PUCCI GALORE

The title should have added - as opposed to being Platinum - sorry about that.

I am sure that this has been covered before but thanks to the reduction in the number of points needed - I (and probably half of North America) scraped across the line to be a Spire. Are there any particular benefits to this? I do not expect them to see me coming and form a line to greet me by name - but does it actually mean anything in particular? If this is too firivolous please close this. Ive been closed out of worse than this!

(When I spotted it this on the website - I've heard nothing from IHG themselves - my husband, when I told him that I was now a Spire, ventured to suggest that maybe one of the gargoyles decorating it was more like it. He has now come home from the ER room (A&E) here)

sfozrhfco

The short answer is that the vast majority of times, Spire gets you very little aside from the 25,000 bonus you can select after achieving it.

pretzlaff

Nice to see you over here on the IHG forum!

To answer your question....Not really.

sfozrhfco

So in other words, there is very little benefit to being Spire over Platiinum😀

CMK10

I've been Spire since late 2018. In my experience there are direct benefits. I've gotten far more upgrades, especially at Kimptons, than I did as a mere Platinum. As I stay at a lot of Kimptons, that's enough for me.

sfozrhfco

I stay at Kimptons mostly as well. If you mean by upgrade a room on a higher floor, sure but if you are expecting a nice suite, you will likely be disappointed as that is not a benefit. Many Kimptons also charge the annoying amenity fees which usually provide a Spire member very little of value. It all depends on the front desk person as to whether or not those fees get waived and it seems to be random at best. The least they can do is guarantee a waived amenity fee. Getting points for food and beverage spend at Kimptons would also be something that should be a benefit for all members and they don’t even do that.

IHG is not a bad program for getting free nights—if you can be flexible and frequently monitor your bookings as the points rates change all the time. Beyond that keep expectations very low to avoid disappointment.

Engineering Travel

Spire benefits are OK, Ive been top tier for 13 years now..
As mentioned above, the 25K pts on reaching Spire,
100% bonus points on paid stays
Occasional upgrades in HI's
Access to some CP lounges
Access to some HI lounges
Occasional targeted points promotions

perthite

All I've noticed is I can choose a cocktail as a welcome drink!

sfozrhfco

That is to ease the pain of not getting any other benefit from the hotel😀

IAN-UK

I'd certainly rather be a Spire than not, even if the not is Platinum. Perception of improvements in treatment likely depend on location. Asian hotels (generally) make an effort: US hotels don't, but some European ones do (though you might have to ask).

One (Mumbai) embarrassed me by pulling out a flag, plonking it on the counter and ringing a bell: thank God they didn't burst into song. They redeemed themselves by coming up with breakfast and a room that just might have represented an upgrade.

Even in Asia the hotels can be a fickle bunch. A Jakarta Holiday Inn welcomed Spires to its lounge, then it stopped; same happened at the Dubai Crowne Plazas, Bangkok HI might give you lounge access if you ask, but the Crowne Plaza in the same city used to, but now doesn't. Even if you beg ask.

Abandon hope of anything substantial in the US and you won't be disappointed.

beachmouse

Like with a lot of hotel programs, it seems like I have better luck with IHG complimentary upgrades outside of North America, even on award stays when they don’t have to.

And the increased point earning rate is nice.

sfozrhfco

The problem is that officially there are basically no benefits aside from the extra points. Lounge access, breakfast, any upgrade at all if booking on points are all not official benefits. Thus if you get anything extra for one visit you can’t count on it for another. Either the front desk person is not trained and is giving you something you shouldn’t get or maybe the hotel is generous but may not be the next time. So you can’t count on anything being consistent other than perhaps getting a slightly better room and late check out.

CMK10

I do mean a suite, I have about a 50% success rate at getting suites at Kimptons. Off the top of my head: The Kimpton Monaco Salt Lake City, Kimpton Muse New York, Kimpton Cardinal Winston-Salem all gave me free suite upgrades as a Spire.

lwildernorva

If you were talking about earning Spire through nights or stays, I'd say that it's not worth it. On the other hand, the quick and easy way to Spire is to find hotels with good bonus point packages, as those are included in the 75K normally required to qualify for Spire plus charge your stays to their US credit card as points earned through that spend also are included in the 75K requirement. I've managed to qualify for Spire the last three years with no more than ten stays using this method. With so few required stays, I find the 25K points plus the 100% bonus on points on paid stays worthwhile. I would not value those benefits worthy of hitting the stays or nights normally required. I have also found intermittent upgrades and other benefits are granted, but I've learned not to expect those as IHG doesn't make any hard or fast promises about upgrades or early checkin/late checkout.

My two main hotel programs are IHG and Choice--neither of which do much for elites. When you look around at what Marriott and Hilton are doing, however, you can see that elite status at many chains is moving more towards the IHG/Choice model. At that point, I look at the rate of points earning, and IHG is very good with that in my experience.

PUCCI GALORE

As always I have the answer from people who know what they are talking about. I was concerned that the subject might have been dealt with sufficiently in the past. Thank you so much.

All that I would be able to offer in return would be one or two tales of antics that I have witnessed in IHG hotels on layovers. This is , however , not the custom here. They would earn no ponts but would certainly cause keyboards to snap.