Originally Posted by
Toula
As long as there is competition in the market I would expect that there will always be someone offering a promo and once one does it the rest have to follow like lambs to the slaughter.
The way we play the game is we maintain membership in all the programs. When we are going somewhere we look at the hotels on offer, price it up then run the numbers thru a spreadsheet I have built which tells us how many points each location will offer us and what those points will give us in terms of freebies. We don't stay anywhere just because of a promotion or because it is part of any chain. For example our next 3 stays are the Intercontinental at Monterey, Grand Hyatt Vancouver and Hilton Honolulu. We are never going to be top tier at any of the programs however we are fine with that.
Interesting mentality. I was originally only loyal to one, Hilton where I first earned elite some 6 years ago. Since then, I've learned to maintain Diamond with Hilton and for the past 3 years built up status at PC. Now these days I've become a PC Plat RA and I've shifted more and more business away from Hilton to PC.
Originally Posted by
trueblu
ihg has 4400 hotels vs 3200 in hilton, hardly 'dwarfing'. Cf hilton's 3200 vs 940 starwood.
Having said that, i'm sure there are chains, e.g. choice, which do dwarf hilton.
tb
Originally Posted by
saad
they have 25% more hotels than hilton....also, they have better coverage worldwide....
Well, sadly one of the reasons for shifting my business is my current location, Hilton has really no coverage here. Further, even if they did their rates are ridiculously high compared to what I can get at PC properties, including IC.
Originally Posted by
saad
but platinum doesn't really mean much at pc....hilton diamond is one of the best levels to have across all programs....
I know there is many debates about this in the IHG forum, but I just wanted to state here that I disagree. I've had equal if not better treatment as a PC Plat compared to HH Diamond. However, HH guaranteeing lounge access, free internet, and the Dia force do make it more valuable than PC Plat for sure, but regards to "real upgrades" I've done just as well at PC.