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Good Malmaison UK hotel deals available if you can book 90 days in advance

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We don’t cover UK boutique hotel chain Malmaison much on HfP because it does not partner with any airlines or operate as part of any major loyalty scheme.  They did have a Virgin Atlantic deal at one point but it ended 2-3 years ago.

At the moment, Malmaison is running a decent advance booking promotion for its hotels.  If you can commit to a pre-paid booking at least 90 days in advance, there are substantial discounts available.

You can find details here.

There are participating properties – generally decent – in Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Brighton, Cheltenham, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle and Reading.

The Oxford hotel, picture above, is famous for being based in a converted prison ….

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Comments (121)

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

  • Blindman says:
    28 Sep28 September 05:28

    Malmaison
    Oxford is not included in the deal.

    They run this promo all the time IIRC

    • Louie says:
      28 Sep28 September 06:46

      Both Malmaison and Hotel du Vin (same group) have lots of special offers with and without dinner, with and without breakfast, including a glass or bottle of champagne, etc, if booked direct. Most are excellent value and mostly much nicer hotels than the points earning chains, IMO.

      Just wish that their website was fit for purpose as it’s impossible to use, even with a VPN, abroad as there’s an issue with the dates on their calendar. I have to get my sister (in the UK) to look up the rates and book for me.

      • Mike says:
        28 Sep28 September 07:17

        Louie – agree both are great fun. I thought it was just me being unlucky not getting their website to work when making bookings

    • Tony says:
      28 Sep28 September 08:05

      was going to say the same about the offer – it’s not a special for this week only.

    • Leo says:
      28 Sep28 September 13:59

      Oxford Malmaison was a very big disappointment to be blunt. Poor staff attitude and grim rooms. The general house style of Malmaison is somber generally but this was so dark you couldn’t read a menu in the bar.

      • Tony says:
        28 Sep28 September 15:49

        It’s a real mixed bag of a chain. I didn’t enjoy the Oxford one for the same reasons you state and the London one felt rather neglected last time I stayed there. However Newcastle & Edinburgh ones are great. The Liverpool one was just strange as it’s in a new-build and as such rather soulless.

      • Jamie says:
        28 Sep28 September 20:34

        Isn’t that the point at the Oxford hotel though? Bearing in mind its historic past? I recall a wild evening of debauchary when I was last there. Although my wallet did lose a few fifties as a consequence. Ah, happy Oxford days

  • BSI1978 says:
    28 Sep28 September 06:34

    OT – seeking guidance/advice on the best lounge option at T5 ahead of our first ever J flight to CPT shortly. Looking to maximise the experience for the OH as not sure when we’ll be doing it again….!

    • Genghis says:
      28 Sep28 September 06:42

      Assuming direct to CPT it’ll be T3. If the later flight, a mix of QF (western food / gin) and CX (dim sum / noodles / champagne)

      • DerekH says:
        28 Sep28 September 07:46

        Totally agree with Genghis. Avoid both BA and American at all cost. Although if you want a bag of jelly beans for the journey American is the place to go.

      • BSI1978 says:
        28 Sep28 September 07:57

        Appreciate the swift response Genghis and yes, you’re quite right – we are departing T3!

        • Michael C says:
          29 Sep29 September 08:17

          Yep, my own spin around T3 this week was AA for 1 minute for (surprisingly ok) expresso + a couple of magazines (the lounge looks disturbingly like a set from The Prisoner) followed, as everyone says, by the delicious food/lovely people/beautiful toilets in the Cathay lounge!

  • Louie says:
    28 Sep28 September 06:47

    OT: I know I ought to know but…. which of the Amex cards offer additional points (and how many) for a first supplementary card – Plat, Gold, BA Blue, BAPP, SPG, any others?

