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Complimentary access to gym, swimming pool and beach at GHA hotels, even when you are not staying!
GHA Discovery launched its new program in 2021, and discontinued the much beloved Local Experiences award. It’s replaced with a new feature called Local Offers, which isn’t as exciting but caters to a wider audience.
You could view the Local Offers page here (login required). What’s peculiar about it is you don’t need to stay at the hotel – so say if you are just interested in dining in the restaurant of one specific GHA hotel, it’s worth checking if there are any exclusive discounts.
Most of the offers are discounts for dining, massage or experiences. However there’s a special category filter for Complimentary Access, and as the name suggests it shows hotels that offer you free access to their facilities.
Some of the offers may be tier-specific, so if you have don’t have Titanium status you may not see them. The terms are also very different – some are one-time use only, some are limited to two uses per month, and some are unlimited.
Here are some examples, which I think are of interest:
Netherlands
- nhow Amsterdam RAI, gym access
- nhow Rotterdam, gym and sauna access
- NH Atlanta Rotterdam, gym and sauna access
Lithuania
- Grand Hotel Kempinski Vilnius, private hotel tour
UAE
- Anantara The Palm Dubai Resort, free private coffee session
- Nikki Beach Resort & Spa Dubai, pool and beach access
Qatar
- Kempinski Residences and Suites Doha, pool access
Seychelles
- JA Enchanted Waterfront, pool access with boat transfer
- JA Enchanted Island Resort, pool access with boat transfer
Singapore
- Parkroyal Collection Marina Bay, pool and gym access
China
- Marco Polo Xiamen, kids club
- Marco Polo Lingnan Tiandi, Foshan, pool access with parking
- Anantara Guiyang Resort, gym access
You need to use the provided form to pre-book, and I’d recommend confirm with the hotel beforehand as they might not be familiar with this new feature.
Many of these perks are quite handy if you happen to be visiting the city, or live nearby – although I’m not sure beach club access on a private Maldives island is useful to anyone except the staying guests!
Hotel redemption guide on London New Year’s Eve
London New Year’s Eve, thanks to the famous fireworks show, attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists every year. If you are looking for a hotel on that night, you should act as soon as possible, especially if you want to burn some points.
[Marriott]
Marriott London County Hall is the best hotel for watching the fireworks show, and redeemable with points. The redemption price has gone up a little bit this year, from 100K to 106K, but it’s still great value compared to the £1,500 NYE package rate.
Award availability is temporarily blocked right now, but my friend did manage to grab a room a few days ago. I believe more availability will be released in the future – in fact last year it was even bookable on the day.
Marriott London County Hall is inside the Fireworks Zone. The hotel will send you the wristbands a couple of days ahead by courier, which you’ll need to travel in and out of the zone freely. You can chill in your hotel room until the firework starts, and then walk to the White Zone, which is one minute away, to enjoy the show. Fireworks can be seen from rooms with London Eye view too, but don’t expect any upgrade on that day.
I have a couple of friends who stayed here on the 2023 NYE. To be honest the viewing angle from the White Zone is far from ideal, but it is an experience nonetheless.
[Hyatt]
Hyatt “poached” two Crowne Plazas last year, which happens to be the only two London IHG hotels that I liked. The former Crowne Plaza Albert Embankment, to be re-opened as Hyatt Regency London Albert Embankment, is already bookable for NYE.
It costs 20,000 points which isn’t cheap, but acceptable for a special occasion. Interestingly, Twin Room with River View (priced at £500+) is available for the same amount of points, although I don’t think you can see any fireworks from the room.
Hyatt Regency London Blackfriars has a better location, but it’s not bookable yet and we don’t know its redemption category.
[Hilton and IHG]
Somehow most Hilton hotels in central London have already sold out. The only sensible redemption right now is the Westminster, a Curio hotel. It’s a newly-renovated hotel, converted from a Doubletree, but at 60,000 points it feels a bit steep.
In terms of IHG, the only economical option left in central London is Holiday Inn Oxford Circus at 32,000 points. There were many more better options when I checked last week:
- Staybridge Suites London Vauxhall – 34,000 points
- Holiday Inn Express London Victoria – 19,000 points
- Hotel Indigo Tower Hill – 25,000 points
But the availability has gone now. Keep checking as they might come back, but I’m most certain that it’s just going to get more and more expensive.
Marriott Q1 promotion: 1,000 points per night and double elite night credit
Following IHG, Marriott has unveiled its first global promotion of year 2023.
You can register to the offer here.
- Register by April 7th
- Stay between February 7th and April 23rd
- Earn 1,000 bonus points and one additional elite night credit for every paid night stayed
Certain brands such as Marriott Executive Apartments and Homes & Villas are excluded. The offer is great if you are aiming for elite status this year – the offer period covers 75 days, so reaching Platinum or Titanium status is quite doable.
Marriott ceased benefits on third-party bookings
Hotel groups have different interpretations when it comes to elite benefits on third-party bookings. Marriott for example, has made it clear in their terms and conditions that elite benefits only apply to qualifying stays.
4.1.c. Benefits of Elite membership apply to stays on Qualifying Rates (as described in Section 2.1.e.) and are reserved for Members only and apply solely to the one guest room in which the Elite Member stays.
There has been one exclusion though, although not written in the terms and conditions but it has been communicated to individual hotels through the loyal program guide: hotels in Asia Pacific should honour elite benefits even on third-party bookings.
Unfortunately, that perk has also come to an end. As shared by my friend on a Wechat post, someone obtained a copy of a recent communication from a Bangkok Marriott hotel lately.
