IHG announced on January 19 (read more here) that its loyalty program would go through a refresh and that the new tiers would go live in March.
There are less than two weeks of March 2022 left, and IHG is now communicating on social media that the launch has been delayed by a “few months,” and no exact date is given.
You can access IHG’s page for program refresh here.
READ MORE: IHG Rewards Rate & Bonus Points Offers
Here’s the update on what IHG tells on social media about the program refresh launch delay:
Stay tuned for our Rewards Program update in the next few months.
And
The program is currently delayed on launching. We will provide more details regarding the program in the near future.
On a positive note, at least they now call the war in Ukraine war and not an event:
We are deeply saddened and shocked by the war in Ukraine and our thoughts continue to be with all those impacted by these horrific events.
IHG has so far only communicated the change of Spire Elite to Diamond and the launch of one additional tier:
The new Silver has the same requirements as the old Gold, but without being able to reach it on spending. The new Gold requires 20 nights or 40K points. Platinum tier’s night requirement stays at 40 but earning it on points increases by 50% (40K to 60K). The Diamond, previously Spire Elite, requires five fewer nights 70 compared to 75, but a considerably higher spend of 120K versus 75K
Conclusion
We have been in touch with the IHG and asked about the new timeline for the program refresh but have not received a comment by the publication time. So I guess that it must be unclear at this time.
Not sure why the launch date was communicated less than two months ago as March if they are already running “few months” late?
IHG Rewards may work for members who mainly stay at select-service properties, but it is no match to Hilton, Hyatt, or Marriott programs for their elite benefits, outside of the Royal Ambassador status.
