Neoli

Official Link:

• here

Timeline:

• 2022.1.24 - Training for Hotel Employees Start
• 2022.3.31 or prior - Officially Roll out the New Program

Status:

• Add SILVER Status - 10 nights requirement
• GOLD Status - 20 nights or 40,000 points (instead of 7 night / 7,000 points now)
• PLATINUM Status - 40 night or 60,000 points (instead of 30 nights / 30,000 points now)
• SPIRE changed to DIAMOND Status - 70 nights or 120,000 points (instead of 55 nights / 55,000 points now)

New Status Benefits To Be Announced, but:

• SILVER status will receive 20% extra points
• GOLD status will receive 40% extra points (compared to 10% now)
• PLATINUM status will receive 60% extra points (compared 50% now)
• DIAMOND still 100% (same as SPIRE now)
• SPIRE/DIAMOND no more choice benefit (25,000 points or gift Platinum)

Current Spire automatically goes to Diamond. However, if not reaching the new requirement in 2022, the status expires in 2023.

No changes to Ambassador, Royal Ambassador, or Kimpton Inner Circle.

Note: info above not confirmed. Do not blame me if wrong 🙃 Now confirmed.

js1993

What's the point? Diamond will need 15 more nights but will get less?

Not sure why they'd need two months of training before rolling this out.

Neoli

Hope they will announce other benefits soon and hope those are nice

js1993

Hopefully. It would seem like a waste to revamp the program just to add Silver and rename Spire.

khabah

Thanks for this - what's your source, an insider in the company or a leaked document?

I hope that, if this is true, IHG will finally seize the opportunity to simplify their convoluted rewards scheme [no more program-within-a-program-that's-also-another-program-with-benefits-for-this-brand-but-not-those], offer guest-facing benefits that are competitive with the big players [i.e. lounge access, breakfast] and update their technology platforms to a standard that isn't a pathetically lazy rebrand [the way the current apps are just the old ones with a new logo, having "IHG Rewards Club" mentioned all over the website, app and on the virtual card, etc.]... but this is IHG after all, and I might be getting ahead of myself.

Let's see - this is the closest we've seen to a proper program revamp so... hope springs eternal?

khabah

336

???

​​​​​I am still waiting for the additional Spire benefits, which they told us will be announced soon...

ProjectSunburst

Dont have much hope on this one.

According to that PDF floating around, there are no changes to Inner Circle, Ambassador or Royal Ambassador...

IHG needs to get their stuff in order....this is bullpoo

claimui

Not sure about the original source, but here is an official-looking Chinese PDF that seems to have these numbers: https://www.verylvke.com/en/wp-conte...FAQs-Final.pdf

Raffles

IHG head office has confirmed the accuracy of everything above to me.

demue

Wow, if what was listed by OP (thank you for that info) is all IHG is doing here then this is the most unnecessary, redundant exercise I have seen in recent history for a loyalty program.

You get nothing guaranteed for being Spire (Diamond) so what the heck does Silver matter? Do they really think they'll unlock millions of new customers that were "turned off" because meaningless Gold was unreachable and hence a lower threshold without benefits is going to make a difference?

Sheer brilliance

sfozrhfco

LOL…Diamond/Spire is 55,000 now but goes up to 120,000 points and we have to wait for several months to find out if anything additional is offered. Why not improve the benefits first and then encourage people to attain a higher status for next year?

Now we can wait for the announcement that every hotel will add in amenity fees also with no additional benefits to match the higher qualification levels😀

3544quebec

You try committing to memory in under two months the phrase "These enhancements are the result of feedback from our customers"

Fims

Probably some big consulting company "sold" this idea for IHG for some double-digit M USD. Where to get money to reduce that consulting bill? By reducing benefits for frequent customers

I doubt that they would extend the current Chinese F&B benefits (credits, lounge at Crowne Plaza) to the rest of the world with the refresh of programme.

TheWiseOne

Going to need something spectacular to have me to reverse my current plan of burning all IHG points this year and losing Spire to focus on Hilton.

sobore

This change to supposed to make the IHG loyalty program more competitive with other lodging providers.
Based on what I have seen so far, not seeing much improvement or added benefits.
Nice to see the "SPIRE" name retired, that may be enough benefit for some.