iggyray

Goodbye BW. Just need to spend one $100 card, and I am gone.

IHG BRG by the way is a waste of time.

spankytoes

Shame. Expecting another $100 card from my stay last week leaving me with $122.01 left across 2 cards. Guess I will be using them domestically.

MDtR-Chicago

The irony is - I used to be either Diamond or Platinum at BW, earned the hard way, then quit cold turkey. The BRG got me staying with them again. Yeah, the rates were discounted, but they were still decent rates. Now... eh. There's often something better. Really, really disappointing they ended their BRG. Wish they would reconsider.

I'll be thinking of you on Friday during my free night at an IC.

sdsearch

I guess it depends where and how often you stay as to how much of a waste of time it is.

What I can definitely say is that for someone who wants to BRG every week (or even more often), IHG is a waste of time, compared to Marriott's LNF ("Look No Further"), which (when you can find hotels that it works for), is basically "unlimited". I've gone many weeks at a time with three nights a week (either one three-night stay or three one-night stays) all successfully LNFed with Marriott. That is impossible at these other hotels programs which give bigger (than an extra 25% off) bonuses for finding a BRG but then lmit it to something like once a month. Since I need these rates weekly (and in fact daily during stay-based promos!), a once-a-month BRG program doesn't excite me.

And, btw, a number of my recent Marriott LNFs were a reduction of over $100 per night (from the marriott.com open-to-anyone reference rate to the LNF rate which was a 25% reduction from the third party site rate). But whether it's that big a savings depends on the area, the specific hotel, the dates, etc...

MDtR-Chicago

The international 10% off version is back: http://www.bestwestern.com/deals-off...ernational.asp

Although I can't really find a way to get to that page navigating through the site, only by a Google search.

spankytoes

Very pleased with BW’s customer service.

Had a hotel stay in September and 3 weeks later, no travel card. I emailed them and they got back to me the next morning letting me know that the card was mailed on 9/25. I told them that at this point, we should consider it lost as that is 2+ weeks ago and asked if they could issue another one. Instead of doing this, they emailed me a $100 virtual card for a future stay. Issue resolved within an hour of emailing.

I’m sad to see the program go, but this was my first time dealing with their CS and I’m impressed.

tMonk1

Browsing through the "Deals and Offers" section of the BW website (for North America), came across their "Low Rate Guarantee" - including virtually the same terms as before - find a lower rate for the same room (etc. etc) by at least $1 and get the room at the reduced rate plus a $100 Travel Card or E-certificate. Thought this was dead long time ago. In fact, I announced it's disappearance on this thread on Sept. 23, 2012 ). Well, it's back....for what that's worth. In North America, at least.

Of course, finding a rate lower than the "Internet Only" rate is challenging and the terms require that rate to be considered is the "lowest" rather than the IHG BPG terms which match the room, paid in advance or best flexible.

I checked it out and got one confirmed. Off the top - and no doubt this won't happen soon again - I found third-party selling BW in Manhattan that accepts pets for about $100 less than the website Best Flexible Rate and at least $56 less than the "Internet Only" price. (off-season rates). Real value, considering that I am paying with BW Travel Cards earned through the Canadian Air Miles program (which even allows you to earn points for grocery and liquor purchases in the province of Ontario!).
Here's what Customer Service sent:
"We have processed your Low Rate Guarantee Claim and the claim has been
approved and your new rate is $179.99. Please be advised that once your
complete your stay you will also be eligible to receive the Travel Card
as per the program terms. Please allow 2 to 3 weeks after your completed
stay to receive the travel card." I also received a revised Reservation Confirmation. For me, it's a bit like staying for "free" and getting the $100 Travel Card Back and earning the points on the Travel Cards spent.
Good Luck.

MDtR-Chicago

This is great news! Thanks for posting... It's on the homepage now, too. Back after almost exactly a year; maybe a cooling off period for the hotels to make their pricing consistent?

Looks to be about the same as the previous version. They are offering your choice of virtual (e-mail) card or physical card. That's a great change.

krystle920

how long did it take before you heard back from them?

UAL123

It took me a few tries, but I was finally successful for a night in Vancouver. I must say that I am satisfied with the program. Response times for my claims ranged from 30 minutes to a couple of hours. When my last claim was successful, a customer service rep even called me to confirm that my claim was approved!

tMonk1

Agree, I found response time to be within two hours. No chitty chat for me, but quite efficient. However, with the 7-day advance rates and internet only rates, a match is very hard to find. Sometimes, just when I think I have found one, I check under the "Discount Rates" section (on the North American websites) and find a lower advance payment rate that matches AAA rates, which are not comparable but are refundable. At least that is my current experience and there aren't a lot of BWs in the vicinity of my travels that accept pets and/or meet my needs.

WanderLuster

I also used the BRG recently and it was quick and relatvely painless.

Although I got an odd voicemail from the hotel in question telling me that expedia was a third party so they couldn't honor the rate, but that they'd let me cancel my rate with them and book through expedia instead. Very nice of them, particularly since my rate was refundable and cancelable already!

But a chat with a customer service representative at BW cleared it up and my claim was approved within 3 hours. I've completed the stay and hope that the travelcard comes through in the near future.

It's a bit disappointing that it's only one travelcard in a 30 day period, but I can understand why they're limiting it.

htb

Is there any way to request that the travel card be sent by email rather than through regular mail?

HTB.

sdsearch

In Palm Springs, CA, there's a Catch 22:

The BW Palm Springs (as well as some hotels in other chains in the area) show low prices on other sites, but only with a "standard" or "double (family plan) run of the house" rate. These discount third-party rates are based on the number of people (1, 2, 3, or 4), not the number or type of beds. The BW site doesn't have these rates, only rates for specific rooms. No matter what room you book on BW, the BRG gets denied because "the other site doesn't show a specific room type". I argued that every room at the BW site is exactly the same price, but no go.

And these same goofy per-person rates I see on lots of the third-party sites. So it's clear to me that the hotel is intentionally making up these third-party only rates (that don't match BW.com rates) so that it won't get hit with BRGs.

So I'm not staying at BW there (already cancelled my rez), I'll choose another brand that doesn't play these games.

(This was my first attempt at BW BRG, after lots of success with Marriott's LNF.)

tatterdema

Lol, I just had one denied, and this is the reason....

The rate you saw was an Expedia flash sale rate; because this is a
promotional rate offered for a specific amount of time, it does not
qualify for the low rate guarantee program.

I emailed them back, that it is NOT a flash sale, is still available, and is available on other websites as well. I am not holding my breath.

At least they are quick to reply to my emails.... Here is their reply....

We went to both websites noted in your email and found both sites note
the rate as a "special rate". This would make those rates ineligible for
the low rate guarantee program.