Earn Triple Emirates Skyward Miles At IHG Properties Worldwide

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IHG partners with 22 air travel loyalty programs to allow guests to earn miles in the place of IHG Rewards Club points and while the earnings rates aren’t always particularly tempting, a limited-time promotion that’s being offered in partnership with Emirates makes things a lot more interesting and may be of interest to anyone looking to top off a Skywards account.

Earn Three Times As May Skywards Miles With IHG

Ordinarily, Skywards members can choose to earn 2 miles/dollar at IHG’s full-service properties and just 1 mile/dollar at Candlewood Suites, Staybridge Suites, and at IHG’s affiliate properties in Las Vegas (The Venetian & Palazzo).

For bookings made by 31 December 2020 and for stays completed by 31 March 2021, Skywards members can now earn 6 miles/dollar at IHG’s full-service properties and 3 miles/dollar at Candlewood Suites, Staybridge Suites, The Venetian, and Palazzo.

Headline Terms & Conditions

Registration is required if you plan on making the most of this offer (here) and there are a few key things you should know before you go any further:

  • A participant must be an IHG Rewards Club member with Emirates Skywards Miles as their chosen earning preference.
  • A participant must register their member number in advance to participate in the “Earn 3X Skywards Miles” campaign.
  • Triple Miles will be awarded on all Qualifying Stays after enrolling, if not already a member, and registering by December 31st 2020 with stays through March 31st, 2021 (“Campaign Period”).
  • Base 2 Miles / $1 USD or local currency equivalent paid on eligible charges at Regent Hotels and Resorts, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, Hualuxe Hotels and Resorts, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, EVEN Hotels, Voco, Holiday Inn®, Holiday Inn Express, Holiday Inn Club Vacations, and avid Hotels.
  • Candlewood Suites®, Staybridge Suites and The Venetian | The Palazzo Las Vegas will earn base 1 Mile / $1 USD or local currency equivalent paid on eligible charges.
  • Bonus of 4 Miles / $1 USD or local currency equivalent paid on eligible charges at Regent Hotels and Resorts, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, Hualuxe Hotels and Resorts, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, EVEN Hotels, Voco, Holiday Inn®, Holiday Inn Express, Holiday Inn Club Vacations, and avid Hotels during the Campaign Period.
  • Bonus of 2 Miles / $1 USD or local currency equivalent paid on eligible charges at Candlewood Suites®, Staybridge Suites and The Venetian | The Palazzo Las Vegas during the campaign.
  • A Qualifying Stay is defined as one night or consecutive nights at the same hotel, regardless of frequency of check-in/out. A stay constitutes a Qualifying Stay when paying qualifying rates, which include most business and leisure rates.
  • 3X Miles are not issued for stays booked through an Online Travel Agencies or for Non-Qualifying Room Rates and Non-Qualifying Stays.
  • Only one room per member per stay will be awarded the applicable Miles

The full terms and conditions can be found on the promotion page.

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Kimpton Canary Santa Barbara

Thoughts

The key thing to note is that anyone participating in this promotion will be forgoing any IHG Rewards Points in exchange for Skywards Miles so to see how good (or bad) this deal is, it’s important to compare what’s being given up in exchange for Skywards miles.

All of IHG’s full-service properties offer all guests a minimum of 10 points/dollar while Candlewood Suites and Staybridge Suites offer 5 points/dollar. As well as these earnings elite members earn bonus points based on their status and when these bonuses are added in, this is what IHG Rewards earnings look like

  • Member – 10 or 5 points/dollar
  • Gold Elite – 11 or 5.5 points/dollar
  • Platinum Elite – 15 or 7.5 points/dollar
  • Spire Elite – 20 or 10 points/dollar

In contrast, a traveler electing to earn Skywards Miles in this promotion will earn 6 miles/dollar or 3 miles/dollar (depending on the property at which they stay) regardless of their IHG Rewards status.

As I value IHG Rewards Points at 0.4 cents each and Skywards Miles at 1.0 cent each, this is what the effective rebates look like:

a table with numbers and text

Your valuations of the two currencies mat differ but by my calculations, the increased earnings on offer from Emirates look like a good deal for anyone who doesn’t hold Platinum status or higher in the IHG Rewards Club program (assuming they already collect Skywards Miles).

For stays a The Venetian and Plazzo, IHG Rewards Club members earn 2,000 points per qualifying stay (which I value at just $8) so anyone spending over $800 would be better off taking Skywards Miles in place of IHG Rewards Club points assuming they already collect Skywards Miles.

If you don’t already collect Skywards Miles this whole issue is moot as it’s unlikely that you’ll be spending enough at IHG properties to earn enough miles for a meaningful Emirates award – the IHG Rewards Club Points will almost certainly be more useful and useable.

Bottom Line

Emirates Skywards members can now earn up to 6 miles/dollar at IHG properties worldwide for a limited time. If you’re a collector of Skywards Miles and don’t hold significant elite status with IHG Rewards this could be a good option to look into.