@Anonymous wrote:ok so with this then the IHG is only good for a free night at a discounted rate basically and potential free room upgrade aswell.
so hotels.com counts as travel for the CSR well that does make things a little better for the CSR in this situation as your not paying extra money to get a free night (especially if you haven't capped out your $300 travel credit). however that free night and upgrade with the IHG for $49 is still good and can't be overlooked.
Agreed, IHG is a good program, esepcially if you're loyal to the brand. Hotels.com (at least in my experience) typically offers the lowest prices and allows greater flexibility should you decide to deviate from a particular brand.
i have a question though does hotels.com show up as travel on the CSR or as online purchase? cuz if it shows up as online purchase that means we have to pay at the actual hotel to get the CSR to read it as travel.
@wasCB14 wrote:15 points = 10 from the Rewards Club program and 5 from the card itself.
Upgrades in my experience mean higher floors or very slightly larger rooms, if anything. Most IHG hotels have limited room types.
oh so it wasn't an error or old offer afterall.
anyways i think there's alot of benefiits to be had by using both UR and IHG now that it is indeed 15 points per dollar. you can buy IHG points when they are at their best ccp or for IHG hotel use or transfer them to the airline that is also on UR and then using hotels.com to accumulate a free night every 10 nights when your not buying IHG points. and since hotels.com doesn't force you to get all 10 nights in a calendar year that means your in no rush either.
i can totally see myself using both UR and IHG at the same time.
@Anonymous wrote:Is there a reason you aren't OK with just transferring UR points to a hotel program when you need them? Or are you looking to get a hotel card for the extra points/status?
As someone who travels a lot but rarely stays in hotels, I've been pretty happy with the Hilton card I got last year. I went with them because they were with AmEx.
the main reason why i would get a hotel card is mostly for the free night every year as points aren't that important and i don't plan on staying too much in hotels to really take advantage of the points or status. the good thing about the IHG card is that not only does it give a free night every year and automatic platinum elite status but you can also buy IHG points for future use. like right now they have a promotion where you can stay at certain hotels for 50% off IHG points. saw someone comment saying "HIX Puerto Vallarta has executive suites (more like junior suites) available at the discounted rate of 10,000 points per night." and when i checked that hotel and suite it did say 10k points + $40 per night.
my only concern is if you buy points do they also expire if no activity for 12 months as that would be pretty upsetting if you buy points and then they get taken away.