stimpy

Sorry but free booze for two hours at night doesn't compare with 24 hour free minibar. And it's not just about alcohol. Sometimes you just want to grab a juice or a coke or something. No guilt at IC's.

OK, i've never heard about this Hyatt Courtesy. But I'm Lifetime SPG Plat so I know that one doesn't come with suites these days. IC RA comes to you with 30 nights at IC's and 60-65 IHG nights IHG wide. What does it take for Hyatt Courtesy? I think you really should compare RA with Hyatt Diamond.

I'd say that the majority of RA's are not US based and US FT'ers certainly don't stay a lot of nights paying at business class hotels or luxury. They mostly are all about points obtained from credit cards, etc. IMHO the majority of FT'ers who are capable of qualifying for these top levels are very familiar with international markets.

I admitted that, but again, IC's are popping up like crazy lately. Take the new IC O2 in London. When's the last time Starwood or Hyatt brought in a new high end London hotel? All I remember is Hyatt losing their Park Hyatt and Hyatt in London some years ago. And Starwood lost their excellent Belgravia property.

No I didn't. I said that I get Club at IC's almost everywhere in the world and of course Club includes breakfast. The only IC's I can think of that I don't get club are London Park Lane and of course the US IC's that don't even have clubs. And my favorite US IC is Miami where RA's do get club.

You've got to stay at the bad every once in a while to better appreciate the good.

Land-of-Miles

Doesn't every US IC with a club lounge give lounge access to RA's? That has certainly been my experience but I have't visited them all.

It will be nice if the mooted IHG takeover of Fairmont happens as that would add some great properties to the footprint. In terms of usefulness for my travels Hyatt isn't really in contention.

iflyjetz

Stimpy, I'm just trying to bust your chops in a friendly manner while comparing RA with SPG/Hyatt. If I offend, let me know and I'll delete the offensive material and discontinue the exchange.

I'm not sure I understand. Does anyone ever feel guilty about taking a soda or water from a lounge? I don't.
From what I've read, not all ICs offer alcohol in their minibars and some offer a very limited selection. I've also read where some ICs empty all booze from the minibar prior to an RA checking in. True or false? I don't know, just curious.
How quickly does an RA get an empty minibar restocked? Do you call for that? I don't know the answer; I'm curious.

Then proclaiming RA to be a far better program than SPG and Hyatt on FT is not correct. The best loyalty program is highly individualized and you're now stating that most FTers are not going to meet the RA requirements.

On the other hand, Hyatt Diamond requires fewer stays than Spire and offers more guaranteed benefits that FTers desire than RA.

Hyatt Courtesy minimums is unpublished. But IC RA minimums have changed since Spire and IHG has announced that they're going to change again. Currently, it's 75 IHG nights, 30 IC, 3 ICs.

In contrast, Hyatt Diamond is 25 stays or 50 nights, a much lower bar. I further reduce that bar with the credit card to get Diamond at 20 stays/40 nights.

There's a much lower threshold to obtain Hyatt Diamond. And it comes with both guaranteed breakfast and lounge access.

As far as SPG, I've gotten more than a few suite upgrades at check in. On my last SPG stay at the San Diego Sheraton Hotel and Marina, I was given the Governor's Suite on a cheapo rate. And one of the better US SPG lounges.


IC 02 added. IC Westminster deleted. I'd call that a wash in London.
The O2's not open yet so there's only one IC in London at the moment. (The O2 was originally scheduled to open as a Crowne Plaza)
Hyatt has a HR and Andaz currently open. SPG has 8 properties in/around London.
Add in the other IHG properties and you've got a lot more IHG properties than Hyatt and SPG combined, but most of them are budget properties, not high end.

Not a guaranteed benefit and not extended at some IC properties.

Speaking of guaranteed benefits, a suite is not a guaranteed IC benefit. And from a bit of reading, it sounds like there are more than a handful of properties who do not give RAs suites.
From the RA T&C: An upgrade to an Executive room, Club InterContinental room or a Suite for Royal Ambassadors at check-in is guaranteed. Where a Club InterContinental room is given, Club lounge access must also be given. Club lounge access otherwise is only to be given at the discretion of the hotel and is not a benefit.

So to be clear, an RA is guaranteed an Executive room.

Agreed.

Lounge access isn't a RA guaranteed benefit. We've all seen loyalty programs both give and take away unpublished benefits in the past. I'd like to see it become a RA published benefit.

I'm still waiting to see how Kimpton is absorbed into the IHG brand. Adding another loyalty program with the addition of Fairmont would add to IHG's disjointed loyalty programs.

Fairmont is a subsidiary of FRHI, which has Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissotel brands. To date, FRHI's kept each brand separate with no shared loyalty programs. I've read the speculation on IHG acquiring Fairmont, but it seems like just fluff for the bloggers to speculate.

gkbiiii

So do points payed for (by annual maintenance fees) and purchasing into HICV count toward status?

stimpy

Nothing offensive that I've seen.

