24
May
DiscoverAmerica’s Daily Getaways sale continues the points purchase discount offers with InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) Priority Club points on sale Tuesday, May 25, 10am eastern time sharp!
There are four quantities available in 920 items from 10,000 points to 40,000 points and each customer can buy up to five items. Potentially you can buy 200,000 Priority Club points for $1,200. Daily Getaways Priority Club Sale link.
Discover America Daily Getaways IHG Priority Club Points items
- $60 for 10,000 points (385 items) [regular buy points rate on Priority Club = $125]
- $150 for 25,000 points (275 + 75 items = 350 items) [regular buy points rate on Priority Club = $287.50]
- $240 for 40,000 points (185 items) [regular buy points rate on Priority Club = $460]
The loyalty advertising on the DiscoverAmerica site can be confusing for this IHG Priority Club points sale as with previous hotel points sales for Starwood and Hyatt.
For example, the 275 items of 25,000 points for $150 is advertised as “Stay 1-2 nights at Holiday Inn for $150”. The item being purchased is 25,000 points and there is no restriction to the use of the points for a stay at Holiday Inn hotels – you can redeem points for any InterContinental Hotels Group brand or exchange points into miles or other use. Using points for hotel stays almost always produces the highest monetary value.
IHG brands are InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites.
The main thing to keep in mind with this sale is to be ready to buy items within the first minute of the sale. The opportunity to buy 5 items means as few as 194 purchases may sell out the points.
My advice for the person who rarely uses IHG hotels and Priority Club is “Buy Points”
This offer is actually best for the person who rarely stays at IHG hotels. Savvy Priority Club members know how to earn 5,000 points with a $60 hotel stay and will likely not find as much value in this offer. But if you have few or no Priority Club points this is a good time to buy points.
Four reasons for buying points at $60 per 10,000 points.
1. This is a lower purchase rate than regular points purchases which cost $125 for 10,000 points through the Priority Club site.
25,000 points for $150 is sufficient for any Crowne Plaza hotel globally. There are many Crowne Plaza hotels that will cost well over $150 per night.
The majority of InterContinental Hotels are 30,000 points per night with about 40% at 40,000 points for a reward night. My local IC Clement in Monterey is rarely available for $180 per night after taxes, but is easy to book for 30,000 points (room and tax included).
Here is a global list of InterContinental Hotels at 30,000 and 40,000 points per night.
2. Normally there is a 40,000 points annual purchase limit for Priority Club. The purchase opportunity tomorrow gets around that 40,000 point annual purchase limit with an opportunity to buy up to 50,000 (5×10,000) for $300; 125,000 points (5×25,000) for $750; or 200,000 points (5×40,000) for $1,200. It is unlikely you will have time to buy items from two different lots before they sell out.
3. PointBreaks are Priority Club 5,000 point reward night special offers. Buying points at $60 for 10,000 gives you access to $30 per night PointBreaks awards. I have repeatedly showed savings on my blog with PointBreaks saving $200+ per night when buying points at the regular purchase rate. The DiscoverAmerica rate is just 50% of the normal purchase rate for points.
Keeping 10,000 to 40,000 points around is a good investment for a Crowne Plaza, InterContinental and/or Pointbreaks stay. The current PointBreaks list has dwindled down to the remnants of hotels still bookable in the last month. Here is a link to the full list of hotels that were available when the last PointBreaks list posted in March 2010 for stays through June 30.
The new PointBreaks list for summer hotel travel should be coming out any day now.
4. Points purchased through IHG Priority Club count for elite status. These Discover America purchased points will likely count as elite qualification points. [Note: I have not verified this fact.]
Earned points are just about any points that post to your account with the notable exception of points purchased for Priority Club Points + Cash reward nights.
20,000 points earned in a calendar year gives Priority Club Gold elite ($50 value + 10% bonus points on stays).
60,000 points in a calendar year confers Platinum status with a 50% bonus on stays and other potential benefits like complimentary upgrades.
