Accor Plus Membership Discussion

[asterix]

@sudoer I have had Accor Plus for many years and I had no idea about the member for a day voucher, I always thought it was just to get a members rate , but didn't know it included the dining. Thanks for the information!

We used the member for a day vouchers during our stay at the Novotel Cairns Oasis, staff had no idea how it worked and we had to explain each time we ordered food.

 

[daft009]

Don't you need to have a mailing address in that country?

They are flexible
They mail the card to Australia but the purchase has to be done over the phone, not DIY online

 

[VPS]

Just reading this thread again and I'm a bit confused. Does the discount for dining only apply in certain countries? Does it make any difference if I joined from Europe?

 

[TheRealTMA]

Just reading this thread again and I'm a bit confused. Does the discount for dining only apply in certain countries? Does it make any difference if I joined from Europe?

TThere are different schemes in different countries and the restaurant and other discounts are only for the Australian Accor Plus AFAIK.

 

[daft009]

TThere are different schemes in different countries and the restaurant and other discounts are only for the Australian Accor Plus AFAIK.

Australia comes under Asia Pacific. So I didn't get any meal discounts in Europe but do in Singapore, Fiji etc

 

[kangarooflyer88]

TThere are different schemes in different countries and the restaurant and other discounts are only for the Australian Accor Plus AFAIK.

Just to elaborate on this point since I believe it deserves further nuance: Accor provides a number of discounts to members of its various programs depending on the context of the booking. In particular, Accor offers a blanket 10% discount on hotel bookings for ALL members booking hotels outside Asia Pacific. For Asia Pacific specifically there is a PLUS program that provides discounts to members which vary in amount but are typically at least 10% less than the rates available to the public, often much more than that especially if the hotel is a red hot deal (there are often promos for joining PLUS, see here). They also have a vacation club program that offers a 10% discount in the region to a number of Accor properties. If that wasn't enough they have two more discount cards which so far I can tell apply globally: the business Plus card which costs 170 EUR per year and provides a 20% discount on many Accor properties, late check out to 4 PM. In addition, there is the ibis business card which applies primarily to ibis properties and cost 70 EUR per year and provides Gold level recognition when staying at those properties.

No doubt I've probably missed some other club or program out there, but these are the ones I've found in the past couple of months of stays at Accor hotels.

-RooFlyer88

 

[FlyingFiona]

I am an Accor Plus member by virtue of a friend's gifted membership. As an existing AP member she was able to take advantage of an offer which cost $79 (from memory) to purchase an AP membership and gift it to someone else. This membership doesn't include the free night and I am sure it said in the fine print that it doesn't include experiences (but I get emailed those still so I would be interested what'd happen if I tried to buy one - never been my cup of tea) but otherwise is the same as the full $399 version. To me this represents much much better value than the higher priced "full" membership so if you are able to wait till December to see if they offer it again do take advantage of that membership option.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

I am an Accor Plus member by virtue of a friend's gifted membership. As an existing AP member she was able to take advantage of an offer which cost $79 (from memory) to purchase an AP membership and gift it to someone else. This membership doesn't include the free night and I am sure it said in the fine print that it doesn't include experiences (but I get emailed those still so I would be interested what'd happen if I tried to buy one - never been my cup of tea) but otherwise is the same as the full $399 version. To me this represents much much better value than the higher priced "full" membership so if you are able to wait till December to see if they offer it again do take advantage of that membership option.

By all means if you can get the basic Accor+ membership go for it. What I will however say, is that for some of us we can squeak out the extra value of the free night thereby making the additional $320 in spend worth it (i.e. I can think of some Fairmont properties in APAC where the rack rate could easily exceed that amount). Overall though, I would certainly recommend Accor+ to those who stay at hotels regularly in APAC since Accor tends to have the widest availability and cheapest rate for hotels (especially with that Plus discount).

-RooFlyer88

 

[oz_mark]

Just reading this thread again and I'm a bit confused. Does the discount for dining only apply in certain countries? Does it make any difference if I joined from Europe?

Accor Plus is an Asia Pacific program, so the benefits of the program really only apply in APAC.
Specifically it can be used in
Australia, Cambodia, China, Fiji, French Polynesia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam..

 

[Lynda2475]

Unfortunately there isnt a Plus style program for EU/UK or for US unless you stay at IBIS (which I dont). It is annoying USA is excluded form Plus given USA is in the pacific.

Noting that despite website statement that booking via Accor guarantees the best rate it doesn't if not in a Plus region. Was over $500 cheaper to book Fairmont Chicago via Qantas Hotels and get 6X points per $ than it was to book via Accor.

I used my free plus night during peak Christmas period to book a room that would have cost more than the Plus fee on that date; and expect main dining benefit to be when staying at a resort like Sofitel Fiji where you do end up eating some meals at restaurant. Whereas if staying in a major city there will always likely be better dining options outside of the hotel.

