IHG One Rewards Status
I feel IHG One Rewards status, especially the top-tier Diamond level, is largely overlooked. That’s fine with me. Travelers, including some who do stuff on the internet for money, seem more enamored with consuming and covering all things Hyatt. Much of this has to do with their elite recognition. While I find all that fuss exhausting, I get it, to an extent. Indeed, I loved being top-tier Hyatt under their previous Gold Passport program. But these days, I focus on such status with other chains, including IHG. My wife and I each qualified for Diamond status last year, but will we do so again? Here’s what we’re currently thinking.
Our Diamond Status Experience
Since reaching top-tier status, we’ve enjoyed the variety of benefits from the One Rewards program. Perhaps our favorite benefit has been full breakfast for two at properties offering a restaurant. While that excludes most all properties at the limited service level, some which have a free breakfast for all, we’ve found this benefit compatible with other endeavors as Diamonds. For instance, we’re focusing on properties like Kimpton, Hotel Indigo, and Intercontinental, which have restaurants and where upgrade benefits are more substantial. Upgrades have been consistent, where we’ve received some sort of bump on most all stays. In some instances, I’ve received even more benefits than I was hoping.
Should We Requalify?
Based on the above, I plan to requalify for Diamond status via IHG Premier card spend. Cardholders can pick up a $99 statement credit and 10k IHG bonus points at $20k in calendar year spend, and another $20k spend ($40k total) unlocks Diamond status.
My wife’s decision to do the same is a bit more complex. Her solo travel will be infrequent in future years. Holding Diamond status won’t be as important, and she’d move just one tier down to Platinum by simply holding the Premier. Perhaps more importantly, we can leverage her current stash of points in the future with my Diamond status. That’s because Diamond members (and Business Rewards members) can share points with others for free. Consequently, we plan to transfer all of her IHG points to my account by the end of this year, when her Diamond status expires.
When?
So it appears I’ll be the only one pursuing top-tier IHG One Rewards status for the foreseeable future. But when should I requalify? I reached IHG Diamond in early 2024, which granted me the status for all of 2024 and 2025. Since requalifying conveys status for the existing and next calendar year, I’m not motivated to do so right now.
I used the same logic in thinking through American Airlines status requalification (even though I ended up going for it again thanks to other opportunities). Since I’m already Diamond this year, the incremental value in requalifying now is that I would obtain Diamond status for 2026. Instead, I’ll defer to early 2026 to spend $40k on my Premier. That way, I’ll pick up Diamond status for 2026 and 2027. By simply shifting $40k spend from 2025 to 2026, I pick up an additional year of top-tier IHG One Rewards status.
IHG One Rewards Status – Conclusion
I must also realize that potential program changes may affect my plans in the future. Indeed, IHG has been known to make those, sometimes without much of a notice. But for now, I’m confident in our plan for IHG status moving forward. Despite alarmingly high redemption rates at certain properties, we’ve been satisfied overall with top-tier IHG One Rewards status. The next step is being more efficient in how we meet that level and maximize those benefits.
How do you currently feel about IHG One Rewards status?
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