Preferred Hotels & Resorts is launching the I Prefer Alliance loyalty program, which allows independent hotels and regional hotel brands to extend full benefits of the I Prefer Hotel Rewards program to members of their distinctive guest benefit programs.
I Prefer Alliance makes use of a points exchange structure to allow partner hotels to incentivize their respective loyalty members by extending access to more than 650 additional destinations across 85 countries where they can earn and redeem points, while receiving other benefits during every eligible stay.
Preferred Hotels & Resorts debuts I Prefer Alliance with Tokyu Hotels—one of Japan’s leading hotel groups, with 44 properties across the country and more than 700,000 Tokyu Comfort loyalty members—as its inaugural partner.
“As Preferred Hotels & Resorts entered its 51st year of championing the independent hotel experience, we identified an opportunity to further support our hotel partners’ individual goals related to fostering more impactful guest loyalty,” Jeri Salazar, VP of loyalty at Preferred Hotels & Resorts, said in a statement. “I Prefer Alliance was created to provide independent hotels with the flexibility to personalize their own programs in a way that would help drive more loyalty from their current members while creating more visibility for partner properties and all hotels that participate in I Prefer among a growing and highly engaged travel community who prefer authentic, inspiring travel experiences. We look forward to integrating more hotel partners into I Prefer Alliance globally in the months ahead.”
I Prefer was launched August 2013, and as of January 2019 its membership has swelled to more than 3 million. Points gained through I Prefer can be exchanged for cash-value I Prefer reward certificates, as well as elite status and additional benefits such as priority early check-in/late check-out, room upgrades based on availability and complimentary internet upon every eligible stay at more than 650 participating properties worldwide. In 2018, the program produced a 24 percent increase in reservations revenue and a 31 percent increase in stays to participating hotels compared to 2017.
Through I Prefer Alliance, partners can extend the full benefits of I Prefer Hotel Rewards to members of their respective programs upon every eligible stay. The points exchange structure for each I Prefer Alliance partnership will be unique to the structure of each individual partner’s program.
Effective immediately through Tokyu Hotels’ affiliation with I Prefer Alliance, all Tokyu Comfort Members will receive two Comfort Points for every US$1 spent on net room reservations when they book any hotel outside Japan through a dedicated offer page on PreferredHotels.com or voice reservations line. In addition, I Prefer members visiting Japan will now be able to earn 25 I Prefer points per US$1 spent on net room reservations, as well as redeem I Prefer Reward Certificates at 19 participating Tokyo hotels, four of which are members of Preferred Hotels & Resorts: The Capitol Hotel Tokyu, Cerulean Tower Tokyu Hotel, Kyoto Tokyu Hotel and Nagoya Tokyu Hotel.