Originally Posted by
stimpy
Around the world there are plenty of cities where the IC is far better than the Starwood offerings. In Paris there are two IC's that are better than any of the Starwood hotels.
I wouldn't agree. I've stayed at both ICs in Paris and I prefer the Westin (location) and Prince de Galles (most luxurious of them all). But both ICs are wonderful, to be sure.
As stated above, London is another example of that.
IC Park Lane definitely wins in London. No argument.
In fact in just about any city in Europe where there is an IC, it's better than any Starwood in that town. Rome, Lisbon, Dusseldorf, Madrid, etc. Can anyone think of an example where Starwood is better in Europe? Or Asia? Maybe Bangkok where the Sheraton SGS could be seen as better than the IC, but not by much.
Easy cowpoke! There are many examples where you may have forgotten or been unaware:
Europe--there are plenty of cities where there isn't an IC but there are good SPG options...and some cities where the SPG option is better (London and Paris are notable exceptions)
Vienna: SPG's Imperial and Bristol are more luxurious than IC
Salzburg: Schloss Fuschi and Goldener Hirsch
Sofia: Balkan
Prague: Augustine will give IC a run for its money
Helsinki: Kamp
Paris: Prince de Galles and Westin Vendome beat/can compete with ICs
Athens: Grand Bretagne and King George can compete with IC
Crete: Blue Palace Resort is amazing
Florence: StR and Westin Excelsior
Milan: Excelsior Galila likely better than IC
Rome: StR and Westin Excelsior beat IC
Venice: StR, Gritti, Danieli win
Hague: des Indes
Warsaw: Bristol and Westin
Moscow: StR and National beats IC
St. Petersburg: W wins
Belgrade: Metropole
Barcelona: W
Madrid: Westin Palace is comparable to IC
Mallorca: StR wins
San Sebastian: Maria Cristina wins
Seville: Alfonso XIII wins
Stockhold: Sheraton
Verbier: W
Ankara: Lugal wins
Istanbul: StR wins, W comparable to IC
Odessa: Bristol wins
Scotland: Trump Turnberry
Asia--IC has more properties, but SPG has better properties overall and more in the pipeline:
Siem Reap: Le Meridien Angkor wins
Beijing: StR beats IC, plus 2 Westins and W
Guangzhou: W and 2 Westins
Shenzen: StR and Westin
Sanya: StR and Westin, with another StR coming
Nanjing: Grand Mansion, with StR coming
Xian: Westin, with W coming
Chengdu: StR, with W and Westin coming
Tianjin: StR, Astor, Westin
Lhasa: StR
Goa: W coming
Bangalore: 2 ITCs
Mumbai: 2 ITCs, StR and W coming
Delhi: 2 ITCs
Hyderabad: ITC, Westin
Agra: ITC
Kolkatta: ITC, Westin coming
Bali: StR, Laguna, Westin comparable if not better than IC
Jakarta: StR, W, Westin coming
Kyoto: Suiran and Westin comparable if not better than IC
Osaka: StR better than a great IC
Seoul: W, Westin, and Parnas coming
Macau: StR coming
Kuala Lumpur: Westin, StR and W coming comparable if not better than IC
Langkawi: Andaman with StR coming
Maldives: W, with StR coming
Singapore: StR, W, Westin
Taipei: W, Westin
Bangkok: StR, W, Westin, Sheraton Grand all better than the terrible IC
Koh Samui: W Retreat
Phuket: Naka Island, Westin, W coming
Ho Chi Minh: Le Meridien
South Pacific:
Bora Bora: StR wins over ICs
Fiji: Westin and 3 Sheraton Resorts comparable to IC
I feel very strongly that the rumoured merger would be a very bad thing for us frequent travelers. I'm both SPG Plat and IC RA and I'd like them to remain separate.
The merger may or may not be bad for frequent travelers. As an IHG member, I'd assume the addition of more luxury options and more options in cities not often covered by IHG will be a win. As an SPG member, the additional of IC properties in cities not already well covered by SPG will be a big win...but the addition of Holiday Inns, Staybridge, etc will be strictly a plus for investors and the midscale/budget customer base. SPG customers tend to be higher-end than IHG customers overall for a reason that matches the quality of properties in the overall portfolios of the chains. Still, it will be nice to have SPG options in small towns/rural areas with Holiday Inn where SPG has no current coverage.
But I also realize that Starwood investors would like very much to be bought out and IHG exec management has massive growth in their eyes. That's why the rumours exist.
Most investor analyses put the more likely IHG to be acquired by Starwood, not the other way around. IHG is much larger in terms of property/room number...but substantially smaller in market cap. Starwood's market cap is 50% larger, making it much harder for IHG to acquire Starwood than the other way around.
The rumors exist because IHG has been on record as looking to expand or be acquired...which is why Wyndham made its attempt in 2014. And Starwood now is on record looking at ways to boost its value for investors.