Le club Accorhotels has revamped its elite status program, adding new benefits — benefits which are not in and of themselves impressive, but that are much improved.
This is the loyalty program for Sofitel, Novotel, M Gallery, and related hotels.
For a chain with full service hotels, their benefits were about the weakest out there. Now they are a bit better or at least will be come mid-October. And this is also a chain of course that gives away its top tier platinum status just for signing up…!
Specifically, new benefits include:
- Free internet for Silver, Gold,and Platinums
- Late checkout (subject to availability) for Silver, Gold,and Platinums
- Early check-in (subject to availability) for Golds and Platinums
- Lounge access for Platinums
Golds have to choose between early check-in and late check out, if both are available, they aren’t supposed to be entitled to check in early and check out late. Of course there’s no entitlement here at all anyway because it is ‘subject to availability’.
Via Lucky, here’s the benefits chart expected to go into effect in a couple of weeks:
Not at all competitve with the elite benefits offered by Starwood or Hyatt. Not even as good as Marriott (which offers breakfast if no club lounge is available though not at resorts or at Marriott Courtyard properties, though Marriott doesn’t guarantee late checkout either). It’s still some improvements, which have been sorely needed.
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What will the new tier be for that which the offered Platinum status recently?
Gary-
A year or so ago, Acoor began a two tier approach to Internet. They would advertise free Internet, but then when you get to the front desk, they offer a faster service for a charge that I recall was around $15. Turns out, the free service is slow with limited bandwidth. To do real work or use phone services like Skype, you had to pay for the higher speed.
I found this practice misleading as it masks true price. I was surprised that they pulled this stunt even at their higher end properties, not just at the budget places like Ibis.
Any idea how free the “free” Internet is that is being offered to elites?
Sadly at the same time as doing this they’ve just further reduced the Iberia Avios earning rate quite markedly 🙁
On related pointless-status notes, I just received this email from Le Club: “You are clearly one of our most loyal clients, and so we are pleased to inform you that we will renew your Le Club Accorhotels Platinum card for another year. With your card, you will continue to benefit from the same great service and advantages that you have grown accustomed to during your stays at Accor hotels!”
If someone with two stays is “clearly one of their most loyal clients”, then they are doing something wrong! Nonetheless, crap status is better than no status.
I recently booked a room in Sofitel @ La Defense, Paris with the newly “minted” Platinum level 🙂
unfortunately I can tell you that they will not give me a room upgrade and there is no lounge here 🙁
The wifi is free but the “choked” version. Like Sam said earlier, you have still to pay for the “unchoked” wifi speed.
To be frankly the only benefit I got from being Platinum is double point. And this hotel close to my work.
Otherwise I will have stayed in other chain in a heart beat.