MXM135

The room upgrades for RA's is either an Executive Room, Club Room (with Club access) or a Suite - the hotel determines the upgrade.

If you book a Club Room, you should be upgraded to either a Club Suite or a Suite with Club access. There are no levels of upgrade involved - Ambassadors are guaranteed a 1-level upgrade. The hotel has met the codnitions of the T&C's by upgrading you to a Club Suite.

mxm135

mister__big

Wow I'm surprised they would treat you so shabbily considering you're a regular there. Personally I would've asked to speak with the Front Office Manager and if they won't budge, try calling Ambassador services. They are usually quite good at sorting these types of situations out.

Then again, I'd probably think twice about giving so much business to a hotel that doesn't appreciate it.

meng79

Well its the only hotel in makati that gives points and im a points slut, I'd consider staying at the hyatt but its in a very depressing area...

no-backpacker

bumburuck: Looks like we were at Dusseldorf at the same time. The funny thing is that I had booked a club-room with club-access, still I was denied access when I went in the first time. The lady in the lounge called down to the reception and confirmed that I did not have club-access. Luckily I went online and checked my rate, and it was said club-access included. I went back to the reception and then they confirmed club-room WITH club-access. At that time I asked if they didn't upgrade Ambassadors, since I hadn't been upgraded, he upgraded me to en executive room (I think...) Looked very similar to the club-room but without Ipod docking station, without scale but with other toiletries and a terras. If it was summer the terras would have been lovely, but as it was raining, I would have prefered the club-room at the same floor as the club-lounge. No fruit and no welcome gift until...

I overheard another guest complaining, to the guest relation manager, about exactly the same things as I did. I couldn't resist telling him that it had happened to me too. I then got the fruit, some chocolate and a little cake (practically the same as I had eaten in the lounge....)

This maybe should have been in another thread, so please, mod, feel free to move it.

Xxx

BA1A

Which is interesting because I contacted them to clarify this and have just received the following reply:

Dear Mr BA1A

Thank you for taking the time to contact the InterContinental Ambassador Service Center.

We wish to advise you that as a Royal Ambassador member, you will be entitled or a complimentary upgrade to an executive room, Club InterContinental room or a suite for Royal Ambassadors at check-in.

However, if a hotel provides you with a Club Floor room upgrade, the access to the Club lounge is not guaranteed, as this is not part of the Royal Ambassador benefit. Nevertheless, should an InterContinental hotel wish to provide you with the access, it would be subject to availability and at their own discretion and is not a part of the Ambassador or Royal Ambassador benefits.

In line with the definition of an Executive Room and a Suite, we would like to clarify that the definition may vary depending on the facilities that the hotel can offer.

In general terms, the Executive Room is a type of room to where it is designed to accommodate the business traveler's needs. On the other hand, Suite Room is normally classified as a hotel room with spacious floor with that comes with great amenities.

We hope that this has assisted in clarifying your inquiry.

Should you have further questions, please contact us at +44 871 942 9099/+1-888-211-7996 or via e-mail at [email protected].

Sincerely,

Ambassador Services
Tel. +44 871 942 9099
+1-888-211-7996
Fax +44 871 942 9010
E-mail: [email protected]

Chinatrvl

I frankly think this is utter nonsense. The T&Cs are not absolutely clear, but I clearly think that "club room" intends to mean "club room with access".
No IC sells a "club room" without lounge access. For upgrades, same logic applies. That's like saying we give you a suite, but don't you use the living room...

And I bet the initials of the agent replying to your request are Z.R. Very helpful person, indeed

MelNorthernLine

That would seem logical - if you are upgraded to a room you should be upgraded to exactly what that room consists of if you were to book it. Club rooms are generally not much better than a standard room but will include Club access - therefore to take the access away would hardly be much of an upgrade at all.

BA1A

No, it was JP C actually.

I agree it's nonsense. I would like some more RAs to email in and ask the same question please to see if we all get the same response, given MXM135 got told differently.

MXM135

BA1A, I agree that the response you received didn't make any sense at all and contradicted the reply I received.

My query was made shortly after the change was implemented in February 2009, so that we (RA's) would have a better understanding of what this change meant for us.

Here is the entire text of my query and response so that it can be placed into context:

*****************
Dear Mr. MXM135,

Thank you for taking the time to contact the InterContinental Ambassador Service Center.

