IHG^® Rewards Club Premier Card Review

Who is the IHG^® Rewards Club Premier Card for?

The IHG^® Rewards Club Premier Card is for those who love to stay at IHG^® hotels and resorts while traveling. Loyal IHG customers can take full advantage of this card's perks such as anniversary night, fourth-night reward, Platinum Elite status, and bonus points on bookings at IHG.

Frequent IHG customers will be able to take full benefit of the points and perks as most of the rewards and benefits that come with this card apply to IHG stays. The regular $89 annual fee that this card comes with is worth it for those that are looking to purchase a variety of items, better transition their traveling, and enhance their stays at IHG properties.

Welcome Bonus

A welcome bonus of 150,000 bonus points is provided when new cardholders obtain this card. To qualify for the welcome bonus, owners of this card must make $3,000 or more of purchases in the first 3 months after account opening. With these 150,000 bonus points alone, you could enjoy 5 nights or more at an IHG hotel or buy yourself a shiny new set of appliances for your kitchen. With the long list of items and experiences to spend your welcome bonus on, you’ll recoup your $89 annual fee very easily.

Reward Rates:

You can earn up to 25 points per dollar spent on purchases made at InterContinental Hotels Group properties. Some of the IHG properties that are valid for points include:

• InterContinental^® Hotels & Resorts
• InterContinental^® Alliance Resorts
• Crowne Plaza^®
• Hotel Indigo
• Holiday Inn^®
• Holiday Inn Express^®
• Staybridge Suites^®

On top of the points that can be earned from your stays at IHG eligible properties, you can earn 2x points per dollar spent at gas stations, grocery stores, and restaurants. All other purchases gain 1x point per dollar spent.

Even if you're not visiting IHG properties frequently, as an IHG Rewards Club Premier card member you will receive 10,000 bonus points each account anniversary year. The 10,000 bonus points received on each account anniversary year are contingent on the fact that you spend at least $20,000 and make one additional purchase at least one day after you have spent $20,000 in a given year. To clarify, the account anniversary year means the year beginning with your account open date through the first statement after the anniversary of your account open date.

The points that can be earned through purchases and stays at IHG, can be used to purchase a wide array of items and experiences. For example, you can spend 1,500 points to fuel your golf passion with a Golf Magazine one-year subscription, or even redeem 25,000 points for a $50 Amazon.com gift card. The points that you accumulate through the IHG Rewards Club Program are very flexible as you can redeem them with endless brands and items. You can even exchange your IHG points for flier miles, some of the airlines that accept the IHG points are:

• Virgin Atlantic
• Air France
• Air New Zealand
• Jet Airways 
• Turkish Airlines
• Emirates

IHG points don't expire for as long as there is IHG Rewards Club program activity for 12 consecutive months and your account is in good standing. Therefore, a grand purchase is totally possible and the prize that you've been always eyeing can become yours.

Benefits and Credits:

Anniversary night is the capstone reward of this credit card. With anniversary night, the cardholder is eligible for one standard room night rate and relevant taxes at IHG hotels worldwide. The IHG hotels where anniversary night can be taken advantage of must cost no more than 40,000 points. Some of the many IHG hotels that fall under the 40,000 point limit and are valid for anniversary night are the following:

• InterContinental^® Bangkok
• InterContinental^® Johannesburg Sandton Towers
• InterContinental^® Budapest
• Crowne Plaza^® London – Kings Cross

It should be mentioned that the cardholder is responsible for any incidental charges made when on their anniversary night stay. For example, your anniversary night room and tax would be paid by this offer but your parking fees, restaurant dining, and spa visits would not be covered. Further, this reward should be taken full advantage of since it expires after 12 months of issue and can't carry over to the next year if not used.

By being an IHG Rewards Club Premier cardmember, you receive a free upgrade to Platinum Elite status. The upgrade is valid for as long as you remain a cardholder of IHG Rewards Club Premier and for as long as your account remains in good standing. With platinum elite status, cardholders enjoy 50% bonus earnings on top of base points, elite rollover nights, guaranteed room availability, extended check-out, and much more. If you're a person who is frequently staying at IHG properties, this reward can greatly enhance your visits. To qualify for the platinum elite status without this card, you would need to stay 40 eligible nights or gain 40,000 elite-qualifying points.

No foreign transaction fee is charged for when this card is used abroad during your travels. You no longer have to worry about paying unnecessary fees for currency conversion. For the constant flier, this is a dream come true as they can enjoy the try worth of their money.

If you're someone who stays at IHG hotels and resorts for more than four nights, the fourth award night free reward is perfect for you. With this reward, each standard room reward night of 4 or more nights allows the user to enjoy the 4th night for free. To qualify for the 4th free night, 4 nights must be booked consecutively within the same reward night redemption room and property. To clarify, a cardholder would only be charged the points for the first three nights and no points for the fourth night when they stay for four reward nights back to back. Reward nights can be purchased for as little as 10,000 points per night at select locations. Even better is the fact that you can get the fourth free night as many times as you stay for four reward nights at IHG properties.

A very note-worthy benefit of having this card is its reimbursement of up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck^®. Statement credit is awarded to the cardholder after the Global Entry program application fee or TSA PreCheck application fee has been charged to their card. You can gain this credit every 4 years in relation to the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee. The statement credit is only awarded for one program's application fee and not for both. Unlike other credit cards that offer reimbursement of Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fees, the IHG Rewards Club Premier cardholder gets their credit posted to their account within 24 hours of the application fee being billed.

With Global Entry being covered for by the statement credit offered, you can have immediate access through customs and immigration and can avoid wasting time in security lines. With TSA PreCheck^®, you can also avoid having to spend a lot of time at security lines and you don't have to go through the hassle of having to remove items like laptops, liquids, shoes, belts, and light jackets during security. You'll want to consider Global Entry over TSA PreCheck^® if you fly internationally more than you fly within the U.S. With both programs being valid for 5 years after applied for and application fees being given back, this feature is a must-have for constant fliers.

This card's baggage delay insurance covers you for essential purchases for baggage delays that last over 6 hours. For example, purchases like toiletries and clothing can be reimbursed if your baggage has been delayed for more than 6 hours. This added insurance allows you to be covered for up to $100 a day for a maximum of 3 days when you use the IHG Rewards Club Premier Card for the essential purchases. Also, with lost luggage reimbursement you're covered up to $3,000 per passenger if your bags are lost or damaged.

If you use your card for eligible purchases, you can receive up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account for theft or damage. The purchase protection is valid for 120 days after the initial date of the qualifying purchase.

For those times when your trip is canceled due to weather or other covered situations, you can be reimbursed up to $5,000 per travel expenses. Travel expenses that are covered under the trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance include qualifying passenger fares, tours, and hotels paid with your card.

Conclusion:

The IHG Rewards Club Premier Card has quite a bit to offer to those that are already frequent IHG customers. This card is oriented around the enhancement of IHG customer experiences while also giving customers the ability to enjoy perks outside of IHG such as Global Entry/TSA PreCheck and extensive point redemption options. The ability to freely spend points, gain free premium elite status, and enjoy free anniversary nights, makes up for the annual fee of this card. If, however, you’re not so much of a loyal IHG customer and don't spend a large number of stays at IHG locations, you may want to consider applying for another card. This card isn't for those that are looking to gain purchases from reward points, as other reward cards can serve that purpose better.