  • Neili says:
    28 Sep28 September 06:50

    OT I sent Curve two emails over a week ago and have had no response to either. I know they are busy because they are migrating prepaid cart holders to the debit card, but still, I am unimpressed. Because I am now concerned about how responsive Curve would be if there was a problem, I am now minded to stop using the card.

    I also had an issue with my Starling account recently, and while not Starling’s fault, the customer service response was unsatisfactory. The conclusion I draw is that while fintech shave interesting, competitive and disruptive products, for the most part the customer service falls short of what is needed for a retail banking proposition. Unfortunately, this means that I will be using legacy providers from now on!

    • Crafty says:
      28 Sep28 September 08:12

      Although I don’t like to recommend Monzo, I believe their reputation is very good for customer service. According to the recent Times profile of the CEO, if they’d had one more vote they would have qualified for inclusion in MSE latest banking customer service poll, and would have blown the long-time leader First Direct out of the water with a satisfaction score of 97%.

    • George says:
      28 Sep28 September 08:36

      Ditto on Curve – emailed weeks ago and still have no answer. Starling’s CS leaves much to be desired, same for Revolut – but I genuinely think Monzo’s is excellent.

    • Nick says:
      28 Sep28 September 09:01

      Totally agree about Starling. I still use them as the product is very good, but their service with an issue was appalling. I’m still mulling over whether to take it further with the Ombudsman.

      I think with fintech generally they’ll hit a peak point very soon unless they sort out their crappy service. They might be disruptive and innovative but there’s only so far people will let them take it without underlying substance.

      • Genghis says:
        28 Sep28 September 09:06

        I’ve threatened use of the FOS many times before but never actually did it until last month. Easy process. Unsurprisingly the co then paid up as a “goodwill gesture” with the usual, “not accepting any liability” line

        • Carl says:
          28 Sep28 September 11:53

          If more people made use of the FOS I’m sure fin tech and retail banking in general would improve. £550 a pop is not a small number for a fin tech. And the fact that TSB paid Lloyds half a billion to delay their tech transfer, still screwed it up and are giving their customers pennies, the threat of upto £550 a pop would change theirs and others behaviour, in my opinion.

        • Lady London says:
          28 Sep28 September 12:49

          Is is true that the subject financial services company have to pay about £600 to the Ombudsman every time someone raises a complaint? Would be a powerful incentive to settle/ resolve the problem surely, if someone mentioned they were going to take that step?

      • Lumma says:
        28 Sep28 September 09:44

        I’ve had a problem recently with starling where it keeps saying my phone doesn’t pass the security test for use with the app (and it’s a Samsung Galaxy Note 8), I then either have to restart my phone or reinstall the app all together

    • Anna says:
      28 Sep28 September 11:02

      They are quite hit and miss. I’ve noticed a couple of times that I’ve had very quick responses but sometimes the same agent then takes a few days to get back to me. I wonder if some enquiries are left for the same agent to deal with so there’s a delay on their days off. The last one I spoke with via email didn’t know what a supplementary card is, go figure!

      • Andrew (@andrewseftel) says:
        28 Sep28 September 12:25

        I’d actually guess that the agents have an SLA on max response times.

    • Georgina says:
      28 Sep28 September 11:32

      I’ve generally had an OK experience with Curve since day one. But lots of niggling problems. As of today though, I’m done with Curve. Just withdrew £100 cash. ATM threw up an error. Yet Curve and the underlying card both show the £100 withdrawn. Curve has become far too much hassle. For me, anyway.

      • John says:
        28 Sep28 September 15:27

        It will probably be refunded in a few days. That’s just how wirecard works (and why you shouldn’t use them for hotel or car rental authorisation)

      • Brighton Belle says:
        28 Sep28 September 21:12

        They’ll sit on your money for as long as they dare, earn some interest and then pay you back. My refunds take around 5 days to appear.

