Originally Posted by
nicolas75
Fairmont could perfectly fit into the Ambassador program.
But it is true that it is slighty more difficult to be Royal Ambassador rather than Platinum with President's club.
I am not quite sure that Fairmont values are that far from InterContinental ones.
With the exception of the Savoy and The Plaza (more luxurious than most ICs) and some Canadian properties (not at the standard of ICs), hotel range is quite the same.
I'd tend to disagree that Fairmont could perfectly fit into the IHG portfolio / the Amb. program. As mentioned above, some of the more generic city center Fairmont hotels (Chicago, Dallas, Pittsburgh etc.) would fit perfectly into the portfolio, but it's hard to imagine the landmark Fairmont hotels becoming ICs.
Overall, there are very few true 5* ICs IMO (I'd classify most ICs as solid 4*-4.5* hotels with a focus on business travellers). While some Fairmonts also fit that description, there are dozens of historic landmark hotels and resorts which don't really fit into the IHG portfolio IMO.
Originally Posted by
nicolas75
Swissotel has a very poor brand value (and poor consistency) and would certainly disappear in case of merger with IHG.
That I agree with. Low brand awareness combined with rather generic hotels in the 3.5*-4* rangewould make for a perfect integration into the IHG portfolio (most properties would probably become Crowne Plazas and the better onces would become ICs).