IHG sets the Internet free at InterContinental, Indigo, Crowne Plaza hotels
By David Flynn, July 23 2013
The InterContinental Hotels Group is now offering free Internet access to Elite-grade members of its loyalty program, which has recently been rebranded from Priority Club Rewards to IHG Rewards Club.
Platinum Elite and Gold Elite members are both in line for free wi-fi, with the benefit being extended to entry-level Club members sometime in 2014, the chain pledges.
The deal covers all properties under the IHG umbrella, including flagship InterContinental properties throguh to the hip Hotel Indigo brand, along with Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Candlewood Suites.
Also new to IHG Rewards Club is a 'fast track' path to Gold Elite status by staying at three different IHG brands across 10 nights within a calendar year (Gold Elite usually requires 15 nights).
Platinum Elite comes within reach after bedding down at three IHG brands across 40 nights for members living in Australia, New Zealand, Asia and the Middle East, or four IHG brands if you reside in the Americas or Europe.
Reward nights also counting toward earning Elite status, while Platinum Elite members’ 'extra' nights (over the 50+ nights requirement) will be rolled over to help maintain their status in their next membership year.
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David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
QFF
06 Nov 2012
Total posts 46
Wasn't this reported a few months ago? I said it then and I say it now - free internet is a necessity of travel. It should be included in the rate, like water in the bathroom.
It's pathetic that top dollar establishments make a big thing of providing free wifi for their elite members when run-of-the-mill hotels and motels have been providing it free for years.
25 Feb 2013
Total posts 61
Backpacker hostels have also managed to provide it free for years too
24 Oct 2010
Total posts 2563
Hi Poisson: it was first announced and thus reported a few months ago, now it's finally available – so it's worth a second item as a heads-up for readers, don't you reckon?
As to the whole "Internet should be free" debate: I'm in utter agreement with that. Hopefully we'll see more of this to come, because it's insane to be charged top rates for a room in a five-star hotel and then gouged another $20+ for Internet.
I'm tiotally in favour of a two-speed approach, where there's a decent connection for free plus a much higher-speed (including uploads) service for a fee - as long as the free pipeline is still suitable for average needs (eg say, 5Mbps) and sustains that under a heavy load of users. Otherwise, promising 'free Internet' only to deliver a sub-par connection while offering a faster service for $$ is bait-and-switch territory!
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