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IHG Rewards Club (the loyalty programme for hotel brands like Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, etc) is currently running an elite status fast track – for at least some members.

“As a valued IHG® Hotels & Resorts business traveller you deserve an upgrade to your IHG® Rewards Club status.

Whether you’re travelling for business or leisure you can enjoy complimentary room upgrades* and free Internet at over 5,600 IHG® hotels around the world with Platinum Elite status. Sign up between 11 June and 31 August 2019, we’ll upgrade your IHG® Rewards Club status to either Gold Elite or Platinum Elite for a year.

• Stay 5 nights (instead of 40) within 90 days from sign-up to be upgraded to Platinum Elite status until December 2020
• Stay 2 nights (instead of 10) within 90 days from sign-up to be upgraded to Gold Elite status until December 2020

The terms of the offer indicate that it’s targeted at employees of “Eligible Companies”. However, there is no indication as to what those companies actually are, so I didn’t write about the offer when it started back in June.

A (self-employed) family member recently received the following email from IHG though, encouraging them to sign up to the fast track:

As I say, the recipient is self-employed rather than working for an “Eligible Company” and, to the best of their knowledge, there is no way IHG could know what they do for a living regardless.

It is possible they received the email in error, but it’s also possible that the fast track is open to more people than the official terms suggest…

Conclusion

If you’ve got some IHG stays coming up, you might want to consider trying to sign up for the fast track – or at the very least checking your emails to see if you were sent something like the above.

Elite status with IHG isn’t something to get too excited about, but bonus points, upgrades, free drinks and late check out are all nice perks – even if they aren’t as valuable as the free breakfast or club lounge access that other programmes offer to elite members.

Did you receive an email from IHG Rewards Club about this offer?

Terms

The KNR Fast Track to IHG® Rewards Club Platinum Elite offer (“Offer”) for IHG® Hotels & Resorts managed accounts allows all full-time employees of an Eligible Company, who register in advance and stay at any participating hotel during the Offer Period, the opportunity to experience Gold Elite and Platinum Elite membership benefits for IHG® Rewards Club faster. An Eligible Company is defined as a company that is specifically selected to participate in this promotion. The Offer is valid for registrations between 11 June 2019 and 31 August 2019 (“Offer Period”).

Entrants must be IHG Rewards Club members and register to participate in the Offer. Qualifying guests staying at participating IHG hotels within 90 days of registering for the “Offer” will earn Gold Elite status after two (2) qualifying nights and Platinum Elite status after five (5) qualifying nights during the “Stay Period”. To be eligible for the Offer, a member must be a full-time employee of an Eligible Company, register in advance, stay at any participating IHG hotel within 90 days after registration, use a valid email address, and must book his or her stay using the corresponding IHG corporate rate code through an Eligible Company corporate booking tool or book direct at ihg.com with an Average Daily Rate of more than $35 or the equivalent in local currency. Bookings made through online travel agencies or other reservations sites such asbooking.com or expedia.com will not be eligible to participate. Status upgrades are awarded pursuant to the IHG Rewards Club membership terms and conditions found at ihgrewardsclub.com.

The “Stay Period” is the period in which reservations are consumed; each registrant’s “Stay Period” is unique, as it is the period within 90 days after registration. Reservations consumed prior to registration or outside the “Offer Period” will not be eligible for the “Offer”. By way of example, a member who registers on 31 August has until 30 November to complete their offer hurdle to reach Elite status. If an Eligible Company employee is not a member of IHG Rewards Club, they can join for free. Offer status upgrade will be awarded into each member’s IHG Rewards Club account instantly upon completion of the hurdle. Once a member receives a status upgrade during this Offer, the member may keep such status through the 2020 calendar year, after which the status must be earned for the 2021 calendar year and beyond, in accordance with the IHG Rewards Club Membership Terms and Conditions.

IHG reserves the right to cancel, suspend and/or modify the Offer if any fraud, technical failures, human error or any other factor impairs the integrity or proper administration of the Offer. Offer and members are subject to the IHG® Rewards Club membership terms and conditions found at ihgrewardsclub.com.