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IHG Rewards Club is offering its highest level of status – Spire – as part of its latest promotion. Even though this promo is targetted at employees of undefined “Eligible Companies”, you might still be able to sign up. The offer is valid between 1 October and 31 December, 2019 and is supposedly limited to the first 5,000 applicants.
If approved, you will instantly receive Spire status for 90 days. To extend IHG status for all of 2020, you will be required to complete (within those 90 days):
- 10 qualifying nights (i.e. paid nights at a minimum rate of $35) for Spire Status
- 5 qualifying nights for Platinum status
Since IHG status alone doesn’t seem to be attractive enough for many corporate travellers, IHG Rewards Club is also offering:
- 1,000 bonus points with your first stay
- 4,000 bonus points with your second stay
- 10,000 bonus points with your third stay
In order to try your luck, you should click here to be taken to the offer website.
The Bottom Line
Here at InsideFlyer UK, we recognise that we occasionally write about opportunities that aren’t open to all. This is certainly one of those situations where you simply might not be eligible. But “travel hacking” is often about trying your luck. You never know what might happen…
I never thought I would see Spire Elite offered as part of a Promo, times must be hard in the hotel industry.
I think it’s more the fact that giving away Spire doesn’t cost IHG corporate much, if anything. The bonus points perhaps… Whilst the franchised hotels pick up the tab for whatever generosity they show to the guest. And if it results in additional room nights, especially from business travellers, then I can see why the concept might make sense overall.
I’ve also read on lots of forums Spire doesn’t get you hardly anything, you need to be Ambassador to be recognised in lots of Intercontinentals.
Ambassador doesn’t really get you much either, although you can sometimes game it so that the guaranteed one-category upgrade gets you lounge or suite. The only IHG status with any substantial value is Royal Ambassador, which is invitation-only…
I’ve completed the registration and it would appear I’ve qualified… Exciting times!
Just worked for me
I can easily squeeze in 10 nights before the end of the year !!
Thanks a million !!!
How instant is ‘instant’?
I signed up for the offer and it was confirmed as successful on the resulting splash screen. I also received a confirmation email saying that I had successfully registered.
However, despite signing out and signing in again, my status still shows Platinum. TBH I’m not too bothered but I figured that Spire status would start straightaway if you were accepted into the promo.
There may well be a lag whilst IHG verify your corporate eligibility.
This is definitely a situation where calling IHG for confirmation would cause a big mess…
I tested a family member’s account (with no status) a couple of hours ago and instant was instant – literally logged out and back in.
Hmmm…. still nothing showing for me 🙁
i got to Spire from Platinum straightaway and had an email confirmation. Not much benefit I guess except bonus points!
This did not show up on my IHG offer page before, so it was well hidden until I used the link.
Cheers Craig.
Well done!
I can’t even be bothered to try it myself, much less squeeze in 5/10 paid nights…
Still contemplating the Ambassador thing though…
Yeah, I recently got Ambassador on my own account (thanks to your number crunching actually!). The thing about IHG is, without ever really intending to, I end up staying at least 20 nights a year (and often a lot more). Between promos and the sheer ubiquity (and range of price-points) of IHG hotels it’s inevitable, so if I’m going to be staying anyway, status is good to have even for just simple things like late check out or a free drink.
I was Spire for a year but noticed no discerable difference between that and Platinum (which comes free with the IHG credit card). I certainly wouldn’t be doing a mattress run for it.
Aye – the free drink vouchers allow you to order a spirit a mixer,rather than beer/wine/soft drink I suppose ;). 100% bonus on points isn’t bad if someone is genuinely staying with IHG 75 nights a year, but if they were travelling that much, surely any of Hilton/Hyatt/Marriott would be much better options.
I agree, that’s the level of travel I was doing and exactly the conclusion I reached! Hilton Diamond was my choice at the time. Now that was a status worth having.
Licence revoked. One paid stay done but glad i made the 10x reservations refundable.
I also had an email this morning confirming my status had been revoked. As someone who rarely makes status, it was fun while it lasted.
If you have the IHG credit card and book refundable rates with bonus points it can be done quite easily. For example, you can buy 3000 qualifying points at most Warsaw hotels for about £4 on top of flexible rate. That is not a typo. 10 nights in Poland gives you 35,000 qualifying points. £20,000 spend on the IHG black card gives you another 40,000. Plus of course there is the redemption value of the points. 100k points including the 25k bonus can be achieved for about £500 spent on hotels and spending £20k on the black card. 100k IHG points worth at least £500. I easily get more than that. Maybe I should start a blog!
It may indeed be worth a blog article…
That said, every time I get a “bonus point package” target for Accelerate and try to work it into my travel plans, the extra cost (versus the flex rate, not to mention the prepaid) is substantially more than the value of the points. You also have to hotel hop to get the per stay bonus package, instead of the per night bonus.
Perhaps the maths work if you value IHG status, which I don’t…
I tend to stick to Crowne Plazas with lounges, the offering of which is typically better than Hilton. Think Prague Hilton or the DoubleTree lounges in Wroclaw, Warsaw or Krakow: many European Crowne Plazas are just as good. And having stayed at pretty much every Hilton in Europe with a lounge I’d rate the 2x Prague Hiltons and the 3x DTs in Poland as having the best lounge offerings. Three CP examples: Porto and Athens and Bratislava. Booze and food throughout the day. And not your bottom of the pile Hilton offering either. I always email ahead of time to clarify lounge access. No access no stay.
The Conrad lounges. Those are better than CP. But then again you have the price point to consider. And there aren’t that many Conrads. Conrad and Hilton Istanbul both used to be cracking good value. Put it this way: your typical CP lounge isn’t Reading. Where as the majority of Hilton lounges are pretty much… the same.
You seem to be under the impression that I think Hilton is any better than IHG! 😀