In 2020, IHG switched to dynamic award pricing; since then, award charges at most properties have typically various alongside paid charges. In consequence, it is turn out to be more and more troublesome to get outsize worth when redeeming IHG factors.
Over the previous few months, I’ve gotten between 0.7 and 1.1 cents per level when redeeming IHG One Rewards factors for stays. Particularly contemplating you may purchase IHG factors for as little as 0.5 cents per level, I have been fairly glad with these redemptions.
Nevertheless, the detrimental of dynamic award pricing is that charges can (and do) change at any time. IHG can change its algorithm — together with any unpublished caps or minimums — at any time with out discover. Based mostly on stories from FlyerTalk customers and a subsequent article from LoyaltyLobby, IHG seemingly elevated a few of its award pricing caps April 4.
Specifically, nonresort properties that beforehand had unpublished award pricing caps of 120,000 factors per night time now appear to have increased caps (or maybe no cap). For instance, the InterContinental Paris — Champs-Elysees Etoile in France now has charges as excessive as 149,000 factors per night time.
And I discovered an evening on the InterContinental Osaka that price 192,000 factors. The comparable paid charge for this night time is $827.06, which suggests you’d get a price of 0.43 cents per level. If I wanted to remain in Osaka that night time, I would redeem factors from one other program or at the least keep at one other IHG property.
This improve of unpublished award pricing caps is dangerous information for anybody who likes to (or was planning to) redeem IHG factors for an aspirational keep at an costly IHG property. In spite of everything, one of many methods to get outsize worth out of your factors is on costly nights that hit the award pricing cap.
As a reminder, IHG already capped award nights at 250,000 factors for a number of aspirational resort properties. Fortunately, this cover seemingly hasn’t modified.
Nevertheless it’s price noting that in 2020, the InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort was the costliest award property within the IHG portfolio at 100,000 factors per night time. Now, award nights at this property high out at 250,000 factors per night time. No matter the way you take a look at it, that is an enormous devaluation over a comparatively brief time.
Associated: The right way to maximize award redemptions with the IHG One Rewards program
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Backside line
It is troublesome to inform when a loyalty program that makes use of dynamic award pricing adjustments the way it costs award nights. Nevertheless it positive appears to be like like IHG has elevated, or maybe eliminated, award pricing caps for a lot of of its most aspirational nonresort properties. I additionally suspect IHG might have shifted its algorithm to provide decrease redemption charges on some aspirational and high-occupancy stays, however that is tougher to find out with out having entry to an intensive information set.
Relying on how you utilize your IHG factors, the April 4 adjustments will not be detrimental for you. Since April 4, I’ve booked a couple of IHG award stays at barely higher redemption charges than I would been getting over the previous few months. And since I do not plan to redeem greater than 60,000 IHG factors for any keep — I take advantage of Hilton free night time certificates and Hyatt factors when reserving costly, aspirational stays — the rise of IHG award caps will not personally damage me.
Nevertheless, it isn’t a great look, particularly since many vacationers save their factors for aspirational stays that carry excessive paid charges. Though I really like the IHG fourth-reward-night-free perk, I respect packages like World of Hyatt and Wyndham Rewards that proceed to publish and use award charts for many properties.
