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Hotel companies spend huge amounts of money and effort trying to create loyal customers and, crucially these days, trying to get them to book direct. Loyalty programmes like Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy offer elite status perks – such as room upgrades, late check-out, and breakfast – but typically only when booking directly through their own websites or apps.

However, there’s one major hotel chain that takes a refreshingly different approach.

Radisson Hotels has quietly maintained a policy that sets it apart from its competitors: members of Radisson Rewards can enjoy their elite status benefits regardless of how they book their stay. Whether you reserve through Hotels.com, Booking.com, or any other third-party site, you can still receive your status-based perks during your stay.

Perhaps even more surprisingly, these third-party bookings count towards earning and maintaining your elite status. When you check in, simply provide your Radisson Rewards number, and the nights will contribute to your tier qualification – a benefit that’s almost unheard of in the hotel industry.

Why This Matters

This policy is particularly valuable for travellers who:

• Need to book through restrictive corporate travel portals
• Want to take advantage of special rates on third-party sites
• Prefer to earn credit card rewards or cashback through online travel agencies
• Use price comparison sites to find the best deals

To benefit from this unique approach, simply ensure you:

1. Join Radisson Rewards (it’s free and you can even request a status match if you have elite status with another hotel programme.)
2. Present your membership number at check-in. This is the potentially tricky bit, as not all staff members will be aware of the policy. Be prepared to (politely!) explain and show them the FAQs on the Radisson Rewards website confirming the policy. Screenshots included below.
3. Enjoy your status benefits, regardless of how you booked

What’s the Catch?

There is one limitation: while you’ll receive your status benefits and earn elite qualifying nights, you won’t earn Radisson Rewards points on third-party bookings. Points accrual remains exclusive to direct bookings through Radisson’s own channels.

Bottom Line

While other hotel chains continue to restrict benefits to direct bookings, Radisson’s more flexible approach offers a compelling reason to consider their loyalty programme. You can enjoy the best of both worlds – competitive rates from third-party sites and elite status perks during your stay.

For savvy travellers who like to shop around for the best hotel deals but still value elite status benefits, Radisson Rewards might just be the perfect loyalty programme…

What is your experience of receiving elite status benefits on third party bookings?