We would like to inform you that an Executive room is defined as the largest room in the hotel's inventory. It must have a sitting area. While a Suite room is defined as a bedroom with a separate sitting room. However, some hotels may have varying definitions of these rooms which may be relative to the sizes of their other room categories.

Also, Club Lounge Access must be provided if an upgrade to a Club room is given.

Further, we would like to clarify that upgrades to a specific room type will be determined by the hotel.

We hope we have assisted you in clarifying your inquiries.

Thank you Mr. MXM135, for giving us the opportunity to be of service to you. Should you need further assistance, please call us at +44 870 400 9099 / 1 800 462 6686 or send us an e-mail at [email protected].



Sincerely,

xxx xxxxx
Ambassador Services
Tel: +44 (0) 870 400 9099
+1 800 462 6686
Fax: +44 (0) 870 400 9010
E-mail: [email protected]

----------
From: MXM135
Sent: Thursday, March 12, 2009 9:34 AM
To: +InterContinental Ambassador
Subject: Upgrade Clarification for Royal Ambassadors
Importance: High

In the most recent documentation sent with our new Royal Ambassador cards, the membership booklet and letter indicate that Royal Ambassador members will be upgraded to either an Executive room, InterContinental Club room (where available), or a Suite.

As a Royal Ambassador member, would you please clarify the following for me:

1 - What does InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) define as an Executive Room and is there a standard definition established?

2 - If the hotel provides an upgrade to an InterContinental Club Room, does this mean that club access also be provided?

3 - What does InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) define as a Suite and is there a standard definition established?

4 - Is the type of room upgrade offered from these 3 choices at the discretion of the hotel, or is it the intention of IHG to allow Royal Ambassador members the choice?

I would appreciate your assistance in clarifying this matter, as there still appears to be some inconsistency in room upgrades and interpretation of the new choices.

Sincerely,

MXM135
Member # xxx xxx xxx

***************************

mxm135

no-backpacker

When I was at the IC Dusseldorf the GM there told me that they do sell "club rooms" without lounge-access... I asked if they sell it as "club-room" and he confirmed that. However I haven't checked it myself as I had booked a club-room WITH lounge access. (I am also wondering why anybody would book a club-room without lounge-access....)

Xxx

navatwal

I had this type of upgrade at the CP The City London the first couple of times i stayed there,

Im RA Plat,

The fact is that i was not happy about this, supposedly having a club room with no club access, thats no good!

The last 5 times i have stayed there, i have had Club lounge access thrown in, thats a good upgrade.

I stayed last week at the CP In San Jose on pointbreaks, the americans took care of me, free breakfast coupons, free drink vouchers x 2, per night, this included grey goose, free upgrade to club floor with access to club lounge (which i never went to)

Now this is good value for 5000 points!!

mnredfox

Well, the biggest joke is when the club rooms are the same rooms just on the same floor as the lounge or at least labelled club floors...

LeisureFirst

The answer to the question in the title is clearly "no", yet this is precisely what I got last time I stayed at an IC, namely the Tel Aviv one in 2008. It wasn't an Ambassdor thing - I was entitled to an upgrade because it was an Amex Plat Fine Hotels and Resorts booking - but it was equally a "kick in the teeth" as it was so eloquently described. My upgrade consisted in being moved to an otherwise identical room on the Club level and denied club access.

Having asked advice on Flyertalk, I made multiple protests at the hotel but got nowhere.

My response has simply been not to stay at an IC ever since then. They have lost my business. End of Story. I would advise others to do the same.

The level of service in good boutique independent hotels is far better than in places like the IC anyway. When I return to, say, the Fasano or Sao Paulo or even the Gansevoort in New York, I get a much warmer welcome than I ever would in any IC. And I get upgrades and good service not because it's a "published benefit" but because they genuinely know me by name and recognize me as a valued customer.

Incidentally, the other AmEx FH&R benefit was a free dinner during my stay in any of the IC's restaurants. It was the single worst meal I had in my eight days in Israel.

LeisureFirst

duplicate deleted

Shareholder

I see nothing untoward in that within regular categories of rooms, you were upgraded to the highest level of categories, one having the extra in-room amenities given in Club level rooms. Under your Amex program, however, there was no commitment to having lounge access as there is for RA upgrades, so why should you have received it? Your complaint should be with Amex not the property, as Amex has set out what it deems an acceptable upgrade under its program.

As an RA, I have been upgraded at this property to a suite, albeit not on the Club floor, but been given Club access as that was the base rate I book.