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(DEAD) CRAZY IHG OFFER: free Diamond status until 31st December, shows instantly

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UPDATE – APRIL 2024:  This article is now out of date, but don’t worry.  We produce a monthly summary of the top hotel bonus point offers – please click HERE or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ menu above.  Thank you.

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Well, this is potentially one of the craziest hotel loyalty offers that we have ever seen.

We are used to seeing ‘status challenges’ – where a hotel group will temporarily match your status in another programme for a short period – but this usually requires you to already be top tier elsewhere. This is also usually only offered to status levels with no real tangible benefits.

This is different.

EDIT: This deal is no longer working, unsurprisingly! Let’s see if IHG allows those who signed up to keep their status for the 10 remaining weeks of 2022.

IHG One Rewards instant Diamond upgrade

IHG One Rewards is offering an INSTANT upgrade to its top-tier, Diamond Elite.

Click this link, type in your membership number and you’ll be upgraded. That’s all you need to do. You’ll receive this by email:

IHG One Rewards instant Diamond status

Here’s my wife’s account before:

IHG One Rewards instant Diamond status

and five minutes later:

IHG One Rewards instant Diamond status

The upgrade lasts until 31st December 2022.

Diamond Elite benefits include eligibility for suite upgrades and free breakfast. Free breakfast applies at all brands, and includes reward stays. Diamond Elite does not include lounge access, where available.

You will retain your Diamond Elite status for 2023 if you complete 10 cash nights between now and the end of the year.

The only caveat I have is that I don’t know where this offer originated. A few non-UK frequent flyer sites have posted it. There is no ‘puff’ page apart from this registration link. It could be aimed at specific groups or employees of certain companies. The comments suggest that this is somehow linked to Amazon although no-one has found a link to confirm this.

However, whilst there is a caveat emptor to this, in reality the worst that could happen is that IHG downgrades you back to your original status level. Be wary of making pre-paid IHG bookings purely because you will receive Diamond benefits. My gut feeling is that IHG may ride it out, given that the status only lasts for 10 weeks.

I should, however, highlight the official notice on the registration page:

Many offers are only available to IHG One Rewards Club members who receive a specific, targeted communication from IHG. Successful registration does not guarantee that you will receive the points or miles offered when the offer requirements are met if you are not eligible per the offer terms and conditions. Six Continents Hotels, Inc.(SCH) and its subsidiaries and affiliates which are InterContinental Hotels Group companies (collectively IHG) reserve the right to cancel any IHG One Rewards Club membership and revoke any and all unredeemed IHG One Rewards Club points for fraud or abuse of any portion of the program per the IHG One Rewards Club membership terms and conditions.

You can upgrade your account here. You can learn more about IHG One Rewards in our overview article here.

Click here for a complete guide to getting hotel elite status from UK credit cards.

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.

Category

IHG One Rewards

Comments (172)

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

  • meta says:
    13 Oct13 October 10:53

    Hilton used to do status challenge with instant Diamond, so it’s not that unusual.

  • BSI1978 says:
    13 Oct13 October 10:57

    Well, similarly followed the link and I have received the email that states/confirms my Diamond registration.

    Let’s see how long it lasts for……!

  • Aston100 says:
    13 Oct13 October 10:57

    Oh no, don’t let BJ see this!

  • Jamjaw says:
    13 Oct13 October 10:58

    Do this and then sign up for ambassador – should give diamond to Dec 23…

    • BJ says:
      13 Oct13 October 11:19

      Exactly, no point to do 10 cash stays when it presumably works for 40k points or $200!

    • Akkers says:
      13 Oct13 October 11:21

      Doesn’t ambassador only give you platinum: “Platinum Elite status in IHG® One Rewards, and the corresponding benefits”?

      • BJ says:
        13 Oct13 October 11:36

        If you are Diamond already it extends Diamond, shouldn’t but it does (at least of my datapoint yesterday). See the ambassador forum page and the article on Ambassador 20, 000 last month for more details.

      • Rob says:
        13 Oct13 October 11:56

        Yes, but due to some weird IHG IT thing, it locks in your existing status for the following year if it is higher than Platinum. A Diamond who buys Ambassador will see their Diamond expiry date move to 12/23.

        • Mark says:
          13 Oct13 October 12:47

          I misread this as the offering locking in Diamond for another year if you already have it. Unfortunately not – was already Diamond until December 2022 and still am!

          Oh well, had burnt most of our points stash on a recent trip anyway to maximise the benefits while we had them.

          • Jamjaw says:
            13 Oct13 October 14:10

            “This offer” being the one in the article or Ambassador. If the later, you status will (should as per mine) update eventually to Dec 23. If the former, then yes, out of luck!

        • G says:
          13 Oct13 October 13:09

          In my case; my Diamond (I got the reduced thresholds when it was Spire) will naturally downgrad to Platinum on 31/12/2023.

          If I let my Ambassador lapse (October 2023) and buy it again; will it ‘renew’ my Diamond through to 31/12/2024 if I haven’t met the qualification requirement for Diamond (70night/120k qps) by that date?

          • BJ says:
            13 Oct13 October 14:03

            Who knows, like Rob states it is likely an IT glitch. It might be fixed by then and you’d be left with platinum as per T&C. But it’s been this way for a long time. You can wait on datapoibts late next year before deciding.

          • Jamjaw says:
            13 Oct13 October 14:12

            I suspect that, unless IHG fix their IT, this will work fine. I was due to lapse in Dec 22 and bought AMB and am now until Dec 23.

  • TJ says:
    13 Oct13 October 11:00

    Very nice indeed! My wife just climbed from Club to Diamond with one click.

  • swifty says:
    13 Oct13 October 11:09

    That’s great cheers Rob, I had a retention offer of 35k for renewing my amb, and hope it will stack with the extra 10k for 4 stays, plus the earn 5x faster thingy that is still on my ac, and now I don’t need to pay for breakfast on them. Off to Istanbul, Cairo or Malta for my birthday I think, using a 2 4 1 amex voucher, happy birthday and thanks Headforpoints!! If you can just swing the ultra low point bookings by again that’ll be great as have a stay next yr in miami that needs a hotel..

  • BuildBackBetter says:
    13 Oct13 October 11:09

    Pretty certain it’ll be reversed. I did wonder why this wasn’t front and centre on all blogs.

    • Rob says:
      13 Oct13 October 11:15

      Perhaps not – it’s only 10 weeks after all and may drive some bookings.

  • dave says:
    13 Oct13 October 11:15

    its only given me
    Diamond Elite until 31/12/2022

    • dave says:
      13 Oct13 October 11:16

      Sorry re-read the article 🙂

    • Rob says:
      13 Oct13 October 11:58

      If you want 12/23 you now need to buy Ambassador for $200 which locks in Diamond until 12/23.

      • Alan Todd says:
        13 Oct13 October 13:08

        Rob do you know if using points to buy Ambassador results in the same outcome?

        • Rob says:
          13 Oct13 October 13:29

          I believe so, yes. Given the $/£ ratio using points isn’t a bad option (unless of course you were planning to use those points outside the UK, in which it would average out in the end).

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