Tag Archives: IHG Hotels

a close-up of a logo

I’m in a Miles & Points Funk Part 1: Hotels

Good morning everyone, I apologize for my lack of blog posts recently, but I’ve found myself in somewhat of a miles and points funk. Usually, I’m in an upbeat, positive mood, but lately, I’ve found it hard to get excited about the miles and points game. It seems that everything that I once loved has changed for the worse (that might be a tad dramatic). Let me share what’s on my mind so you can see where I’m coming from. Let’s start with hotels first.

I recently spent 100,000 Radisson Rewards points for 2 nights at the Radisson Blu Crete, and I’m not impressed by the new Radisson Rewards program. Since the free night certificates for spending $10,000 (and $20,000 and $30,000) on the US Bank Club Carlson credit cards are only valid at hotels in the US, it’s not worth spending money on those credit cards. I tried to rally my fellow readers and travel blogger friends by sharing my dissa-point-ment with US Bank and Radisson Rewards on Twitter, but I got no response from either company. I plan on keeping both of my Club Carlson credit cards just for the 40,000 points on my cardmember anniversary.

a cartoon character on a white background

Image source: https://www.fantasiescometrue.com/product/winnie_the_pooh_with_eeyore_under_rain_cloud_pin/

Continue reading

a black letter with a star and text

Hilton, SPG & IHG are Currently Running Point Promotions (IHG Promo Expires Tomorrow)

Whether or not you buy hotel points when promotions are running, it’s good to know about your options. We all like to travel more, for less! Topping up accounts for an upcoming stay can serve us well when we can get more value from the cost of the stays than we spend on buying those points. I use up my SPG points and Hyatt points way faster than I drink my flat whites, so I keep a list of hotel point promos handy to see if they’ll work for me. Currently, three of the four major hotel chains are running their buy points promotions. Depending on your travel plans, these might be worth checking out.

Starwood Offer: Expires March 16, 2018

I find I can never have enough SPG points. They are extra valuable because when you transfer them to airlines rather than use them for hotel stays, for every 20,000 points transferred, you get an extra 5,000 points. That’s an inexpensive way to buy airline miles. Many people, given their allegiance to Marriott, use these points for Marriott stays as well. They transfer to Marriott in a 1:3 ratio. That’s another good value for these points. Starwood is currently running a 35% off promotion so you can buy the maximum amount of points for $682. And don’t forget, you can gift Starwood points as well. The 35% offer seems to be their standard offer. Starwood has a yearly purchase limit of 30,000 points per account. The offer runs through March 16, 2018.

a pool with a couch and chairs


Continue reading

a blue text on a white background

Too Many JetBlue Points from Amazon Shopping? Convert them into Other Miles & Points

Good morning everyone, happy Friday. I don’t know about you, but I’m racking up a ton of JetBlue TrueBlue points from shopping on Amazon. Ever since JetBlue added Amazon to their points partner list, I’ve been earning 3x JetBlue points on all my Amazon purchases. Since the Amazon partnership launched, I’ve earned 7,000+ JetBlue TrueBlue points. That is great and all, but I’m not much of a JetBlue flyer. I’m currently sitting on 70,000+ JetBlue TrueBlue points, but I have no idea what I’m going to do with them. That’s when I remembered that JetBlue allows you to convert points into other miles and points through Points.com. Let’s see if there are any decent conversion options out there…

a screenshot of a website

Continue reading

a close-up of a logo

75% Bonus on Purchased IHG Rewards Points (Expires February 28)

In certain languages, people wish each other Happy New Month! I like that. It’s a new month, so of course there are new opportunities for buying more points with bonuses. This one from IHG is interesting because IHG taketh away in that they made category changes for award nights. Then IHG giveth some point purchasing bonuses! Their last two bonuses were for 100%, and this one is for 75% (bonus expires February 28). It’s important to note that in the new year, the number of points we can purchase gets reset, so we’re back to being able to purchase up to 60,000 IHG Rewards points this year. Did IHG changing their Pointbreaks scheme make a difference in whether or not you’ll buy IHG points going forward?

a woman in a car

a close-up of a logo

Kimpton Joined IHG Rewards Club (Now You Can Redeem IHG Points for Kimpton Stays)

This email popped into my inbox yesterday and it was a good reminder that Kimpton has finally joined the IHG Rewards loyalty program. A few months ago, I got my Chase IHG Rewards Credit Card and with all the IHG points I accrued, I decided this year I’d have fun experiencing some IHG properties. You all gave me some great recommendations. But now that Kimpton properties are in the mix, I’m asking you Kimpton loyalists to share some of that special KARMA and let me know which Kimpton hotels you’ve enjoyed the most. I’ve never stayed at a Kimpton hotel, so why not, right? Thanks, everyone.

a screenshot of a hotel room