IHG One Rewards typically is not as properly cherished within the factors and miles neighborhood as packages like Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt. However IHG resorts and resorts can be found in lots of locations, and it is simple to get good worth when redeeming IHG factors.
Incomes IHG factors can also be comparatively simple. For instance, new candidates for the $99-annual-fee IHG One Rewards Premier Credit score Card can earn 165,000 bonus factors after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. And new candidates for the no-annual-fee IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit score Card can earn 100,000 bonus factors after spending $2,000 on purchases within the first three months.
So, let’s focus on learn how to maximize IHG One Rewards redemptions.
Calculate your redemption fee
IHG started utilizing dynamic award pricing in 2020. Now, all IHG award stays are priced dynamically, which means the variety of factors you may must redeem for a keep varies primarily based in your reserving date, the property you select, your keep dates and different components.
However even with dynamic pricing, getting good worth out of your IHG One Rewards factors remains to be potential. TPG’s valuations peg the worth of IHG factors at 0.5 cents every, however you’ll be able to typically get a better redemption fee when redeeming IHG factors.
For instance, let’s assume you wish to ebook a typical room with one king mattress on the Vacation Inn Savannah Historic District for the night time of Nov. 8. You would ebook a fee with no breakfast however free cancellation till two days earlier than your keep for $357 or 47,000 factors. In case you redeem IHG factors for this night time, you may get a redemption fee of 0.76 cents per level.
That mentioned, you will not all the time get redemption worth. So, all the time examine the money fee to the factors fee and calculate your redemption fee. In case your redemption fee is low, contemplate reserving a paid fee on your keep and saving your factors for a higher-value redemption.
Associated: The 19 finest IHG resorts on the planet
Be versatile
One other method to maximize your IHG factors is to be as versatile as potential. For instance, you might save factors (or cash) within the above instance by shifting your keep to different dates. Particularly, you might redeem 43,000 factors or pay $340 when you shifted your one-night keep a number of weeks later.
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Likewise, if you’re versatile as to the place you keep in a metropolis — and even the town you go to — you could possibly redeem fewer factors. For instance, you would possibly determine to avoid wasting by staying out close to the Savannah airport for the one-night keep mentioned within the earlier part. By doing so, you might redeem 32,000 factors or pay $247 on your keep.
In brief, being versatile may also help you redeem fewer factors on your stays and maximize your factors.
Associated: What bank card must you use for IHG stays?
Test Factors & Money redemptions
It is also price checking Factors & Money charges. Because the identify suggests, Factors & Money charges allow you to mix IHG factors and cash to stretch your factors additional. You possibly can see these redemption choices by deciding on “Factors + Money” as soon as you choose a lodge from the search outcomes.
As with all redemptions, run the numbers to see if a Factors & Money reserving is smart. Within the above instance, you might ebook an evening that will price $357 or 47,000 factors for:
- 47,000 factors and $0 (redemption fee of 0.76 cents per level)
- 42,000 factors and $33 (redemption fee of 0.77 cents per level)
- 37,000 factors and $66 (redemption fee of 0.79 cents per level)
- 32,000 factors and $99 (redemption fee of 0.81 cents per level)
- 27,000 factors and $124 (redemption fee of 0.86 cents per level)
- 22,000 factors and $149 (redemption fee of 0.95 cents per level)
Once you make a Factors & Money reservation, you are really shopping for factors utilizing the money portion of the reserving. Ought to that you must cancel, your refund will come totally in factors quite than the mixture of money and factors you initially used.
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Use the fourth-night-reward perk
When you have the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit score Card, IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit score Card or IHG One Rewards Premier Enterprise Credit score Card, you’ll be able to profit out of your card’s fourth-night-reward perk on stays of 4 nights or extra whenever you ebook your keep totally with IHG factors. In follow, this perk drops the price of each fourth night time on award stays of 4 nights or longer to zero factors.
To make use of this perk, log in to an account related to an eligible IHG bank card, seek for a keep of 4 nights or longer and choose to redeem IHG factors. You will see the discounted charges in your search outcomes.
There isn’t any cap on what number of occasions you should use this perk yearly. And you may even get multiple fourth-night reward on a single keep. For instance, you’d get two fourth-night rewards on a keep of eight to 11 nights and three on a keep of 12 to fifteen nights.
Associated: Why it’s best to get (and preserve) the IHG One Rewards Premier card
Test for worth drops
It’s also possible to maximize your IHG factors by periodically checking for drops in award pricing on your upcoming stays. To take action, do a brand new award seek for your dates and see if the charges are decrease. If they’re, cancel your keep and rebook (or, if in case you have sufficient factors in your account to take action, ebook the brand new keep after which cancel the higher-priced keep). Sadly, I have never discovered a method to re-price IHG stays with out making a brand new reserving.
Associated: How rebooking lodge stays may also help you save on award nights
Know when to purchase IHG factors
You possibly can purchase IHG factors for as little as 1 cent per level whenever you buy 26,000 IHG factors or extra. Though you may typically get greater than 1 cent per IHG level, I do not advocate shopping for IHG factors at this fee since IHG limits the factors you should purchase every calendar yr. As such, every level you buy at 1 cent is some extent you’ll be able to’t buy throughout IHG’s periodic promotions that allow you to purchase factors for as little as 0.5 cents per level.
Shopping for factors at 0.5 cents every matches TPG’s valuation for IHG factors and is decrease than the redemption fee I often get when redeeming IHG factors. So, when you often get greater than 0.5 cents per level in your IHG award stays and discover your stability getting low, contemplate shopping for factors subsequent time IHG provides a 100% bonus.
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Earn IHG elite standing
Incomes IHG elite standing might provide you with extra perks in your stays. The perfect perks — like the choice to decide on breakfast as a welcome amenity at full-service and select-service manufacturers — are solely out there for top-tier Diamond Elite members. You possibly can earn Diamond Elite standing by staying 70 qualifying nights, incomes 120,000 qualifying factors or spending $40,000 in your IHG One Rewards Premier Credit score Card or IHG One Rewards Premier Enterprise Credit score Card in a calendar yr.
Even when Diamond Elite standing is out of attain, it is nonetheless simple to earn Platinum Elite standing. This standing usually requires 40 qualifying nights or 60,000 qualifying factors in a calendar yr. However you will get Platinum Elite standing as an automated perk of InterContinental Ambassador, the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit score Card or the IHG One Rewards Premier Enterprise Credit score Card.
If you wish to get essentially the most worth out of your IHG factors, you may doubtless discover snagging IHG elite standing worthwhile. Plus, when you join InterContinental Ambassador, you may get further perks at InterContinental and Six Senses properties collaborating in IHG One Rewards.
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Backside line
It is comparatively simple to maximise redemptions with the IHG One Rewards program. By checking redemption charges earlier than reserving and opting to redeem factors when the redemption fee is excessive, you may get stable worth out of your IHG factors. And when you do not have already got an IHG bank card, contemplate including the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit score Card or IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit score Card to your pockets whereas they’re providing elevated sign-up bonuses.


