Hilton has got its name changed from Hilton “HHonor” to just “Honor” kicking away the extra ‘H’ to make it sound obvious and logical. This comes along with several other changes made in its loyalty program specifically the 4 features.
- Retail shopping with points
I think it is the most exciting one. Points can be redeemed for spending to buy products at Amazon.com. But the monetary value of each point is yet to be known.
- Points + Money Slider
Late February, you can spend your points and money by adjusting the combination on the slider. This introduction is good news if you want to use comparatively less or more money and make the most out of points. The slider can be drawn to a maximum of ‘1000 points’ on one side or ‘full cash payment’ on the other. No blackout dates will be considered but you are still getting the 5th free night. Point & Money program is good for redeeming points at higher hotel categories though there is a limit on maximum redemption. There is no idea on how flexible the point prices will become in case any hotel is priced low in the off-season. Also, you can utilise it for base room only & not suites unless you are exclusively booking a Suites hotel. - Point sharing
From April 2017 onwards, you can share & receive points with up to 10 friend & foes. Restriction exists. At maximum, you can share 500k points and receive 2000K points annually. You can help somebody out with extra points or take his points when required. Your elite status can be of benefit for a family member of yours who hasn’t got it.
- New diamond elite benefits
March onwards, diamond members can request for a one -time status extension for 1 year in case they do not re-qualify for next year. But the eligibility criteria are that one –- Should have held the same status for 3 years as of now.
- Should have accumulated 250 nights or 500K base points since joining.
Hilton is offering price for loyalty.
- Farewell to some categories
Hilton will omit some of its hotel categories which may lower down prices than previous ranges. It will also introduce Standard reward pricing tools for capping the maximum-minimum points required for an award.
The existing reward chart as per categories
Bottomline
Hilton still doesn’t promise suites to its Diamond customers. It still has a identity crisis. I agree last year ending promotion that they ran was the most lucrative promotion in the entire industry. However, all we can hope is that value of Hilton points increases rather than getting devalued. Otherwise, I doubt Hilton is getting any nights from me.
Hilton has just 15 functional properties in India under 4 brands – Doubletree, Hampton, Hilton Garden inn and Hilton. It is difficult for Indian customer to be loyal to Hilton brand. However, they are coming up with 20 new properties. Hilton will have a premium brand Conrad Bangalore and Conrad Pune to open soon. Conrad would become the 4th brand of Hilton in India. They are in talks of bringing Curio-A and Waldorf Astoria to India but they still are waiting for permissions.
However, you like the changes, you can still do status match.
Tell us what do you think about Hilton program changes? Does it make you want to become loyal to their brand?