Not talking about getting dressed and going to the club. I'm talking about using the mini-bar in your room. Huge difference.

Mini-bars are only as good as the hotel. So the nicer IC's have nicer mini-bars. In Europe most are excellent with Champagne and high end spirits. Asia has some great ones too. The cheaper IC's have cheaper minibars. I've read some unreliable reports of the dumbing down of minibars for RA's, but I've not seen it. I think the IC Bangkok did this once a few years ago but then went back to normal. And yes you can ring down and have them replenish the mini-bar as you like, though gross abuse of the minibar privilege would probably be frowned upon.

Says who? I don't think that's true.

Yes only 50 nights which is why Hyatt Diamond and SPG Plats don't get the same level of high treatment that RA's get.

As I said I'm SPG lifetime Plat so I know the program very well. Sure at certain properties I get great suite upgrades, but nowhere near to what IC's give me which is a suite every time. I think I'm something like 49-1 in recent years at the IC Le Grand for suite upgrades versus an Exec room. And that one time they were packed full and I checked in very late.

I'm also Hilton Diamond and Accor Platinum so I know those programs well and for several years I was also Hyatt Diamond so I at least know how that program used to be. Judging all these programs it's clear that IC RA is the top. But I would also advise any RA to keep status also in another more ubiquitous program for when you are in cities that don't have an IC. Fortunately RA comes with effectively a comped Spire membership and there are HI's everywhere.

All those current Hyatt and SPG properties do not qualify as high end. Only the Sheraton Park Tower would qualify. And of course the old Park Hyatt and Hyatt Lowndes which I liked very much. But the current batch do not compare with the IC Park Lane. We'll see about the O2.

Again, the list of properties that don't give Club is very small. In my case, I can count on Club access at all the IC's I usually stay at except LA, Chicago and NY which don't have clubs.

All the IC's I know about give suites except under special circumstances.

This is just language to protect the hotel which is fine with me. Because in reality a paying RA guest is treated very, very well at all IC's with almost always Club and a suite.

Stealthmode

Got Spired 4 weeks ago, today I received a letter and new membership card congratulating me for becoming Platinum... what am I missunderstanding here?

GordonUK

IHG Rewards Club?

iflyjetz

Good; not my intent to offend.

I understand that might be viewed as an inconvenience to some. Having to call to restock the minibar would be viewed as an inconvenience to others vice just going to the lounge and taking what you want. It's an individual thing.

OK, thanks for the datapoint.

It looks like a change was posted on the Ambassador page then deleted. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inter...ter-spire.html
Where does it say 60/30/3?

... but I get Hyatt Diamond/SPG Plat benefits on award stays. RA doesn't get RA treatment on award stays, nor do award stays count toward status with RA.
With Hyatt, my Points+Cash stays count toward status. Award stays don't count toward status.
With SPG, my Points+Cash and Award stays count toward status.

And again, I get all of my elite benefits on stays paid/partially paid with points.

But RA doesn't guarantee suite upgrades. I used to be a big fan of Marriott but their program's gone to crap over the last 5 years. And Hilton's has done the same.

I don't see IHG's three programs - IHG Rewards Club, IC Ambassador, and Kimpton Karma staying as three separate programs forever. Toss in the rumored IHG acquisition of Fairmont or even FRHI and you've got one to three more separate programs to manage.

I've stayed at the Andaz and the IC Westminster. Huge price difference between the two properties with minimal difference in the experience. The advantage of IC Westminster was location, but we stayed at Andaz on the day that we went to the Tower of London so it was a convenient location for that ... we walked there from the hotel. The Andaz was a much better value.

Interesting comments on RA at the end of this article: http://milesdownunder.com/2015/07/wh...mpelling-tier/

Thanks for the comments on RA; it's not a good fit for me and I suspect most who follow this thread would be happier with Hyatt Diamond or SPG Plat than RA. I'm able to maintain both Hyatt Diamond and SPG Plat with less nights and significantly less spend (cost is a factor for me since all credit stays are paid by me, not my employer) than for RA. I'm happy where I'm at and you're happy where you're at. But I'm not going to claim that any single loyalty program is better than others - it's completely based on what an individual values. I've had this same discussion with someone who swore that Club Carlson was superior to Hyatt. OK, based on his criteria. I've been Club Carlson Concierge and it's not a good fit for me.

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

stimpy

Well another thing is that the club isn't 24/7 like the mini-bar. And when you are jet lagged, or not, sometimes you want a drink at 2 or 3am.

In our RA requal thread here there are many, many examples of people qualifying with 60 nights. But officially it is "invitation only".

