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Save 50% on IHG weekend stays this winter via a hidden Mastercard deal

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IHG Rewards Club is running a very low key promotion for Mastercard holders.

You will receive a 50% discount on the Best Flexible Rate for European stays this Winter.

You need to stay for a minimum of two nights and book at least five nights in advance.  The offer is described as being for ‘weekend’ stays but the rules do not specify that, so you may find the rate showing for midweek nights too.

The offer only works at participating European hotels listed here.  Brands included are InterContinental, Kimpton, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Staybridge Suites, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express.

You must book by 30th November for stays before 4th March 2018.

You need to access the deal via the Mastercard Priceless Cities website here.

However, there is one snag.

These stays do NOT earn IHG Rewards Club points.  This is made clear in the Terms & Conditions which you can read here.

This also means that:

your stay will NOT earn night credit or base points towards status requalification, which may be important as we approach the year end

your stay will NOT count towards the current generous Accelerate bonus points promotion (click here for details) 

That said ….. the maths should still work in your favour.  A 50% discount should make up for any lost points, unless a stay is key to triggering a large Accelerate bonus, and cash should always trump points.

One unknown is that, if you book now for a stay in 2018, you won’t know what sort of promotion IHG will be running in the Spring.  Whatever it is, any stays booked via this deal won’t count.

You can find more details on the Mastercard Priceless Cities website here.


IHG One Rewards update – April 2024:

Get bonus points: IHG One Rewards is offering 2,000 bonus points for every two cash nights you stay (not necessarily consecutive) between 1st April and 31st May 2024. You can read our full article here and you can register here.

New to IHG One Rewards?  Read our overview of IHG One Rewards here and our article on points expiry rules here. Our article on ‘What are IHG One Rewards points worth?’ is here.

Buy points: If you need additional IHG One Rewards points, you can buy them here.

Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from IHG and the other major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.

Comments (10)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Phil says:

    This is awesome! And a bit crazy. It is now worth my while to book this rate (which I can apply for 3 nights) and forego using a bogo.

  • Adrian says:

    Hi Rob, I was looking at these yesterday and I could only get it to work for weekend dates, when I tried to add in a Thursday it failed to find the rate. There are some good deals around, 47% was the best I could find, which is very good. I used to be a big fan of IHG and still am in terms of HIE and CP. I’m now spire amb and it’s a disappointment, as really there isn’t much of a difference. Looking at IC hotels the 1 room upgrade and late checkout for top elites is shockingly poor, Marriott gold (thank you Rob and Plat amex) gets guaranteed lounge access and breakfast so they along with Hilton are getting more of my stays. IHG are also bizarre they way they conduct sales like these. There is this sale, a 30% off at IC up until 8th April (min 3 night stay) and they all have separate pages and you can’t see the rates on the main site, this seems crazy. Hilton are much more straightforward and show the rates on the main site. Because of this I’m struggling to find a use for my AMB weekend certificate as IC are normally more expensive and offer less benefits e.g. I can offer my wife a lounge and breakfast at JW Marriott in Singapore or a “free” night at IC with no other benefits, so as a leisure only traveller I’m struggling with the value of the top end of IHG’s IC hotels.
    If anyone has any ideas on how I could do better I’d appreciate it.

    • CV3V says:

      I agree with everything you say, you have the same status(es) as I, and my hotel chain of choice has been Hilton as i know the benefits are guaranteed, ditto Marriott. IHG points are becoming like nectar points, and never get used as i can always get a better deal elsewhere. If I use IHG points then i have to pay the walk in rate for breakfast, which devalues it, and i dont get full status ‘benefits’ for using points. Getting (free) lounge access remains at the whim of the check in staff, which isnt how i want to plan my stays.

      A few weeks ago i did treat me and OH by using the IC free night certificate for a Club room at the IC Madrid, it was a great stay, with a great lounge. But my late checkout (which i confirmed twice!) was ignored, with the cleaner coming into the room twice, also i was told i could take breakfast in the main restaurant or the Club lounge, went to the main restaurant and was given a bill at the table! All the time knowing that Hilton have managed the diamond benefits without fault on every stay i have made, including when using a free night certificate (at the London Conrad, great stay).

  • John Fitzsimons says:

    Thanks for the heads up ! I had just booked Ambassador weekend certificate award for Club room 2 nights at Intercon Le Grand Paris €495. Now with this I just paid €463 and I can use weekend award another time.

  • Beverly says:

    THANK YOU, Rob. My husband and I were booked to go to the Berlin Intercontinental next weekend. He’s a Spire Elite Ambassador and we were going to use one of his ‘free’ vouchers, but it was still going to be a very expensive three nights away without definite lounge access, depending on what kind of upgrade they gave us. (I assumed we could buy a pass if we wanted.) He rebooked this morning using the Winter Promotion and we have saved £250 with guaranteed lounge access.

    Further to Adrian’s comment above, I booked Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights and that went through with the promotion discount.

    CV3V — As for using one of the IC free night vouchers, I don’t know where you are located, but the IC at O2 can be very good value if there isn’t an event at O2. We went on a bank holiday weekend once, when they were virtually giving the rooms away. Not as exotic as on the continent, granted, but the spa is very relaxing and luxurious, the club lounge was good (definitely not as lux as Madrid, but still pleasant) with fantastic views, and it’s very quick and easy to get into central London or Greenwich, if you want. Otherwise, there are some interesting walks around that part of London. We actually had a very enjoyable, low-key stay. And, as I recall, the drinks in the top-floor bar weren’t an arm and a leg, and the views unbeatable.

    • CV3V says:

      Hi, yeah thanks the IC at the O2 is probably my fail safe for using voucher, that’s if there isnt a Mastercard promo on! (which just devalues the whole thing even more). That said, i find Ambassador status usually works out as cost neutral (when paying on points).

  • Dylan says:

    Just booked London Stratford HIE for less than £50 a night which is a bargain for a weekend night!

    Cheers for the heads up!

  • Rob D says:

    As again, thanks for the heads up!
    Booked CP Ealing for £58 Club Room.
    Lose my IHG status next year as I prefer the benefits with HHonors. This ends my 15 years of loyalty to IHG, for all of the reasons given in earlier posts in this link.

  • AviosNewbie says:

    just booked the Club Room at the Le Grande Paris for the Christmas weekend! I had felt there might be a blackout period over Xmas, but apparently not. Like others have mentioned, the deal didn’t work when I checked for Sat-Tues, but when I changed to Sat-Mon, I got the 50% discount.

    thanks Rob!

  • Rob says:

    No, you put ‘MasterCard’ because it is the MasterCard partnerships offer.

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