My experience with IHG Priority Club Reward stays as a lowly Platinum is a bit different than the complaint I commonly read from InterContinental Royal Ambassadors about no guaranteed benefits on reward stays. One of the best features of Priority Club Rewards for me is regularly finding the option for higher category rooms when booking reward nights.
This weekend I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express Simi Valley on a PointBreaks night for 5,000 points. That was equivalent to a $30 room based on the price points were sold this week through U.S. Travel Association’s Daily Getaways sponsored by American Express.
Simi Valley is in Ventura County just across from the Los Angeles County line; a city best known for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and the trial location for the police officers in the Rodney King beating case when the acquittal of the officers 20 years ago led to the deadly riots in Los Angeles.
The most interesting aspect of the area to me was seeing all the orange groves around Highway 118 driving east from Ventura, California. The agricultural valley filled with orange groves reminded me of the California my mother describes when she was a child in Los Angeles County in the 1940s.
Ventura County orange groves near Moorpark, California.
As with most of my Priority Club Reward bookings this past year, there was a choice of several room categories for this stay on points at the Holiday Inn Express Simi Valley. There was the choice of a standard room with a King Bed or Two Queens. Then, there was the option for the jacuzzi tub room.
Naturally I chose the upgraded room just like with my last reservation when I booked a bi-level loft suite on points at a Holiday Inn.
Jacuzzi Tub room at Simi Valley Holiday Inn Express.
In general the room was in good condition. The shower stall was nicer than many upper upscale hotels.
The room was large with a desk and table.
The hotel cabinet had a flat screen TV, refrigerator and microwave.
The courtyard grand piano shaped pool had a classic California hotel appeal with palm trees rising over the three story high tiled roof.
Outdoor corridors are not a detraction for me, particularly when only paying $30 for a room night with free internet and breakfast included.
Priority Club Pointbreaks are a great deal and these low rate offers tend to take me to places I might not otherwise visit.
InterContinental Royal Ambassadors might have a legitimate complaint about a lack of benefits and upgrades on reward nights. I have never been in the loyalty ranks of Royal Ambassador.
My perspective from the lowly Priority Club Platinum elite level is the frequent occurrence of upgraded category room options when booking reward stays on points. For me that feature of the hotel loyalty program is a competitive advantage I see with Priority Club Rewards.
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