Save 8% when buying or renewing InterContinental Ambassador membership
Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission. See here for all partner links.
A couple of day ago, I wrote about the 100% bonus available until September 22nd when you buy IHG Rewards Club points.
If you buy 50,000 – 60,000 points, which doubles to 100,000 – 120,000 points, the price drops to just $5.75 per 1,000.
This allows you to stay at ANY InterContinental hotel for no more than £177 per night, including all taxes, because that is the cost of buying 50,000 points.
This deal offers a loophole for anyone thinking of buying IHG Ambassador status. It will also save you money when renewing.
Ambassador will ONLY benefit you when staying at InterContinental branded hotels. InterContinental is a little odd when it comes to loyalty schemes:
As part of the Holiday Inn / Crowne Plaza group, it participates in IHG Rewards Club and you earn the usual 10 points per $ for your spending.
InterContinental does not officially recognise your IHG Rewards Club status. In reality, they often do, but it is not guaranteed.
InterContinental also has its own loyalty scheme – Ambassador – which costs $200 per year to join.
Despite the $200 per year fee (reduced to $150 when renewing), I consider Ambassador a good deal and have been a member for a number of years.
The key thing about Ambassador is that, once you are a member, the benefits are GUARANTEED on paid stays. They are NOT guaranteed on reward stays, but most properties do let you have them. These benefits are:
A certificate for a free weekend night when you join and each year when you renew. In one swoop, you can save your entire membership fee with this benefit. To use the voucher, you need to book a 2-night weekend stay and pay the Best Available Rate for the other night. The letter of the rules says that only standard rooms can be booked. However, many hotels let you book club rooms or suites.
GUARANTEED one-level room upgrade – this is usually processed before you arrive and is visible online
A voucher for 5,000 IHG Rewards Club points when you join and each year on renewal
4pm check-out – this is a guaranteed benefit and one which was very helpful in Paris last week
A free pay-TV movie per stay, every stay
Free fruit and mineral water in your room
A welcome gift – varies from chocolates or wine to weird local souvenirs!
Double occupancy for single occupancy rate – useful in Germany, one of the few countries where they still charge a ‘second person’ supplement
Obviously InterContinental Ambassador is not for everyone. You can earn back the cost of membership in just one weekend stay, though. It may even be worth it even if you had just one long stay booked and wanted to guarantee your upgrade. Ambassador members also receive Gold status in IHG Rewards Club (although that doesn’t get you far).
How you can save
There is an alternative to paying $200 for Ambassador status. You can use 32,000 IHG Rewards Club points instead.
This is usually a poor deal. However, under the current promotion, you can buy 32,000 points for just $184. (This assumes you buy 100,000 points and pro-rata the cost. Buying just 32,000 points will not save you any money.)
That is a saving of 8% – not huge but better than nothing.
Similarly, you can renew your IHG Ambassador status for 24,000 points. The usual cost is $150 to renew but buying the points – as part of a purchase of 100,000 or more – will cost $138. Another 8% saved!
You can learn more about InterContinental Ambassador, and sign up, here if it sounds interesting.
PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 70,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.
IHG One Rewards update – July 2025:
Get bonus points: IHG is currently running TWO global promotions. You can register for both.
Promo 1: IHG One Rewards will give you your choice of either 2,000 bonus points for every two nights or 8,000 bonus points for every four nights you stay. The offer period is 20th May to 31st August. Click here to register and learn more.
Promo 2: IHG One Rewards is running a promotion aimed at five brands – Crowne Plaza, voco, Vignette, Candlewood and Garner. You will earn triple base points for stays at these brands until 30th September. Click here to register and learn more.
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.
IHG One Rewards is offering a 100% bonus when you buy points by 17th July 2025. Click here to buy.
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.
RogerWilco 
Felix Flyer 
Rob 
Gavin 
Phil 
Gordon Ritchie 
Irons1980 
James 
Jason 
BLT 
BLT 
Comments (19)