Award Booking needs Change due to Renovations

Old Mar 21, 2018, 9:04 am
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Award Booking needs Change due to Renovations

Unfortunately I received this message for an upcoming stay to the Crowne Plaza in Muscat, Oman:
"Greetings from Crowne Plaza Muscat
We are writing to you with reference to your upcoming booking #xxxxxxx . We regret to inform you that we will not be able to accommodate you during the dates booked, as the hotel is scheduled to close for renovation from 15th May to 15th August 2018. Hence, we are kindly requesting you to cancel your booking on IHG Rewards points and we are pleased to recommend you our sister property Intercontinental Muscat.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused and we look forward to welcoming you on a future trip to Muscat
."

My question is if I have any other options? I don't have enough points in my account to make this swap, as the Intercontinental requires more points that the Crowne Plaza.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 9:56 am
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How close are you to the needed points at the IC? IHG's '100%' bonus flash sale for points purchases is still on, I think.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 11:55 am
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Last edited by markle; May 25, 2023 at 6:51 am
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 11:58 am
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 12:17 pm
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Originally Posted by markle
Have you tried asking them or IHG customer services that they change your booking to the IC for the same rate?

What did they say?

It seems odd that the hotel is asking you to cancel your booking.
I also found the email a little odd, so I tried searching for their specific policy on this for award bookings before I call IHG. Thanks for the responses.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 12:21 pm
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Last edited by markle; May 25, 2023 at 6:50 am
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 3:46 pm
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Originally Posted by Flamenguista
Unfortunately I received this message for an upcoming stay to the Crowne Plaza in Muscat, Oman:
"Greetings from Crowne Plaza Muscat
We are writing to you with reference to your upcoming booking #xxxxxxx . We regret to inform you that we will not be able to accommodate you during the dates booked, as the hotel is scheduled to close for renovation from 15th May to 15th August 2018. Hence, we are kindly requesting you to cancel your booking on IHG Rewards points and we are pleased to recommend you our sister property Intercontinental Muscat.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused and we look forward to welcoming you on a future trip to Muscat
."

My question is if I have any other options? I don't have enough points in my account to make this swap, as the Intercontinental requires more points that the Crowne Plaza.
Normally hotels try to get out of things, especially in the ME region. Generally hotels believe that the advance notice you are geing given means cancelation is not a walk, so hotel is not required to pay your first night at nearby hotel. Sneakily just to avoid arguments and losinf, hotel then requests you to do the cancel rather than hotel itself cancelling the booking

I'd be quick to do something, if wanting the IC, I can't see IC always havig rooms spare for the whole number of prebooked CP rooms being displaced.

Historically contacting IHG has worked, usually when hotels open past expected date, and IHG move guest to another nearby IHG hotel on such points bookings even if other hotel has zero available points nights for sale. If no equivalent/suitable IHG hotel at booked CP level, eg CP/Indigo/HI , meaning only higher rated and costlier (in points ) IHG often with prompting also make up the difference in points eg 30k CP night to 50k IC per night. Even more necessary for you if you lack points to do this yourself.

Recommendation, phone (skype is free to USA ) and ask explain CP Oman issue, and ask IHG to rebook your rooms to IC Oman at no further cost to you, on same points basis as already booked at the CP (whatever happens do not cancel booking yourself , have IHG move the nights for you)

Not going to check, but I suspect IC/CP is same owners, so they could move guests, but would lose too much money so are trying to dump you rather than do decent thing. CP may even just be dumping award night guess and base room guests, and moving the higher cat paying guests to their sister IC .
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 4:13 pm
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Originally Posted by scubaccr
Normally hotels try to get out of things, especially in the ME region. Generally hotels believe that the advance notice you are geing given means cancelation is not a walk, so hotel is not required to pay your first night at nearby hotel. Sneakily just to avoid arguments and losinf, hotel then requests you to do the cancel rather than hotel itself cancelling the booking

I'd be quick to do something, if wanting the IC, I can't see IC always havig rooms spare for the whole number of prebooked CP rooms being displaced.

