Hotel Loyalty Programs In an economic recession, it can be difficult to convince people to spend hard-earned money on a hotel stay. Procuring return customers is even trickier, since many vacationers are inclined to look for the best deal, regardless of which hotel they end up staying in. To encourage customer loyalty, many hotel chains have adopted rewards programs in which customers can earn discounts and other benefits by staying repeatedly at the accommodations within a given hotel chain. Hotel loyalty programs vary greatly from one chain to another. Some assign a certain number of points for each night a customer stays in a hotel. As these points accumulate, the customer can use them to stay in a hotel for free on one or more nights, or to receive discounts or coupons for other businesses, such as restaurants or amusement parks. Other loyalty programs give special benefits such as room upgrades to frequent customers.
One of the biggest hotel loyalty programs is Intercontinental Priority Club Rewards. This loyalty program involves a variety of hotel chains, including Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, and Candlewood Suites, among others. The program has earned rewards from Business Traveler Magazine. Program members earn points each time they stay at any of the participating hotels. These points can be redeemed for a night in a double or king room. Those enrolled with the American Airlines reward program can also earn airline miles by staying in Intercontinental Priority Club hotels.
Another example of a hotel loyalty program is Starwood Preferred Guest. This hotel program features three membership tiers, all with varying benefits for customers. All membership tiers allow participants to earn points by staying in Starwood Hotels and Resorts, and redeem the points for airline miles, free stays at Starwood Hotels, room and suite upgrades, in-hotel indulgences and a variety of exclusive events. |
