Plus Points

More hotels are pushing better deals and shinier rewards in a bid to win travellers over

- Sarah Stanley

The battle for travellers' loyalty is heating up. Hotels worldwide are doubling down on loyalty programmes as competition stiffens, bringing vacationers more choice, better deals and increasingly enticing rewards.

In 2024, the global hotel loyalty membership base grew to more than 675 million members, up 14.5 per cent from 2023, according to an April report by American commercial real estate services and investment firm CBRE.

Leading the pack is Marriott Bonvoy with over 228 million members, followed by Hilton Honors with more than 210 million and IHG One Rewards with over 145 million.

Today, hotel loyalty programmes are more inclusive and accessible than ever.

While business travellers still benefit most, often hitting elite status thanks to frequent stays, entry-level members now enjoy meaningful perks too.

A basic Marriott Bonvoy account, for example, offers discounted rates and mobile check-in. Entry-tier IHG One Rewards members can access promotions and enjoy complimentary late check-out at 2pm.

It does not take much to climb tiers either. The industry average for the first upgrade is 10 nights' stay in a year, but some chains, such as Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, require just five.

For many Singaporeans, a few short trips to Bangkok, Bali or Johor Bahru will easily bump them up a tier. And with most programmes free to join, it is easy to see why more travellers are signing up.

A NEW MODEL FOR LOYALTY

Mr Dean Jones, vice-president of commercial for East Asia and Pacific at IHG, says running a good loyalty programme is among the most cost-efficient strategies for hotel customer retention.

Members tend to book with the hotel, which helps it save costs for instance, by cutting spending incurred from listing the property on a third-party booking site. At IHG, for example, it is 10 times more likely that members book direct.