Staring from January 16, 2023, Asia Pacific excluding Greater China will adhere to the global policy as listed on page 57 of the Loyalty Program Guide. Member benefits will only be available to members who book qualifying rates. Reservations made though third parties, including OTAs and wholesalers, would no longer be eligible for member benefits, regardless of member status. We believe this will create greater consistency with hotels globally.
If you book a Marriott hotel in Greater China via any OTA, count yourself lucky as it is now the only region in the world where your elite benefits are guaranteed. Otherwise, just hope for the best but prepare for the worst!
2023 Tier Last Call – Stay once to maintain your Hilton Diamond / Gold status (live)
Hilton quietly released their 2023 Tier Last Call promotion one week ago, which makes it super easy to maintain your Hilton status for another year. I’m still waiting for more details to come through, but in the meantime it’s worth sharing what I already know.
First of all, the offer is by-invitation only. It was made crystal clear at the beginning that only residents of Greater China could participate (based on your account address on 01/01/2023), however such wording no longer appears on the official FAQ.
I’m not sure if the eligibility criterion has changed, but it’s possible. I changed my account address to China last year, hoping that there might be special extension policies for their residents, but then changed it back to the UK in December thinking that all dust had settled. When I learned of the news last week I changed it back to China again (!!), which should have been too late per the original terms.
However, I can see the promotion in My Offers now:
Which means that they’ve automatically enrolled me, yay!
Eligible members need to stay once, twice or three times by March 31 to maintain their Diamond or Gold status through Feb 2024. The registration links are as follows:
- One stay to maintain Gold
- Two stays to maintain Gold
- Three stays to maintain Gold
- One stay to maintain Diamond
- Two stays to maintain Diamond
- Three stays to maintain Diamond
In theory the more you have stayed in 2022, the less you need to stay in this challenge. An email has just sent out clarifying how many nights are required from each individual:
Remember that you have until March 31st to complete the challenge, and reward nights should count.
My review of InterContinental San Francisco
Having been a software engineer for almost ten years, it’s weird that I’ve never been to San Francisco or the bay area. Now that I got laid off I finally have time to go on a pilgrimage 😛
Compared to LA, hotels in San Francisco are much more friendly priced, and you can find a pretty decent hotel for around $200. I decided to redeem my IHG BOGO voucher here, and there are two InterContinentals in the city – one in downtown for which I’m going, and the Mark Hopkins hotel at a less convenient location for tourists.
The hotel is about eight-minute walk from the Powell Street metro station, which takes you directly to the airport.
At 33 floors high, the hotel stands out in the immediate neighbourhood.
The entrance is small but elegant. The ground floor is a big open space with reception, bar and restaurant.
Like many other InterContinental hotels, or hotels in general in the States, the hotel has so many different rooms types that I lost count. I ended up booking Premium West Side View as it’s price difference from the entry-level room isn’t much. I was upgraded one-level to the corner room.
The receptionist greeted me warmly, and I didn’t have to ask about the Diamond breakfast benefit or 4pm late check-out.
Before I was let go, he went to the back office and returned with a bag of welcome gift. To my slight disappoint it’s only two bottles of water 😛 They also sent me a bottle of Evian the next day.
The corner room is quite impressive at first glance. The hues and finishes are soothing.
The highlight of course, is the 180-degree floor-to-ceiling windows and the views that come from it.
You don’t normally get a chance to be so up high in Europe. It’s a shame that San Francisco doesn’t have so much of a skyline, and the hotel isn’t close enough to the coast.
The curtains are electric and you only need to give it a pull for it to open or close by itself.
There is also a view from the bathroom. But beware of the construction workers on the crane!
One motivation for me to pick this hotel was its swimming pool and jacuzzi.
They are fine. But the hall is quite old and so small that no loungers can fit in. It’s weird that there’s not even any place to sit in!
The gym:
The club lounge:
I was given a voucher which entitles me to the breakfast buffet.
The whole buffet well, is spread across one single table.
There aren’t many choices as you can imagine, but they do offer congee which is a nice touch.
There is an a-la-carte menu but payable. According to the voucher taxes are not included, but I didn’t have to pay anything when I checked out.
InterContinental San Francisco isn’t the best hotel you can find in town, but I love the corner room and don’t miss out if you admire a view.
IHG Q1 offer: 2,000 points for every two nights
IHG has an ongoing targeted offer until the end of January. Just as expected, a global promotion will follow suit in February.
The promotion page isn’t live yet, but you can already sign up via this page. The offer details are:
- Stay between February 9th and April 14th
- Earn 2,000 bonus points for every two nights
- The nightly rate need to exceed $30
It is a bit… boring, especially when compared to the extremely rewarding offer they had at the end of last year. Don’t forget to sign up however, if you have any paid stays with IHG coming up.
IHG flash sale is back! 20% off all reward nights
Well, I just saw some very heated discussions on a Wechat group, and then realised IHG has brought back its very popular reward night sale!
From what I have gathered so far:
- 20% off all reward night bookings globally
- Book by January 20th
- Stay by March 10th
- Max. 3 consecutive nights (so not stackable with Chase’s 4-for-3 benefit)
The booking page thanks me for being a (Chase) cardmember, but I think many non-cardholders can see the discount too. It’s unclear what the selection criteria are, as I’ve seen all Diamond, Platinum and even Gold members being targeted.
The offer is only live on January 9th (hotel local time). You can already book Europe and Asia, and UK is coming soon in 15 minutes.
Accompanied with such offer there is always a good chance to buy IHG points cheaply too, and here are some examples:
- Holiday Inn Express London Stratford 06/03- 0.475c
- Holiday Inn Express Dubai Safa Park 28/01 – 0.475c
- Crowne Plaza Istanbul Florya 01/03 – 0.448c
- voco Paris Montparnasse 18/02 – 0.46c