turner32

IC Warsaw now only offer upgrade, and no club.

"I would like to inform you that rules and conditions are being changed by Priority Club since 1st February and.
there is no complimentary access for Royal Ambassador into the Club Intercontinental Lounge as a status benefit."

TheBeerHunter

Wow, this is seeming to be an epidemic.

boekel

it used to be Club room with Club access or Suite. As they dont have any Exec Rooms unless they have renamed them, they have to give you a suite. Now they have to be careful that they don't run out of suites, if they have plenty RA's staying

Geoggy

IC Park Lane at weekend offered club access for 79 pounds.

I took it as I was staying on a BRG and they upgraded me from basic room to a One bed suite - so 79 pounds for a room that was selling for 759 pounds for that night didn't seem too bad!

zpoppy

No longer offer free club access to RA (they have new instructions from IHG that free club access should no longer be given) but could offer a 50% reduction in the club cost.

turner32

Why would they dictate that they shouldn't give lounge access? I would have thought/hoped that it would have been the other way...

Unterwegs

IC Santa Fe Mexico City: On paid stay upgrade to Club plus suite (very strange suite - it is at the end of the floor. The room is smaller than normal rooms since the building is curved. What normally would be the hallway is now a small depressing corner behind the door with a table for 4). I think you would be better off with no room upgrade and just club.
Another warning: King Size rooms have shower only, no bathtub (but there is space in the bathroom for a bathtub). Double bed rooms have a bathtub with no separate shower.
Don't stay when you want to have the combination of king size bed and bathtub.

f0zzyNUE

nope ... seems to be over.

I currently stay at the IC Prague on an ambassador weekend voucher. upgrade only to executive room - no club access.

club access can be bought for 29€ a night (special price for RA)

mnredfox

Yes, becoming quite scary indeed.

And this is disturbing that the changes are coming from IHG corporate. If this is the case we should expect club to go for ALL IC's. And if that is the case I'm going to start questioning RA's, esp when I can get club access for Hilton and Hyatt on ANY STAY, paid or award.

navatwal

I completed a 9 night stay at IC Boston last week.

Booked cheapest room on paid stay, upgraded to modern 1bed suite with Club Access, they have advised that Club is comp benefit for all RA members.

I asked prior to my stay and they confirmed this benefit.

I have a reservation at IC Toronto (downtown) in a couple of week, they have confirmed Club Access is comped for RA's

hdogan

I just checked out from IC Prague after a 3-night stay. Got Club, but upgrade was to Executive Room (was told it's a junior suite, but I'd contest that).

Not happy. I am a long time regular there, spending a few nights every 2-3 months for the last 3 years or so. This is the first time since I am Amb/RA that I haven't stayed in a *proper* suite; initially was given a room right behind the elevators, and changed it as soon as I entered.

Since hotel choices are plenty in Prague, and I actually have a Hilton right across the street from the office, they're making it easier for me to switch my loyalty away from them...

stimpy

I'm giving Hilton's some more of my business too, however you likely won't get a suite at most Hilton's even with Diamond status. Plus I wouldn't give up on a regular hotel after just one bad stay.

hdogan

Oh, no, I don't give up so easily Somehow in the last several stays, there were a few small details that made it worse. This time it was the upgrade; last time, they forgot to give me the bottle of wine (my colleague checking in a day after got it, so it wasn't removed from bennies, and I got it this time); the warm food in club lounge was worse this time over; before that they used the prohibition in Czech Republic to drastically cut down on choice of liquor during cocktail hour - seriously, from an impressive tray full of *good* booze, they've come down to 5 bottles of mediocre stuff; earlier, welcome letters/notes used to be hand written/signed by hospitality manager or GM, now they're just printed out...

It may all seem daft, and none of those things is actually important per se, but piling them all up over a period of time shows a steady decline in RA (well, and general guests when it comes to Club offerings) treatment.

turner32

Yes. They are pro-actively reducing RA benefits. Very soon, RA will be the same as Ambassador. Many places already regard it that way anyway.

stimpy

Nonsense. Not a single hotel does that. Dropping Club or Suite upgrades does not bring you down to the level of AMB status. And many IC's still give us both Club and Suite.