Langham hotels is launching a brand new loyalty program – Brilliant by Langham – and it’s a points program with a slate of new elite benefits. Everyone in their old program starts out with status. Members start earning points and status on stays, food and beverage and spa treatments at Langham’s hotels starting February 29.

Langham Hospitality Group claims a history that dates back to 1865, when The Langham hotel in London opened as the then-largest building in London. There are currently 18 Langham Hotels (such as Boston, Chicago, Pasadena, New York, London, Hong Kong and Jakarta), and the group also includes 6 Cordis Hotels, plus the Chelsea Hotel Toronto.

• Langham Hotels 1865 Privilege and Langham Suppoer Club close February 28, 2024.
  
• They are replaced by Brilliant by Langham, which is a points-based program.
  
• Existing members will be invited to join the new program and will be upgraded to at least Diamond status.

Earning

Points-earning is 150 points per US$5 spend (and 15 points per US$5 spend on events). That’s frankly a little bit confusing. It’s not normalized at one point per dollar (simple!) and it’s not even 30 points per $5. Note of course that awarding points every 5 dollars seems to save on rounding.

Free Night Redemptions

With a revenue-based program they offer dynamic pricing, and no blackout dates. All rooms are available for redemption, including suites. That’s good for achieving certainty, but you won’t get outsized value for your points – just the same average value every time.

Earning Elite Status

This is a straight revenue-based program. You earn points based on spend, and status is achieved based on points rather than stays and nights.

Status tiers:

• Onyx: Base
• Topaz: 12,000 status points
• Diamond: 108,000 status points
• Sapphire: 360,000 status points
• Ruby: 720,000 status points

Status Benefits

All members receive a member rate and dining discounts (5%, but 10% for Diamond and above). Here are the elite benefits as you reach status levels:

I especially like early check-in as a benefit for mid-tier members.

Room Upgrade Vouchers for Sapphire and Ruby members apply to the next-best room category from the one booked. Members in these tiers receive two upgrade vouchers on achieving the tier each membership year. The upgrades are confirmable at booking (though at program launch it will take a few days to confirm upgrades, as hotels will confirm the upgrade once requested). These are separate from one category upgrades if available at check-in.

I take this effort at a new unified program for such a small chain – it’s an expensive effort, which is why many smaller chains choose to affiliate with GHA Discovery – as signifying a real desire to expand. This is a platform for a much larger global brand than where Langham is today. They’ve disclosed over 30 hotel development projects in their pipeline.

For those looking to get involved in the program, I’m told that while not available at launch, they will consider adding a status match opportunity later in the year.