Originally Posted by
Flamenguista
Unfortunately I received this message for an upcoming stay to the Crowne Plaza in Muscat, Oman:
"
Greetings from Crowne Plaza Muscat
We are writing to you with reference to your upcoming booking #xxxxxxx . We regret to inform you that we will not be able to accommodate you during the dates booked, as the hotel is scheduled to close for renovation from 15th May to 15th August 2018. Hence, we are kindly requesting you to cancel your booking on IHG Rewards points and we are pleased to recommend you our sister property Intercontinental Muscat.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused and we look forward to welcoming you on a future trip to Muscat."
My question is if I have any other options? I don't have enough points in my account to make this swap, as the Intercontinental requires more points that the Crowne Plaza.
Normally hotels try to get out of things, especially in the ME region. Generally hotels believe that the advance notice you are geing given means cancelation is not a walk, so hotel is not required to pay your first night at nearby hotel. Sneakily just to avoid arguments and losinf, hotel then requests you to do the cancel rather than hotel itself cancelling the booking
I'd be quick to do something, if wanting the IC, I can't see IC always havig rooms spare for the whole number of prebooked CP rooms being displaced.
Historically contacting IHG has worked, usually when hotels open past expected date, and IHG move guest to another nearby IHG hotel on such points bookings even if other hotel has zero available points nights for sale. If no equivalent/suitable IHG hotel at booked CP level, eg CP/Indigo/HI , meaning only higher rated and costlier (in points ) IHG often with prompting also make up the difference in points eg 30k CP night to 50k IC per night. Even more necessary for you if you lack points to do this yourself.
Recommendation, phone (skype is free to USA ) and ask explain CP Oman issue, and ask IHG to rebook your rooms to IC Oman at no further cost to you, on same points basis as already booked at the CP (whatever happens do not cancel booking yourself , have IHG move the nights for you)
Not going to check, but I suspect IC/CP is same owners, so they could move guests, but would lose too much money so are trying to dump you rather than do decent thing. CP may even just be dumping award night guess and base room guests, and moving the higher cat paying guests to their sister IC .