    • the_real_a says:
      28 Sep28 September 13:44

      Until about 8-9 months ago, curve customer service was excellent. Same day intelligent responses from tickets raised in app. But it seems they have hired lots of EU millennial’s in London, who have absolutely no idea 1) what a credit card is and how it works because they have never held one and 2) how things work in the UK in respect to normal card payments. Curve support is now truly awful.

      • Pangolin says:
        28 Sep28 September 17:09

        I think this is bang on and mirrors my own perceptions.

        Revolut is still the worst by a country mile, but we’re getting to the stage where’fintech’ means nothing more than lousy customer support. So much for being ‘disruptors’ when most of the disruption is to customers not high st banks.

      • Anna says:
        28 Sep28 September 18:00

        That would explain why they don’t know what a supplementary card is!

      • TT says:
        29 Sep29 September 04:19

        Settle down son, we do know how to use credit cards, we do know how to run trains and busses and we can see a doctor without waiting 2 weeks for an appointment!!!!! You think europeans sit around a camp fire eating with their hands, and talking about that rich white Brit they saw driving past their village in a…….car? Jeez…….

        • the_real_a says:
          29 Sep29 September 13:50

          Wonderful. Perhaps a man of your calibre and experience would do well at Curve support. Have you considered a career change?

    • js54156 says:
      29 Sep29 September 01:08

      you could try Monzo, which I believe has the best customer service. Although I still keep my Barclays account, I now use Monzo for everyday banking.

  • Adam Goodall says:
    28 Sep28 September 07:10

    Hold on a minute, have I been doing this wrong all along? When I apply for gold and bapp cards while churning, either me or my wife always order each other a supplementary card at sign up and get no bonus points. Should I be holding off and then adding the supplementary cards at a later date?
    If so this could be one of those real penny dropping moments!

  • Benylin says:
    28 Sep28 September 07:33

    OT: As per advice here applied to upgrade my Hilton / Marriot / Shangri La status via amex site. Hilton got upgraded within 1-2 days, still waiting on Marriot and Shangri-la, been over 15 days. Any idea how long it takes / who to chase up, amex or hotel?

    • Rash says:
      28 Sep28 September 07:49

      I tried upgrading my Hilton via the Amex site a couple of weeks ago but doesn’t seem to have worked. Did you have to do anything special/different?

      • Rob says:
        28 Sep28 September 08:58

        No, Hilton is actually the most responsive of all of them. When I upgraded my wife last year it was done within 72 hours, on her existing account.

        • Neil says:
          28 Sep28 September 11:09

          Upgraded mine yesterday and got the Hilton Gold email in 48 hours. Incredibly quick

    • The Lord says:
      28 Sep28 September 11:10

      Agreed, recently did Hilton and only took 2.5 days.

    • paulm says:
      28 Sep28 September 13:03

      Did them recently, Shangri-La took about a week and Marriott took about 2 weeeks although they did set up a new account even though I gave them my existing account so keep an eye on the amex site as it may get confirmed on there with a new account number.

  • Roger says:
    28 Sep28 September 07:41

    OT- Tesco Clubcard

    What is the best use of travel or travel related use of CC points now, with various changes,
    Don’t have plenty but still worth £50 or so in native points.

    • Alan says:
      28 Sep28 September 07:43

      I still like Uber credit at 3x value – just a shame it only works in the UK.

    • Genghis says:
      28 Sep28 September 07:44

      Uber in UK is a genuine 3x. Hotels.com is a real c.2.5x

      • Benylin says:
        28 Sep28 September 08:10

        What about BAEC pts, bad value?

        • Genghis says:
          28 Sep28 September 08:17

          When for me the alternative is Uber, those avios cost 1.25p (3/2.4) and I’m not a buyer at that price.

        • BJ says:
          28 Sep28 September 08:26

          Very complicated, depends where and when you are travelling, if you would pay cash instead, class of travel, if you need flexibility etc etc. If in doubt then it’s best to dtick with the other options mentioned.

