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IHG Rewards has been running an excellent points sale since 12 November in which members have been able to buy up to 200,000 points from just 0.5 cents each. Now this deal is coming to a close so you only have a limited time left to top up your account if you’re short of points for your next award night stay.
The current IHG points sale runs through 11:59 PM ET on November 30, 2018 (Friday) so here’s a recap to remind you of what the offer is all about.
The Headline Terms & Conditions
- All purchase must be made by 11:59 PM ET November 30, 2018.
- Bonus points will be awarded upon completion of the transaction.
- Price includes all applicable fees.
- Purchased points are not refundable and are applicable toward all IHG Rewards Club awards.
- Members may purchase a maximum of 100,000 points per calendar year and receive as a gift a maximum of 100,000 points per calendar year*
- Please allow 72 hours for points to post and appear in the recipient’s account.
* The 100,000 point annual limit excludes bonuses
Link to full terms and conditions
The Offer
On the face of things this couldn’t be simpler:
- Buy 1,000 – 4,000 IHG Rewards Points and get no bonus
- Buy 5,000+ IHG Rewards Points and get a 100% Bonus
But things aren’t quite a straightforward as they may appear.
In reality this is a deceptive looking offer as it would be easy to think that as long as you buy 5,000 points you’ll be getting the best deal….but that’s not how this sale works.
The Math
There are two variables in this points sale – the bonus and the cost per point and they’re not really related.
If you were to purchase 5,000 points you would pay $67.50 and you would net 10,000 points once the bonus has been factored in:
10,000 points at a cost of $67.50 works out to a cost per point of 0.675 cents.
If you were to buy the maximum number of points the rules allow you to buy (100,000), you would end up with 200,000 points (after the bonus) at a total cost of $1,000:
200,000 points at a cost of $1,000 works out to a cost/point of 0.500 cents.
You get the same 100% bonus as when you buy 5,000 points but the cost/point is significantly cheaper.
This is what the points sale’s price banding actually looks like:
- Buy 5,000 – 10,000 points at a cost of 0.675 cents/point
- Buy 11,000 – 25,000 points at a cost of 0.575 cents/point
- Buy 26,000 – 100,000 points at a cost of 0.500 cents/point
To get the best value out of this promotion you need to buy at least 26,000 IHG Rewards points.
Should You Buy IHG Rewards Points In This Sale?
As always it’s all about the math.
- Following the devaluation we saw at the beginning of the year the best IHG properties in the world now cost between 60,000 and 70,000 points.
- Buying points at 0.5 cents each, would see you paying between $300 and $350 per night at these properties (inclusive of all taxes).
That price band can represent a very good deal at some of the more expensive properties and the price looks even more attractive when you consider that IHG Rewards reservations are flexible (i.e. can be cancelled without penalty).
If you were to book one or more award nights in the current IHG PointBreaks sale it’s definitely possible to get a lot of value out of points purchased in this sale – I show how you can do that in the post linked HERE.
PointBreaks awards range in cost from 5,000 to 15,000 points per night and that would equate to between $25 and $75 per night for someone buying points at 0.005 cents each.
Considering it’s often easy to get over 1.0 cents of value out of each IHG Rewards point in a PointBreaks sale there’s definitely a chance to save a lot of money here….providing you can actually find a property in the PointBreaks sale that works for you.
If you’re thinking of visiting Vietnam in the next few months (or the UAE) the current PointBreaks list has some properties that you should take a closer look at.
Don’t forget that holders of the Chase IHG Rewards Premier credit card receive a 4th night free on all award bookings so, if you hold this card and buy enough points to book 4 nights (or enough points to top up your account so you can book 4 nights), the value you’d be getting would be even better.
Make Sure You Use The Right Credit Card
Purchases of IHG Rewards Points are processed by Points.com so they’re not eligible for a credit card category bonus.
As bonus points are not an option here you should make sure you use a strong cashback credit card or a credit card with which you will earn points that you value highly.
If you’re currently working your way towards a sign-up bonus on a new credit card this could be a good time to use it.
Bottom Line
I always offer the same advice for promotions like this:
- Find out the cost of a night at the properties you would like to visit (at the time of year you would like to travel)
- Compare that cost to the cost of an award night paid for with points purchased in this sale.
Just by doing those two simple things you’ll know just how good a deal buying points in this promotion may be.
Follow this link to the IHG Rewards Points Sale.