Historically contacting IHG has worked, usually when hotels open past expected date, and IHG move guest to another nearby IHG hotel on such points bookings even if other hotel has zero available points nights for sale. If no equivalent/suitable IHG hotel at booked CP level, eg CP/Indigo/HI , meaning only higher rated and costlier (in points ) IHG often with prompting also make up the difference in points eg 30k CP night to 50k IC per night. Even more necessary for you if you lack points to do this yourself.

Recommendation, phone (skype is free to USA ) and ask explain CP Oman issue, and ask IHG to rebook your rooms to IC Oman at no further cost to you, on same points basis as already booked at the CP (whatever happens do not cancel booking yourself , have IHG move the nights for you)

Not going to check, but I suspect IC/CP is same owners, so they could move guests, but would lose too much money so are trying to dump you rather than do decent thing. CP may even just be dumping award night guess and base room guests, and moving the higher cat paying guests to their sister IC .
It is summertime in the Middle East, so neither hotel is likely to be completely full. (and indeed paid bookings will be moved over rather than cancelled...)

But, yes, talk to IHG Rewards Club and have them rebook you at the IC for no additional charge.
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Old Mar 22, 2018, 1:24 am
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Originally Posted by craigthemif
It is summertime in the Middle East, so neither hotel is likely to be completely full. (and indeed paid bookings will be moved over rather than cancelled...)

But, yes, talk to IHG Rewards Club and have them rebook you at the IC for no additional charge.
Hotels often try to get out of their commitments for cheap.If you stay firm they normally will find an acceptable solution, but it might require a few (firm and polite) emails.
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Old Mar 22, 2018, 5:50 am
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Originally Posted by Unterwegs
Hotels often try to get out of their commitments for cheap.If you stay firm they normally will find an acceptable solution, but it might require a few (firm and polite) emails.
This was the case. I thanked her for the advanced warning, and politely asked if they can rebook me in the IC Muscat for the same nights. She did not answer my question/proposal, instead deflecting by saying the Inter will be going renovations and only 50% will be open for booking. She then mentioned the 2 other IHG properties, the one next to the convention center and the one next to the airport. From my understanding, the CP and the Intercontinental were similar vacation/holiday type hotels with pools and access to the beach, while the other Muscat properties are geared towards business or long layovers.

I guess I'll politely press a little more to rebook into the IC, but now I'm afraid of the extent of the renovations. I will ask if the pool and area leading to the beach will still be open.
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Old Mar 23, 2018, 12:43 am
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Originally Posted by Flamenguista
This was the case. I thanked her for the advanced warning, and politely asked if they can rebook me in the IC Muscat for the same nights. She did not answer my question/proposal, instead deflecting by saying the Inter will be going renovations and only 50% will be open for booking. She then mentioned the 2 other IHG properties, the one next to the convention center and the one next to the airport. From my understanding, the CP and the Intercontinental were similar vacation/holiday type hotels with pools and access to the beach, while the other Muscat properties are geared towards business or long layovers.

I guess I'll politely press a little more to rebook into the IC, but now I'm afraid of the extent of the renovations. I will ask if the pool and area leading to the beach will still be open.
Your best bet right now, as others have already suggested, is to contact IHG rather than the hotel. The hotel is probably hoping that you just cancel your original booking as they don't then need to do anything else, whereas with IHG Customer Care you'll have more chance of being rebooked into the IC.
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Old Mar 25, 2018, 9:58 am
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In case anyone is interested in the outcome and/or for future reference, I ended up canceling the Crowne Plaza on my own and rebooking into the IC. After a couple back and forths, I was told to cancel, re-book at the IC, and then my account will be credited with the point difference. The property manager and reservations department reps at the Crowne Plaza were very educated and helpful in the responses that I received. But as was pointed out above, I had to push in order to get an answer and the end result. I'm very happy with result.
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Old Mar 25, 2018, 12:21 pm
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Last edited by markle; May 25, 2023 at 6:49 am
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