A week ago my IHG Into the Nights offer for two free nights changed from five tasks requiring only three nights to complete and earn two free nights with IHG in 2015 to six tasks requiring either a minimum seven nights or IHG stays in two countries outside the USA.
IHG came out with a statement last week that some members received the incorrect offer upon original registration in September and some members, like me, saw their tasks change last week, some six weeks into the four month promotion. IHG states the new offers are the correct offers. Some members report on FlyerTalk their offers reverted back to the older tasks assigned at registration.
My tasks completely changed last week from the original offer I received when I registered September 5, 2014. I mentioned on my blog My IHG Rewards Club Into the Nights offer (Sep 5, 2014) that I had difficulty all day when trying to register for IHG Rewards Club Into the Nights promotion on the previous day. My offer looked easily achievable to me with three hotel nights including two Holiday Inn Saturday night stays.
IHG has not reverted my offer back to the original offer I received upon registration in early September.
I find myself in a state of confusion dealing with IHG Into the Nights fiasco, since I already booked two Holiday Inn hotel Saturday night stays to meet the terms of the original five tasks for two free nights. My first hotel stay reservation is two weeks away.
I downloaded the IHG app and booked a Holiday Inn stay for a Saturday night. I booked a second Holiday Inn stay for Saturday night. I had a third stay at another Holiday Inn IHG booked for two nights. Three stays with four nights would have completed all five of these tasks.
But now, as of a week ago, I have a completely different set of offers to complete IHG Into the Nights.
IHG Into the Nights offer had six new and completely different tasks linked to my account last week. The different tasks required a minimum of 7 nights or 10 stays booked via the app. I needed to complete 5 of 6 tasks to earn 2 free nights which meant my previous offer requiring a minimum of three nights to complete was increased to a minimum 7 nights to complete. At this point I was ready to quit the promotion chase like many other IHG Rewards Club members have done.
Then, the offer changed again in the past couple of days for the IHG mobile app booking from 10 stays to one stay booked via the mobile app.
Looks like I will cancel all my IHG hotel reservations and start over again with my current offer for completion of five tasks to earn two free nights.
This set of tasks can actually be completed in two hotel nights as long as I globetrot to two different countries for IHG stays. Lucky for me I have a November trip planned to Dublin and London. The last time IHG did this kind of multi-task promotion, I had a task requiring hotel stays in Europe when I had no plans to be in Europe.
Why Not Just Walk Away from IHG Rewards Club?
This IHG Into the Nights promotion is the biggest screw-up I have seen in my years of analyzing hotel loyalty promotions. I would simply walk away from this IHG Into the Nights offer if I did not have a trip to Europe planned next month allowing me to complete my current tasks with only two paid hotel nights.
Since I only need to complete five of six tasks, I can skip the 7 nights at IHG hotels task and stay in Dublin and London for one night each with one stay booked for a breakfast rate and one stay booked using the IHG app. Completing the IHG survey and applying for the IHG credit card do not require a hotel booking. I can complete all five tasks with two paid hotel nights.
The reason I will continue with this IHG Into the Nights offer is I already have airline tickets booked to Copenhagen for July 2015 for two weeks in Europe. Two free IHG nights in my account will be a valuable asset next July.
My wife Kelley still has her original offer which is the same five tasks shown in the first IHG Into the Nights image of this post requiring 3 nights, 2 Holiday Inn Stays and 2 Saturday nights with an IHG app booking.
We are looking at earning 4 free nights after 5 paid nights over the next two months. I evaluate this IHG Into the Nights offer as $500 spent in 2014 for $1,000+ value with 4 free nights in Europe at IHG hotels in July 2015.
In the next post I will analyze breakfast rates at IHG hotels.
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Ric Garrido of Monterey, California is writer and owner of Loyalty Traveler.
Loyalty Traveler shares news and views on hotels, hotel loyalty programs and vacation destinations for frequent guests. Check out current hotel loyalty program offers across all the major chains in Loyalty Traveler’s monthly hotel promotions guide.
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