Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)
With the Chase/IHG credit card, you get immediate IHG Platinum status, and a 10% rebate on point redemptions (limited to 100,000 rebated points per year). The credit card earns 5 points/$ at IHG properties. IHG Platinum status earns 15 points/$ at Holiday Inn, HI Express, Hotel Indigo, and Crowne Plaza, so a combined earnings rate of 20 points/$ at those brands when charged to the credit card.
After the 10% rebate on redemptions, a one-night PointBreaks stay would have a net cost of $4,500 points, so $225 in spend at any of the four qualifying brands would net a free night. PointBreaks properties change every few months. Here's the current PointBreaks list:
http://blog.ihg.com/ihg-rewards-club...breaks-preview
(Be aware that some properties sell out of PointBreaks rooms quickly.)
The credit-card sign-up bonus is currently 60,000 points, and upon paying the $49 annual fee at renewal, one gets a free-night certificate valid at
any IHG property. (I used mine at the InterContinental Times Square last month.)