 

[funnymummy]

As well as accommodation - We use our card for 50% off dining at Sofitel etc. as we really enjoy the breakfast and seafood buffets now they are back

 

[kangarooflyer88]

Unfortunately there isnt a Plus style program for EU/UK or for US unless you stay at IBIS (which I dont). It is annoying USA is excluded form Plus given USA is in the pacific.

What about the Accor Business Plus Card?

Enjoy your discounts at 18 brands and 3,800 hotels worldwide, from high-end luxury to budget-friendly properties.

Discover our participating brands:
Luxury : Sofitel, SO/, Sofitel LEGEND
Premium : Grand Mercure, MGallery, Mondrian, Mövenpick, Pullman
Midscale : Adagio, Hipark by Adagio, Mercure, Novotel, The Sebel, Tribe
Economy : Adagio Access, greet, ibis, ibis Styles

-RooFlyer88

 

[SYD]

What about the Accor Business Plus Card?

-RooFlyer88

But oddly comes with zero gratis status - unlike the Ibis Business card (comp Gold).

I was literally looking at these earlier today and concluded that Accor BPC holders probably get to Gold or better anyway.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

But oddly comes with zero gratis status - unlike the Ibis Business card (comp Gold).

I was literally looking at these earlier today and concluded that Accor BPC holders probably get to Gold or better anyway.

Does Accor Gold really make a difference? I ask this as a Accor+Gold member who haven't seen a whole lot in terms of benefits (perhaps I'm staying at the wrong properties). Arguably Platinum is where you want to be if you care about status (i.e. complimentary lounge access, free brekkie, early check in and late check out, etc.). Also, there are many ways to get Accor status complimentary. For instance, Qantas is handing out Gold (and even Platinum) to its frequent flyers. I'd also point out that the Accor Business card provides benefits that not even having Accor status provides. In particular it provides 4 PM late checkout, guaranteed room availability up to 3 days prior to arrival, etc.

I would also make the argument that the type of people who fork out $400/year for Accor+ or even 179 Euros for Accor's Business card are gonna get status from stays. Why else would you fork out that much money for something that saves you tens of dollars per stay? In my case I stay at Accors out of necessity rather than choice. They tend to have both the variety in properties and price I'm looking for here in Australia. Back when I was living in Canada Accor would never be an option since they don't exist in North America, and to the extent that you find an affiliated Accor property in North America they were super expensive (i.e. Fairmont Royal York in the Big Lemon). Instead, my primary chains were Marriott, Choice and the occasional Hilton when TPIR.

-RooFlyer88

 

[SYD]

Like I said “Accor BPC holders probably get to Gold or better anyway.” ie through their spend/stays.

 

[wsthong]

Anyone check into the Hotel Chadstone as a Silver Member successfully being offered Late Check Out for their Deluxe Suite?

 

[sudoer]

Anyone check into the Hotel Chadstone as a Silver Member successfully being offered Late Check Out for their Deluxe Suite?

That's a rather niche question, but how late would you be looking for? Even as an Accor Plus Platinum I often need to push quite hard at Accor properties for a 1pm or 2pm checkout. If you absolutely need the late check-out I'd be prepared to pay.

 

[wsthong]

That's a rather niche question, but how late would you be looking for? Even as an Accor Plus Platinum I often need to push quite hard at Accor properties for a 1pm or 2pm checkout. If you absolutely need the late check-out I'd be prepared to pay.

Probably at 1pm or 2pm at most (Saturday)

 

[Roflco]

I’m looking to travel to Fiji 14-21 sept 2023 in the Sofitel family bunk.

I don’t suppose anyone can search to see if the stay plus night is available for these dates? And what the Accor plus rate is? (Not sure if the 10% off is based on ALL 5% discount, or just an additional 5% off that)

If the stay plus night is included it likely pays for itself, even better if the room rate is cheaper.

Otherwise the Sheraton has a similar for about $500 cheaper, but I’ve read the Sofitel might be better for kids?

 

[kangarooflyer88]

Just thought I’d point out a recent change made by Accor+ which may be of interest for those on the fence about getting the Accor+ membership (which can offer considerable discounts on hotel stays and dining at Accor properties in APAC). It used to be that there was only one type of Accor+ membership us Aussies could buy, the $399/year Explorer membership which included a free night stay at many properties in APAC. Whilst the free night certificate was nice, many may have found it hard to justify forking out $400/year at a chain they are unsure they’d be able to use all the benefits of the membership.

However, recently Accor added a number of new membership levels:

• Accor+Traveller : $249/year with no free night (but with all the savings of being an Accor+ member)
• Accor+Discovery: $498/year which includes the Stay+ free night benefit but also cruise, tour and wine offers worldwide
• Accor+ Business Explorer: $399/year which includes the free night, but also bonus 5,000 QFF points and free QF Business Rewards membership (which I reckon is already free)

In addition to these new tiers Accor now has an option where you can add an additional cardholder for $159/year which doesn’t provide a free night but again provides those discounts at hotels in APAC.

-RooFlyer88