IHG Rewards Club offering 50%-100% ‘buy points’ bonus

IHG Rewards Club – the InterContinental, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza etc reward scheme – has been emailing members with a personalised offer to buy points with a 50%, 75% or 100% bonus.

To be honest, this deal is not worth it at the 50% or 75% bonus level unless you are topping off an existing account to reach a particular target.

If you were offered a 100% bonus, it is worth considering.  You have until December 23rd to decide.

Here are the standard purchase rates:

• 1,000 – 10,000 points for $13.50 per 1,000 points
• 11,000 – 25,000 points for $12.50 per 1,000 points
• 26,000 – 60,000 points for $11.50 per 1,000 points

What makes this deal more attractive than earlier ‘100% bonus’ deals is that there is no minimum purchase required.  You receive the bonus even if you are only buying 1,000 points.

The page to buy points is here, scroll down to the IHG logo.  If you did not receive an email, you can use this link to see what – if anything – you are offered.

At the top end of the IHG Rewards Club portfolio, you have InterContinental properties which top out at 50,000 points per night. That’s what you would need for InterContinental Le Grand in Paris or another of their top properties.

If you got a 100% bonus, IHG is effectively selling you a night at these properties for £183 all-in. There is no doubt that this could be a great deal.

In peak season, you would expect to pay twice this to get through the door of these hotels on a cash booking.

It is worth noting that a 100% bonus is cheaper than the infamous ‘cash and points and cancel’ trick which I summarise at the bottom of this post. You are paying $7 per 1,000 via that method compared to $5.75 per 1,000 with the 100% bonus.

You are running the risk of IHG changing their reward scheme before you spend the points. If you are concerned about a possible devaluation, think twice before opening your wallet.

This ‘buy points’ offer runs until December 23rd.  You can buy via this link, click on the IHG logo.

NB. The ‘cash and points and cancel’ trick requires you to have 5,000 IHG points in your account. Find a 15,000 point property and book a reward night. You will be forced to use ‘cash and points’ which is 5,000 points plus $70. Once you have booked, cancel. Your $70 is not returned to you – instead, you get 15,000 points back in your account. You have therefore effectively bought 10,000 points for $70. Repeat as required.

(Want to earn more hotel points?  To see our complete list of promotions from the major chains, click here to visit our ‘Hotel Promos’ page or use the link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)