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Bits: get a 100% bonus buying IHG hotel points, Hilton Nottingham adds a pool charge

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News in brief:

Get a 100% bonus buying IHG One Rewards points

IHG One Rewards is offering a new 100% bonus for buying points.

This offer runs to 2nd February.

The maximum number of points you can buy is 300,000 (ie 150,000 plus the 150,000 bonus).  The minimum purchase to trigger the bonus is 30,000 points on my account but this could vary.

The page to buy points is here.

With a 100% bonus, you would be able to buy up to 300,000 IHG One Rewards points for (at current exchange rates for $1,500) £1,175.

I usually value IHG One Rewards points at 0.4p.  You are paying 0.39p here so it is not necessarily a slam dunk unless you are just topping up your account. The skill is to use them at hotels where you can get substantially more than 0.4p per point of value, although this got a little harder since IHG moved towards revenue-based redemption pricing.

You can buy points via this link. You have until 2nd February to jump in.

Our full review of IHG One Rewards is here if you want to know more about how it works.

Get a 100% bonus buying IHG One Rewards points

Hilton Nottingham joins the list of hotels charging for pool use

A recurring theme on Head for Points over the last couple of years has been hotels which try to sneak though a charge for using their swimming pool.

Hilton appears to be the biggest culprit, and it is getting to the point where you need to be actively on the look out for small print when booking a UK Hilton with a pool.

Hilton Nottingham is the latest to jump on the bandwagon.

From 1st February, you will need to pay £10 per adult and £5 per child, although there is a £20 cap per family. This is confirmed on the hotel website here.

This gets you a 90-minute session for the hotel pool, sauna and steam room.

The hotel has confirmed that there will be no discount for Hilton Honors elite members.

The hotel is blaming ‘rising energy costs’, although this makes little sense as the health club is run as a standalone Livingwell facility with the majority of its users presumably being external paying members.

Category

Hilton Honors, IHG One Rewards

Comments (75)

  • Chaz says:
    27 Jan27 January 07:50

    I guess it is better than just shutting the facility like many Marriott’s have done. Bournemouth / Bristol to name just two.

    I get they cost a lot to run and that they compete on price comparison sites for room rates and so adding £5 to cover the pool puts them on page 35 of the search results.

    However, being that some of these are tired and in need of a renovation, the Premier Inn is often a better option for the price.

    Reply
  • CamFlyer says:
    27 Jan27 January 07:54

    I recall being charged for a Hilton gym somewhere in Eastern Europe around 2007/2008, where the gym was in the building but managed by an outside company. I didn’t have Elite status at the time, and my employer refused to reimburse the charge on the basis it was “personal”. I resented being charged far more than whether or not i was reimbursed, or the amount. For a long time afterwards I avoided Hiltons, and i still remember the experience. What next – additional charges for the energy in providing hot water, heat or air conditioning, if one wants to make use of those services (all of which I have experienced in my student travel days)?

    Reply
  • Mark says:
    27 Jan27 January 08:11

    Just clicked on the Hilton Nottingham website, and they have now put a banner at the top of the landing page highlighting this. Still think it’s cheeky but you would struggle to miss it now if booking direct.

    Reply
  • Ryan says:
    27 Jan27 January 08:28

    Also worth noting that some have started charging for parking also. Newcastle and Glasgow DT’s used to offer complimentary parking for Diamond members, sadly no more.

    Reply
    • daveinitalia says:
      27 Jan27 January 10:51

      The only DoubeTree in Newcastle is at the airport. Free parking at an airport hotel would be amazing. Are you sure it used to be for diamonds?

      Reply
  • Scott says:
    27 Jan27 January 09:08

    Last time I had complementary parking as a diamond was at the Liverpool Airport HGI? That said, have only stayed at one Hilton at LAX since Covid, and put off the brand by the HGI at Hatton Cross.
    Mainly IHG these days, although I tend to avoid any places that have junk / amenity fees, or places such as the LA Downtown IC that is pretty much a case of “give us your credit card and we’ll be charging you everything under the sun, and the sun is an extra” 😉

    Never used a hotel pool to be honest. Gyms couple of times, but don’t like ones where you have to go to reception to get a separate key card to access it.

    Reply
    • HampshireHog says:
      27 Jan27 January 09:56

      The HGI at Hatton Cross is my Heathrow go to, though not had cause to use it recently, mind elaborating on any negative issues?

      Reply
    • Chrisasaurus says:
      27 Jan27 January 11:27

      Certain you mean the HGI? It’s my #1 choice unless on a super early flight

      Reply
      • xenole says:
        27 Jan27 January 13:33

        Yes.

        HI on Bath Road my number one choice for T3, although begrudge paying £130+ if arriving after 9pm and leaving at 5am or so.
        Stayed at the Ibis Budget for around £80 last time I overnighted for a few hours at LHR. 5 min or so walk to Hounslow West tube, so only a stop further than the HGI (and more in the area food and shops wise).

        No need for any fancy restaurants, gyms, spas etc. I won’t use (i.e. Sofitel with its £250 rates for a bog standard room).

        Stay occasionally in the NW at hotels that have a Pure Gym near by. My membership lets me use them usually – no pool, but a wet pair of swimming trunks isn’t always a good thing when travelling especially when there’s a potential lack of drying facilities – never seem to dry that well hung up in a bathroom, and not always a radiator to put them on.
        Shame there’s no Pure Gyms to use that near to Heathrow. Staines / Felton? or somewhere, but a bit of a jaunt without a car (there must be a leisure centre or two locally though?)

        Reply
        • Tom says:
          27 Jan27 January 15:01

          Anything on Bath Road is a no-no for me because there are no free and frequent shuttle buses.

          Reply
          • Roy says:
            28 Jan28 January 01:00

            There are cheap and frequent TfL buses, though, from the many bus stops on Bath Road.

    • Pangolin says:
      27 Jan27 January 14:39

      The Hilton property at LPL is a Hampton (not HGI). They indicate a parking fee of £12 but the last couple of times I stayed there (2021,2022) they waived the fees as a Diamond.

      Reply
  • J says:
    27 Jan27 January 09:55

    I can understand introducing these charges (to keep advertised room rate competitive), but it seems unnecessary to dictate the session time. Why not just make it a flat rate for access over the 24 hours of your stay?

    Reply
    • Qrfan says:
      27 Jan27 January 10:10

      Agree. £20 should surely cover 2 visits if you so choose.

      Reply
    • Cat says:
      27 Jan27 January 10:24

      I’d have less of a problem with that. If I have a one night stay in a spa hotel, I tend to hang out in the spa for 3-4 hours in the afternoon, and then again for as long as possible before check out. I wouldn’t mind a flat rate for 24 hour use of the facilities, but being charged multiple times for short sessions which feel rushed, detracts from the experience.

      Reply
  • Cat says:
    27 Jan27 January 10:21

    I went to the Syon Park Hilton over the Xmas holidays. I booked 2 nights, for the sole purpose of lounging by the pool and in the sauna. I like to swim a mile or more, then rotate through the steam room / sauna facilities, then laze by the pool with my kindle. That requires more than a 2 hour slot, and each 2 hour slot now costs £20.

    Sadly I won’t be going back to the Hilton again, which is a shame, as it has been a favourite luxury staycation spot for years.

    Reply
    • Chris says:
      27 Jan27 January 10:41

      You are right Cat – this is a great place to stay but the pool charge is exorbitant – we’ve stopped using it. For those without Diamond status it is £25!

      Reply
  • His Holyness says:
    27 Jan27 January 10:40

    DT Edinburgh Airport added once since around two weeks as well.

    Reply

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