IAN-UK

I think maybe one thing is recognition, the other is a tangible benefit.


I just thank God the North American thing about pulling out a "Spire" flag to plonk on the reception desk while ringing a bell hasn't travelled well.

That embarrassment is recognition, and something I'd fight to avoid.

Super Mario

Not sure how it is so easy to get Spire. Bonus point packages are typically about 20% higher for an extra 1000 points. Not as many people do that as this forum makes it sound. I love my Hilton Diamond, but that is one they give away. Aspire, match, 30 stays. All so easy. I have been to plenty of hotels that "Recognize" Spire members on some sort of board. Never anymore than 5 Spires. Heck, usually not more than 10 Platinums, which is truly given away.

Land-of-Miles

It is the only hotel status I routinely can renew with a single stay

dk9

How?!

Land-of-Miles

CalItalian

I am routinely upgraded and I never ask, always am allowed to check in early (as early as 7 am on a red-eye from the west coast to east coast USA), I normally request a 1 to 2 pm checkout but have been told I could checkout later if I wished. Plus I always earn 500 points as a Spire Elite benefit at check in and if I extend my stay by a day, they give it to me again. This isn't at just one IHG hotel but every one I've stayed at. I don't know what you need but I am pretty happy with IHG including what I have mentioned in other posts in this thread.

lipsum

I agree with you. The benefits for Spire are def more than commensurate given the level of difficulty of reaching the status.

Moreover, one has to keep in mind IHG has a lot more midscale hotels and brands than, say, Marriott. Clearly, midscale hotels simply cannot provide the same level of recognition as upscale places.

But I think going forward, it's best to ignore this yelling and whining about IHG.

There seem to be quite a few cry-bullies on the IHG forum. Obv, it's best to ignore these just as other kinds of trolls.

FFlash

dk9

I don't think the people with bad experiences lie. I am thinking whether there is any specific demographic that IHG is targeting? Maybe younger people for example? I know airlines are very sneaky with their upgrades and other benefits; BA will give more upgrades to silver status holder than gold as if they want to entice them.

Or it might just be that those people that complain in the forums are also the grumpy personality types, so that during check-in they are less likely to be liked by reception and get an upgrade.

Or maybe I have a wild imagination

Land-of-Miles

Eltham

jpdx

Speaking as moderator of this forum, let's avoid name calling and keep this thread productive.

Speaking as regular FT poster and IHG Spire, I also must say I'm pretty satisfied with my experience. I have Hyatt Glob status and am extremely happy with benefits (upgrades/club/etc), but those hotels are often much more expensive and the footprint is limited. Starriott Tit, my other top level status, is usually decent at the hotel level, even though customer service at the program level is atrocious. I also have some mid level statii like HH and Radisson Gold, but only use them for a handful of stays a year, and usually benefits are middling at best (view upgrade and maybe breakfast), and the value proposition especially with Hilton is atrocious after their various rounds of devaluations. That is a key advantage of IHG in my book: while category creep has made redemptions in cities like London/Paris/HK very unattractive, lots of excellent values remain.

For instance, we were in Queenstown, NZ a few months ago, during absolute peak season, with any fleabag motel costing NZ$200+ and the HI running over NZ$350. The place was available on points, 20k to be specific, which is a pretty spectacular redemption. We arrived, were welcomed as Spire, and given an upgrade to a nice, remodeled corner room with a spectacular view, along with some drink chits. No breakfast, of course, because the program doesn't provide for it. I suppose we could have sat on our terrace, overlooking the Remarkables, and complained that if this was a Hyatt or Marriott, we'd be getting breakfast. Instead, we enjoyed it for what it was -- an amazing deal.

We also had some great value stays in Japan this spring -- the Crowne Plazas in Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Kobe, Okayama, Yonago, Ube, and Sapporo are usually well under $100 (sometimes more like $50-60) during the week, and attractive value on points on weekends (when rates can hit $200-300). Admittedly, it's a little weird when they hand you a water bottle at check-in and that's your Spire benefit, BUT we always booked the cheapest room, and in all instances got upgrades to rooms that were twice+ as large as what we booked. We did a lot of travel to smaller Japanese towns that don't have any Western chains, and at those local hotels you will get what you pay for -- a tiny 130-180sqft (13-18sqm) room, and if you arrive at 2pm and check-in time is 3pm, put your luggage in storage and come back later. TBH, getting a Spire upgrade from a 130-180sqft to a 260-300sqft room (which often amounts to a 3-5 category upgrade) isn't really something to complain about. Oh, and one of those hotels did offer club access, and one gave us a ridiculous upgrade to a huge (if ancient) Imperial suite.

I could go on about stays in Europe, Indonesia, and Taiwan/HK -- where we got meaningful upgrades and occasionally some tangible benefits like dining credit -- and we even had some positive experiences in the US.

In sum, to me IHG is all about value. Points earning is easy, and there are lots of places where you can redeem at >1cpp. And while the lack of club access/breakfast obviously puts Spire behind Hyatt/Starriott/etc, we've had lots of good experiences.

Donsyb

I stayed at CP Heathrow several times last year, and each time it was offered instead of points as a welcome amenity. When did this stop?

IAN-UK

I stopped staying at the hotel some time back, when they started the silliness. Nice to know they've stopped it.

Land-of-Miles

Interesting if they have reverted back to the old approach, when did you last stay?