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Bits: worst value IHG redemption ever?, get missing Accor points reinstated

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News in brief:

The worst IHG redemption – is this where Istanbul is now?

In February I will be heading down to Istanbul for a couple of days to check out Turkish Airlines long haul aircraft and their widely applauded lounge facilities.

Needing a hotel for two nights, I was planning to use the free night vouchers from our IHG credit cards.  Until I saw the prices.

The InterContinental in Istanbul, in early February, is €77 per night.  That is £56.

Alternatively, I could use 50,000 IHG Rewards Club points.

I know that Istanbul has not had the best press recently, but neither has Paris – I don’t see the InterContinental there selling for £56.

Looking at Expedia, it is carnage across the sector.  Only the Shangri-La and Four Seasons seem able to charge over £200.  The Park Hyatt, which is new and apparently very impressive, is just £128.  The Conrad is £100.

As an example of how low these prices are, Amex Travel wants £210 per night for the Park Hyatt.  This is their contracted Fine Hotels & Resorts rate which is meant to be roughly the same as the hotel rate – it is now 65% higher.

I know the weather isn’t great in Istanbul in February but it will be a lot better than the UK, and at these prices you get a very cheap short break.

Get your missing Accor points reinstated

If you earned 1,050 free Le Club AccorHotels points from their recent quiz, you may have found your points removed by Accor.  This promotion was subject to a major fraud and Accor stripped all of the accounts which looked even vaguely dodgy.

If your points were removed, the good news is that Accor is happy to reinstate them.  Get in touch with Customer Services and, once you’ve convinced them that you exist, the points will be returned to your account.  This has worked OK for a couple of Head for Points readers.

Accor Live Limitless update – December 2024:

Earn bonus Accor points: Accor is not currently running a global promotion

New to Accor Live Limitless?  Read our review of Accor Live Limitless here and our article on points expiry rules here. Our analysis of what Accor Live Limitless points are worth is here.

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

Category

Accor Live Limitless, IHG One Rewards

Comments (46)

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

  • Tilly71 says:
    29 Dec29 December 09:50

    Thanks for the heads up with the Accor club, emailed CS for reinstatement of missing 1100 points.

  • Concerto says:
    29 Dec29 December 10:38

    My points, 1,000 in all, were reinstated after a 9 minute call to the call centre and this included time waiting on hold while the agent dealt with it.

  • TGLoyalty says:
    29 Dec29 December 11:46

    Good to know as I may be visiting Istanbul soon, good quality hotel will do nicely.

  • Lesley Palmer says:
    29 Dec29 December 12:08

    Went to Istanbul on a very cheap luxury hotel deal in November (just after the elections). It was fabulous city. A little overwhelming at first but lovely places to see and eat and very friendly. Don’t talk politics or religion and cover up in non tourist areas – it is only polite as well as advisable.

  • martin says:
    29 Dec29 December 12:23

    The Turkish like to riot a lot about events past,
    Usually at taksim square.
    So much so they have built a police station on taksim square,
    Water cannons posted on the square 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
    Should be a nice view from the intercontinental balcony when one starts as it’s on taksim square.
    Don’t get me wrong, I like Istanbul and visited 5 times last 2 years, I just don’t have my hotel at taksim square.

  • David says:
    29 Dec29 December 13:26

    The Park Hyatt is not new but has had some major work done this year.

    I have not stayed there for a couple of years but always found it a classy place to stay.

    • Kipto says:
      29 Dec29 December 13:57

      OT but IHG related. How long does it take for a transfer of points from virgin to ihg for them to appear in the account. Need to get them banked before the end of the year for spire elite status. Transferred them over today ?

      • James67 says:
        29 Dec29 December 14:29

        Doubt that will happen. When I transferred mine last month agent said it would take 6 days, it actually took 12. Unless you are happy to transfer them to IHG at face value without spire best keep them where they are. FWIW, I am not optimistic that the promised new benefits next year will amount to much, if anything at all.

      • James67 says:
        29 Dec29 December 14:35

        Just reread your comment and note you already transferred them. If you want them back then give them a call and tell them last agent failed to advise you it would take 6 days. I think it’s worth a shot since it seems to be a manual process they can probably put a stop on if you can persuade them.

        • Kipto says:
          29 Dec29 December 14:48

          Thanks. I am sure I read in earlier posts that people had transferred points from Amex to virgin to IHG all within hours so I will hang on, if only for the extra 25000 points if I get spire status which as you say at present does not guarantee anything.

          • James67 says:
            29 Dec29 December 15:10

            Well it guarantees the 25k points which can be worth a substantial sum if you get lucky with pointsbreaks. The amex-virgin transfer is very fast but from memory I think most reported the virgin-ihg transfer to take 5-7 days.

          • Rob says:
            29 Dec29 December 16:37

            Amex to Virgin is instant if your accounts are already linked. As is Amex to Delta and Amex to Emirates.

      • Rob says:
        29 Dec29 December 16:38

        Took around a week on the two transactions I did this year.

  • Tilly71 says:
    29 Dec29 December 15:59

    OT – did anyone get their 3000 virgin miles for downloading the virgin red app?

  • Tilly71 says:
    29 Dec29 December 17:54

    Anybody had success getting the 1100 accor points back via emailing their CS?

    • Rob says:
      29 Dec29 December 19:04

      Yes – two people who contacted me before today plus someone else who commented via Facebook today that it had worked for him too.

    • Daftboy says:
      29 Dec29 December 22:27

      Emailed them this morning at 10am – points were reinstated by 9pm, can’t ask for more than that really.

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

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