Not true for benefits on award stays at the vast majority of IC's. Again, you have to go to actual experiences rather than the T's and C's with this program. And there are countless posts here that back this up. There are very few IC's that don't give benefits on award stays and I think now in 2015 there may be none. One of the most difficult hotels was always the IC Hong Kong, but now they give full benefits including club and mini-bar on award stays. Another difficult property was Melbourne, but reports of a new GM there who has changed things. I'm not sure there are any IC's left that are chintzy on award stays?

Also I'm not sure that award stays don't count for RA requal. In fact no one is really sure since it is invitation only. But evidence shows that they made a big deal of posting our award stay count recently which leads me to believe that counts for a lot now and possibly will go official in 2016.

Again, you have to look past the T's and C's and focus on actual experiences. No program guarantees a suite upgrade from an entry level booking. But IC RA's report here on Flyertalk that the vast majority of their stays come with a suite upgrade.

I'm also comped to Marriott elite and I agree it's no great shakes these days and ditto for Hilton, with a few exceptional hotels that give me great upgrades.

I've been AMB/RA for over 15 years now and have heard a whole lot of rumours. I'm not getting excited about the latest ones.

No way was Andaz a better value when you consider the excellent club they had at the IC Westminster, plus the mini-bar. It's not even close.

As this is in the IHG forum and there are a good number of RA's here in this thread, I have to disagree with you. You don't earn RA because you love Hyatt better. Go to the Hyatt forum to find the Hyatt lovers. But I know at least a couple of RA's here like me also have SPG Plat, which is nice.

Thank you! These discussions are a good part of why we are here. Better even to meet and discuss over drinks.

iflyjetz

Aw c'mon. You know that you have 24 hour access to SPG clubs. And for Hyatt clubs, I'll take a soda out during club hours. How many drinks can one consume in the middle of the night?

When I switched from SPG to Marriott about a decade ago, it was a perfect fit for me. As time progressed, Marriott's program deteriorated and I decided to move on. Since then, I do a check of various programs from time to time. I refuse to be blindly loyal to any program. My foray here was to gauge Rewards Club and RA - I get Plat with the credit card but rarely stay at IHG other than the annual credit card night.

My trip was in 2013. I paid less than 150GBP for a night at Andaz. I used my IHG credit card night for IC Westminster, which would have been around 500GBP for a night for the cheapest room.

I didn't have access to the club and I could have restocked the minibar a whole lot of times along with visiting a local club for 300GBP.

With the credit card night, I considered the Westminster sans club and minibar to be a screaming bargain. If booked at publicly available rates, not so much.

Yes, I'm sure that there are quite a few RAs here. However, I would venture to guess that you're vastly outnumbered by non-Amb/RAs. A good deal of the discussion here is the lack of defined benefits for Rewards Club members. But it appears from my readings that Rewards Club members place the highest priority on points.

I would be interested in seeing IHG change their program to be more in line with Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, and SPG benefits for both lounge access and breakfast. And I'd like to see that incorporated across the entire chain, including Kimpton and IC because SBS, Candlewood, and the various Holiday Inn sub brands aren't as appealing to me.

Great discussion; thanks for your time.

I've ruled out Amb/RA due to 1) lack of IC locations that work for me, 2) my creditable stays are on my dime and I don't see much additional value in IC RA vs much less expensive Hyatt and SPG properties, and 3) in the Amb T&C: 7.InterContinental Ambassador benefits are not available to airline crew members for crew stays.

While some portions of the T&C aren't enforced, I'm guessing that most ICs are more strict on extending benefits to airline crews. Hilton stopped extending benefits to airline crews around the time Blackstone IPO'd them and as a result I let my Hilton status fall to Blue. Marriott, Hyatt and SPG extend me elite benefits when I'm on airline crew stays. No stay credit but at least I get lounge access.

stimpy

No, I certainly don't. Maybe a few in the US as I think the Sheraton LAX does, but none that I know of outside the US are open 24 hours. Perhaps there are some, but clearly not all.

500 is pricey, but I've gotten that hotel for between 175 and 200 back when we had it, including club. I also got club on a reward night. That particular club would have been worth at least 50 pounds a day it was so good.

Sorry I didn't know you were air crew. I have no idea of the current treatment, but about 2 or 3 years ago we had a BA crew member here who got RA and had some good stays before some of the IC's began to refuse benefits on crew stays. I guess he was the first RA crew member?

iflyjetz

It's not that they're open 24 hours, but I can't think of the last time I didn't have 24 hour access to an SPG club. The lounge key has always allowed me 24 hour access as far as I remember.
Hyatt's lounges are locked after hours and not accessible.

stimpy

Outside of the US, with perhaps a few exceptions, all club lounges at all hotels in all the chains are locked closed after happy hour ends.

Tim O'Brien

didn't you hear? platinum in the new Spire

Miles Down Under

That is certainly not been our experience at all across a number of geographies. To use examples from just one city, these club lounges are all open after the evening drinks service finishes:

InterContinental Sydney
InterContinental Sydney Double Bay
Sheraton Sydney On The Park
Hilton Sydney
Pullman Sydney