IHG Rewards Selling Points With A 100% Bonus

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IHG Rewards is back with another “buy IHG Points” promotion and the rewards program for InterContinental, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza (amongst others) has reverted to offering IHG Rewards members varying bonuses when they buy points. That makes this a considerably poorer promotion than the last one which in which everyone was offered a 100% bonus.

IHG Rewards members should log in here to view their personalised offer.

The new promotion is open until 18 July 2016 and the 100% points bonus is available on all purchases (points can be purchased in 1,000 point increments minimum purchase of 1,000 points).

Despite the 100% bonus being available on all points purchases, regardless of size, IHG has tweaked the pricing so that points purchases fall into bands.

I was targeted for the 100% bonus…..

…….so, for me, the promotion looks like this:

• Buy 1,000 – 10,000 IHG Rewards Points with a 100% Bonus at 0.675 cents/0.466 pence each
• Buy 11,000 – 23,000 IHG Rewards Points with a 100% Bonus at 0.625 cents/0.431 pence each
• Buy 26,000 – 60,000 IHG Rewards Points with a 100% Bonus at 0.575 cents/0.397 pence each

At the top end of the range 120,000 points will cost $690 if you’re targeted for the 100% bonus…..

…and that equates to 0.575 cents per point.

Other targeted offers that I’ve seen look like this:

• 50% Bonus – 0.767 cents per point
• 60% Bonus – 0.719 cents per point
• 75% Bonus – 0.657 cents per point

In the past I’ve shown how you can buy IHG Rewards points for 0.6 cents whenever you feel like it so, straight away, most of the offers begin to look unattractive.

Should You Buy IHG Points At 0.575 Cents?

Unlike Starpoints (currently on sale at a 30% discount) IHG Rewards Points aren’t at all versatile and the only really way to get value out of them is to use them for hotel stays.

The top IHG hotels around the world cost between 50,000 and 60,000 points for an award night so you need to do the math to see if buying points makes sense to you.

At 0.575 cents per point the top IHG properties would cost:

• 60,000 points per night = $345 per night
• 55,000 points per night = $316 per night
• 50,000 points per night = $287.50 per night

So you need to decide if that’s good value to you – checking the regular prices of the hotels you’d like to stay at is a good place to start.

Things to consider:

• Most IHG Points redemptions include all the taxes so, when comparing cash rates to award night costs, make sure you include the taxes in the cash rate figure.

• Unlike cash bookings, when staying on an award night you don’t earn IHG rewards points (which have a value) so, if accumulating IHG points on a regular basis is important to you, this should factor into your calculations.

Example:

If one of the top IHG properties has a nightly cash rate (including taxes) of $370 and costs 60,000 points for an award night then buying points in this promotion would seem to make sense – you’d save $25/night – but that’s not the full story.

A guest at a top IHG hotel will earn, at a minimum, 10 IHG rewards points per dollar spent at the property…..

….which means that, by booking an award night, you would be forgoing 3,700 points per night ($370 x 10).

Assuming you value those points at the same level you can purchase points for (0.575 cents) that’s $21/night that you’re missing out on.

So you’re not actually saving $25/night by buying and using points….you’re saving just $4/night. That $4/night saving needs to be weighted up against the risk that points may devalue before you get a chance to book, the fact that award nights may not be available on all the nights you need and the fact that, in my experience, you’re more likely to get a good upgrade on a cash rate than on and award night stay.

Bottom Line

View your bonus offer here.

If you didn’t get the 100% bonus offer I would pass on this promotion – you can manufacture points cheaper than you can buy them.

If you did get the 100% bonus offer then, unless you’re just topping up an account by a few thousand points to get to an award, you’re only getting a good deal at the top end.

Check the cash rates and do the math before you dive in – that’s the only way to be sure you’re not making a mistake. At the top-end hotels there’s definitely value to be had out of this promotion (especially during busier times) but, when prices are very high, award nights can be harder to find so make sure there’s availability before you commit to a points purchase.