        • Shoestring says:
          28 Sep28 September 08:29

          Not necessarily bad value. There’s a +20% bonus conversion rate to BAEC every couple of years. Last one was November 2015 – so looking possible for end 2018 IMV https://www.shopperpoints.co.uk/2015/10/31/20-bonus-for-converting-clubcard-points-into-avios-points-worth-a-look/

          Conversion TCC points —> Virgin miles – +20% bonus is fairly regular.

          That gives £2.50 = 720 points = genuine 2.88x. So Avios are costing 1.042p (3/2.88), much more palatable than the normal comparison 1.25p.

          Then again, what value are you getting with your airmiles? I wouldn’t convert for less than 1p & usually achieve a fair bit more, whereas with Uber you can’t improve on value.

          • Rob says:
            28 Sep28 September 08:56

            I think holding onto Clubcard vouchers for a transfer bonus is fanciful these days – although I STRONGLY recommend not converting until you need to redeem. No need to unnecessarily risk being caught in a devaluation.

        • Genghis says:
          28 Sep28 September 08:33

          @shoestring the comparison is primarily to what the alternatives are for acquiring points (ie Groupon offer at 1p is better than “paying” 1.25p assuming you would otherwise pay cash for Uber). Only if no acquiring alternatives would I consider what I sell them for.

        • BJ says:
          28 Sep28 September 08:40

          @Shoestring…and pigs might fly!

        • Shoestring says:
          28 Sep28 September 20:06

          @BJ [pigs might fly] – but we had exactly this with BA 3 yrs ago so time for a repeat, and with Virgin just recently in March 2018.

          OK Tesco has gone mental and abolished Direct, Wines, decent Clubcard points offers etc all in the name of profitability. I know ‘Jack’s all’ about what’s going on!

          But who actually pays for the 20% bonuses on the TCC —> airmiles conversions?

          I think we should be told 🙂

        • BJ says:
          28 Sep28 September 21:58

          @Harry, ok, let’s see. Somebody posted yesterday or day before it is the partners who pay. I am wondering if Tesco intend to be very aggressive with this Jacks business with a view to making it their core operation in the long term if it works out for them. I can see them even converting their Extra stores and renting out excess space to concessions, causing further havoc on the High Street.

      • Alan says:
        28 Sep28 September 08:59

        Obviously depends where you live. We don’t have Uber or Ubereats in our neck of the woods so that wouldn’t be a good use of CC points for us.

        • Shoestring says:
          28 Sep28 September 20:08

          Not much in the way of Uber down in Cornwall, either 🙂

          So a meaningless comparison.

    • Shoestring says:
      28 Sep28 September 07:51

      redspottedhanky (train tickets) & Eurotunnel both 3x

    • RTS says:
      28 Sep28 September 10:15

      I did Hotels.com. 🙂

      • Mr dee says:
        29 Sep29 September 00:58

        Hotels.com is 3x even if you can’t use it against the tax your still getting 3x on the rest, so I don’t think 2.5x is right

    • Alex W says:
      28 Sep28 September 11:04

      @roger fairly regular transfer bonuses to Virgin FC so 1:3 conversion.

      • Kathy says:
        28 Sep28 September 11:13

        Not sure those will continue – last quarter they adopted the BAEC/Avios competition promo model instead.

  • krys_k says:
    28 Sep28 September 07:46

    OT – if one churns the platinum Amex what’s the strategy for maintining the hotel status that comes with it. I get how the first time one gets the Amex you can register for the status, but can the status be ‘renewed’ each time you get the card thereby extending the status? Thanks

    • Polly says:
      28 Sep28 September 08:01

      Depends on exp date of 1st status card. Ours usually last well through a couple of churns. Dont think they extend. I know they wont duplicate, as we got an email informing us we were already members!
      Genghis might know…

    • Genghis says:
      28 Sep28 September 08:19

      We renew on each churn. Don’t really know if it does anything but our statuses never run out.

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