Get extra benefits at InterContinental, Indigo and Kimpton with IHG Luxury & Lifestyle Collections

With IHG and American Express launching a new £75 cashback offer, I though it was worth looking again at the benefits of the IHG Luxury & Lifestyle Collections.

These can get you impressive extra benefits at many InterContinental, Kimpton, Hotel Indigo, Regent and Vignette Collection hotels.

As most HfP readers should know by now, almost all hotel brands with high-end properties offer special deals to travel agents who specialise in luxury travel.  Here is our last review of Hyatt Prive, for example.  This is driven by the American market, where many wealthy individuals still prefer to book by having a self-employed ‘travel counsellor’ visit them in their home to talk through potential options.  Keen to get in front of these people, most hotels have special packages which can only be booked by ‘travel counsellors’.

There are a small number of travel agents in the UK who are also accredited to book these packages.  Emyr Thomas, who we partner with, is one of them.  You can find out about Emyr’s services on this page of Head for Points.  You’d be silly to book a five star hotel without asking him if he can get you a better package.  (He won’t get you a better price, but he can often get you a better overall deal.)

Scheme 1: IHG Luxury Collection

Applies to selected:

• Regent Hotels
• InterContinental Hotels
• Kimpton Hotels outside the US

What are the IHG Luxury Collection benefits?

Here are the main benefits you get when you book via a luxury travel agent who can access IHG Luxury Collection rates:

• GUARANTEED 2pm late check-out
• Breakfast for two in the hotel restaurant
• $100 of hotel credit per stay
• One category upgrade, subject to availability on arrival
• Bottled water and fresh fruit or snacks in the room on arrival

As you can see, this is clearly a good deal.

The benefits have been diluted slightly this year because IHG One Rewards now offers free breakfast to top tier Diamond Elite members, which covers a lot of HfP readers. If you don’t have Diamond Elite status, however, the breakfast benefit has a lot of value. The $100 of hotel credit should cover a decent lunch or evening meal too.

For clarity, you WILL receive IHG One Rewards points and elite night credit too.

For total clarity, the rate you pay is the same as the Best Available Rate on ihg.com.  All of these benefits are genuinely free on top.

The full benefits list is here (click to expand):

Which hotels participate in the IHG Luxury Collection?

Here is the full list, click to expand:

Some InterContinental hotels are also part of the Virtuoso luxury hotels group.  As we wrote in this article, if you book the Virtuoso package you will receive free club lounge access at selected InterContinental hotels including London Park Lane and Paris Le Grand.  Handily, Emyr can also book Virtuoso rates, so if a hotel is part of both programmes he will give you the choice of which benefits package to take.

Scheme 2: IHG Lifestyle Collection

Applies to selected:

• Hotel Indigo
• Vignette Collection (the new brand for independent hotels)
• Kimpton Hotels in the US

What are the IHG Lifestyle Collection benefits?

Here are the main benefits you get when you book IHG Lifestyle Collection rates:

• 2pm late check-out, if available
• $50 of value added amenity per stay
• One category upgrade, subject to availability on arrival
• Bottled water and fresh fruit or snacks in the room on arrival

This is a lot weaker than the benefits available via IHG Luxury Collection:

• you don’t get free breakfast
• your late check-out is NOT guaranteed
• the ‘added value’ benefit is only $50 and not $100, and could be an ‘amenity’ (ie a bottle of wine) rather than hotel credit to spend as you please

That said, the hotels included in ‘Lifestyle Collection’ are far cheaper than those included in the ‘Luxury Collection’, in general.

As usual, the rate you pay is the same as the Best Available Rate on ihg.com.  All of these benefits are genuinely free on top.

The full benefits list is here (click to expand):

Which hotels participate in the IHG Lifestyle Collection?

Here is the full list – click to expand:

As you will see, not all Hotel Indigo properties are on the list.  Only Bath and London Kensington are included from the UK, for example.

Conclusion

The IHG Luxury and Lifestyle Collections offers some useful benefits if you are staying at a participating property, especially as there are no minimum stay requirements.

If you would otherwise book a cheaper non-refundable rate, you are paying slightly extra here because you need to book Best Available Rate.  You need to do the maths to see if the benefits stack up.

For anyone who would usually book a cancellable rate anyway, these are genuine free extras.

You CANNOT book these rates online.  If you don’t know any other luxury travel consultants, you can contact Emyr Thomas via the form on this page of Head for Points with your dates.  He will confirm the rate and benefits and will then book once you’ve given final approval.  You pay at the hotel as usual.

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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.