IHG has launched their summer promo and it comes with a friendly twist – the ability to share some of the points with others. As other IHG promos, there are different tasks/goals that must be completed and they are given to account members with seemingly no real rhyme or reason. This time, however, the goals are tied to the number of nights that you must stay at IHG hotels instead of a mix of stays, brands, weekends, app bookings, etc. The awarded points are pretty lucrative, but it will take some work.
– IHG Share Forever Registration Link
The registration for this promo is now open but actually does not begin for stay purposes until May 1. The valid dates of this promotion are from May 1 – September 7, 2015. All stays for this bonus must occur during those dates.
This promotion requires you to stay a varied amount of nights to unlock the first bonus and then awards points for a varied number of nights after that. The nights you stay at IHG properties must be on eligible rates, so no award stays or hybrid point and cash stays.
As you complete the different levels, you also receive points that you can share with friends or family members. In addition to points, Gold status can also be conferred to that member.
My Offer
My offer was for a total of 69,500 points for me and up to 58,500 points to share. My goal offer was for 4 nights and then all the rest of the points come in blocks after meeting that goal. To get the maximum number of points, I must stay a total of 24 nights during this promo.
At the 10 night level, the offer is 25,000 points or a free night at any IHG hotel in the Americas and the stay must be used by June 30, 2016.
My goal for the first set of points
The additional point awards come in the following blocks:
- 3 nights above goal – 4,000 points (1,000 to share)
- 6 nights above goal – 8,000 points (Gold status to share)
- 10 nights above goal – 25,000 points or free night (25,000 points to share)
- 20 nights above goal – 30,000 points (30,000 points to share)
Is It Worth It?
If you do not have IHG stays planned and really would have to do some extra nights to achieve these bonuses (as in several extra stays), this bonus is not worth it for you! Even if you could get a IHG hotel for $50, to stay the total of the 24 nights just for the sake of earning points would cost you $1,200! You can get these points much cheaper in a different way.
One of the ways this does not match the promo from the winter is that the free night, which is likely to be the best part of this promo, is only valid for stays in the Americas. While there are a lot of nice IHG hotels in the Americas, it does limit a bit the value of that free night. For example, I am using one of my free nights from the Into the Nights promo during my event in Sydney. That would have required 50,000 points otherwise and I would be unable to book that night if I earned with this promo.
That being said, it costs you nothing to register for this promo so by all means, register. You never know what may happen with your travel plans over the summer and it is nice that you can consider this promo when your booking needs arise over the next several months.
Alternatives For The Points
Point packages still available from the Daily Getaway
Believe it or not, there are still points available from the Daily Getaway! You can pick up 100,000 IHG points without staying a single night and by purchasing them for $565 – much cheaper than all of these hotel stays just for the points. In addition to the 100,000 point blocks, there are other blocks available as well – 50,000 for $293, 25,000 for $150, and 15,000 for $90. To buy any of these packages, visit this link here for the Daily Getaway.
Thanks for pointing out another way to buy points. I’m looking at a 3 night stay $590/60,000 pts total. I’m thinking my best bet is to buy the 100,000 points, agreed?
That most likely would, unless you can apply for and receive the 70K IHG credit card. That way, you could get by with the 25K package and some spending on the card.