Hotel Loyalty Shootout: Which one deserves your allegiance?

You’re trusting your travel comfort to a hotel chain that can live up to your standards consistently. Who offers the best rewards and perks to really deserve your loyalty? Here’s details on The Big Four so you can decide for yourself.

Whether you’re traveling for work or leisure, there’s a comfort in having some sort of consistency in your travel adventures abroad. Visiting new places often produces fears of the unknown for many, and quelling that fear is what hotel chains have been trying to offer for years. A lot of marketing money has been spent to make you aware of their loyalty programs to entice you to stick with their hotel chain, and in return they’ll offer you perks for YOUR consistency. But what is the best one out there? Here’s a quick roundup:

MARRIOTT BONVOY (Previously SPG / Starwood Preferred Guest)

The Tagline: “More than 7,000 hotels. World-class benefits. Endless Experiences. Marriott Bonvoy™ gives you access to it all.”
The Hotels: Luxury and premium-select brands such as The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, Westin, plus a curated collection of ultra-lux hotels across the globe.
The Benefits: You’re building up a precious-metals points status and you’re trying to earn “Ambassador Elite”. Points are earned with nights but also their branded credit card and 3rd party affiliations including United MileagePlus. Perks menu includes late checkout, free wifi, mobile check-in and other services, welcome gifts and automatic room upgrades. There’s also a lifetime status where your points don’t expire and you get more free nights.
The Pro’s and Con’s: Silver & Gold Elite is an attainable level which gets you late checkouts and room upgrades. The points are calculated annually however, and you need to have a 100 or more nights per year to reach the Ambassador level; that’s almost 1/3 of the year. Great for airline staff and service techs but probably not realistic for most business travelers.
However: They have great hotel brands and the luxury collection is serious top quality.

Hilton Honors - A Hotel Rewards Program

Boasting the lowest price over any 3rd party booking site, Hilton Honors is a powerhouse hotel chain and one of the first and best hotel loyalty programs available. They were on the top of the mountain for so long, waiting for other hotel chains to step up - and they are (Marriott Bonvoy). Still, the Hilton brand and product offering is still elite and ever climbing as they work to remain competitive.
The Tagline: “We’d be Honored to have you.”
The Hotels: Waldorf Astoria, Conrad Collection, Curio collection of unique stays, Doubletree, the ultra-modern Canopy collection, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn and more.
The Benefits: There’s only 3 precious-metal-based levels here to deal with - Silver, Gold and Diamond. Earn points with nights, Hilton credit card earnings, affiliate points from countless shopping and restaurant brands plus Lyft. You can also easily gift your points to friends and family. Perks for loyalty are free breakfasts, no resort fees & lowest price guarantee when you book direct on their website, second guest free stay, executive lounge access and personalized experiences are emailed to you to take advantage of, + more.
The Pro’s and Con’s: I don’t think that ‘two bottles of water’ should be on a list of hotel perks clearly denoted on your website…. That’s ridiculous. Also, they’re really making you work for it, earning between 3-10 points to the dollar - it takes a couple thousand points to earn a free night on average.
However: If you couple a credit card plus book direct on their website, and take advantage of their email offers for double / triple points on food and car rentals, you should earn some free Z’s in no time.

World of Hyatt | Milestone Rewards Loyalty Program

The Tagline: “Go where you’ve never gone before.”
The Hotels: Member hotel brands are categorized as 1-4 between Hyatt brands to MLife luxury.
The Benefits: You earn Discoverist, Explorist, or Globalist status in this program with annual qualifying points between 25,000 - 100,000+. You’re a Globalist with 60/nights average, so that’s already easier than Marriott. Hyatt partners with American Airlines and Avis rental car for cross-points earnings. Perks include free nights, spa treatments, room upgrades, dining experiences, discounted or free car rentals and discounted pricing for air travel. Dedicated check-in areas are also on the docket with club lounge access.
The Pro’s and Con’s: It’s probably one of the most accessible loyalty programs where you can redeem points faster for activities that matter - free nights etc. Their hotel offering isn’t as high end as some of the other chains, and feedback I’ve received is that hotel availability when wanting to redeem points is often a challenge.
However: This program is one of the most clearly laid out and organized on their website. It’s an easy read and very clear on what you’re earning and how, compared to Hilton’s beast of a program with terms & conditions for their terms & conditions.

IHG Rewards Club (formerly KIMPTON Rewards)

The Tagline: “Where you travel, we’ll meet you there.”
The Hotels: Regent Hotels, Kimpton Collection, InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites + more.
The Benefits: You’re earning 10 points for every dollar spent on 90% of the hotel brands here which is one of the top earner programs. IHG also has a branded credit card and partnered with Apple so you can earn points for shopping through their website. Earn your way up their Gold, Platinum and Spire Elite levels to ultimately earn you the right to become an InterContinental Ambassador (a $200 extra member fee).
The Pro’s and Con’s: I just absolutely love Kimpton Collection hotels as they’re ultra-quality and extremely design-heavy - I often find myself having a drink in the lobby watching the foot traffic and reading the coffee table books. Link your credit cards with IHG Club Dining Rewards and you’ll automatically earn points on eating at your favorite local restaurants, at home and abroad simply by paying your check with that registered card. IHG boasts over 5,000 hotels in their network, but the perks for earning points is heavily weighed towards free nights. Also, there are more benefits for those traveling in the greater China region which could be a pro or con depending on who you are.
However: IHG has a dedicated program for those serving in the military with their very own booking page and points earning structure. For folks often spending 3-nights and under in Holiday Inn’s or Staybridge Suites and like to dabble in some modern luxury every now and again in a big city you can easily find a Kimpton property to earn those free nights.

Prefer one over another? Share your experience with us in the comments below!

-WLL