also get HH levels with the Mac Bank card. Gold free and Diamond at $40k IIRC

 

[Jonno Oon]

Hotel loyalty schemes probably only make sense if someone else is paying. There are those who make them work on their own coin but it seems A LOT of effort with BRGs, certs, promo registrations, following up on incorrectly posted points etc. All of which has opportunity cost. One exception seems to be corporate codes -- sshhh, secret, if you've got any PM me, I don't have any . Hotels.com (and the other consolidators) often have sharper pricing, which can be painful or impossible to replicate through a BRG. As an alternative to the "stay 10, get 1 free" welcome rewards, I have recently just been using promo codes for 10 to 12% off (but no welcome rewards), in addition to cashrewards cash back. For longer stays, I find VRBO and similar to be much more suitable. Y mattress MV.

I do agree, the pros/cons of the loyalty perks vs potentially higher costs and less convenient locations may need to be weighed up!

Thanks for taking the time to collate the various schemes.

Pleasure! A bit specific to my needs perhaps, but hopefully it helps anybody who is considering the same programs as I was

SPG gold is free with Plat Charge on a recurring basis.

HH Diamond has better recognition in Asia and EU than AU and USA but gold definitely the best "value" on an incremental benefits/nights level with HH.

Can also get HH levels with the Mac Bank card. Gold free and Diamond at $40k IIRC

I'll add in the Plat Charge Card perks with SPG! (Also just saw membership to Accor plus is included in there)
Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Foreigner]

Here's a review of loyalty programs of major hotel chains (sans Accor):

http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2016/01/ranking-hotel-elite-statuses-from-best-to-worst.html

 

[ronone69]

Reading through this, a couple of things seem to be missing. First I am SPG Platinum for Life - that's right I do not even have to stay at a Starwood property ever again but whenever I do I get Platinum benefits - how 10 years at Platinum level - I had Gold for Life before that. So long term loyalty really does have its benefits - and yes I do wonder what Dick Marriott will do to screw up SPG. In terms of other program, Hyatt and SPG are similar in terms of benefits - and I understand Hyatt will Status match with SPG !!

Anyway, I am also a member of the other programs but 1 has to be your main program and SPG is mine. I never have a problem with getting benefits - in fact at may hotels they give me extra benefits - the St Regis for example in Istanbul, where I am now, has given me breakfast for both rooms as an SPG benefit whereas the program only provides fir 1 room if you have multiple.

Just some thoughts

 

[Star31]

A bit more info on Le club Accor. I am platinum, largely because my reasonable level of travel was boosted by the numerous "triple points" offers that seem to crop up every few months. The benefits vary wildly by hotel but there are a few real winners. Adelaide Playford offers a free coughtail up to $25 in their quite nice bar, airport Mercure give a full bottle of wine (!) of varying quality but sometimes very good, 50% off breakfast in the restaurants is a good deal. Many of these benefits were offered for gold as well. Free nights work out about one in 6 stays if you watch out for the triple piints offer and register.

 

[Roberto]

Thanks to all contributors. I too have researched hotel loyalty programs and found that SPG and Hilton appear to offer the best programs. My business travel destinations includes places where Hilton either has no presence or not a convenient one so my preferred program is SPG.

I recently joined Accor because it had hotels in convenient locations for some upcoming trips. I also converted points from an online opinion site to Accor as this gave me 5000 LeClub points and instant Silver status which, based on the Accor online blurb, would give me free Wifi. My subsequent experience with Accor has been less than overwhelming. I tried to use Accor's website to find hotels where I could get a reasonable deal using points. Their website is hopeless. No looking at a city in general - you have to investigate each hotel in turn. What a waste of time!

I received some special offers by email from Accor but then found that you cannot use the 2000 points = 40 euros redemption on discounted rates. You can only use the points on rack rates which makes the points effectively worthless! I did stay at an Accor hotel in December at a discounted rate. Silver status was supposed to give me a free welcome drink and free Wifi. I received neither. If anyone knows a good us for 5000 Accor points I'd be pleased to know.

 

[Colin keens]

Good work, thanks for all the effort you put in.
AMEX platinum charge card also give you elite status at IHG which I've found to be very handy

 

[trippin_the_rift]

Good work, thanks for all the effort you put in.
AMEX platinum charge card also give you elite status at IHG which I've found to be very handy

Where did you see this benefit?

 

[Colin keens]

Where did you see this benefit?

Sorry my mistake, have too many memberships- I was thinking of Shangri La Golden Circle

 

[JCD]

Although a member of several programs, including Accor Advantage Plus Silver and SPG Gold, I often find it is better to use Hotels.com to accumulate free nights and access a far greater range of hotels. This means I can use a lot of boutique hotels that are often cheaper and better located.