Nearly two years has been added to the status of Best Western Hotels and Resorts loyalty members as the company works to incentivise domestic and international travel in the wake of the global Coronavirus outbreak.
Under the directive, which takes immediate effect, Best Western Rewards members will have their existing status tier frozen until 31 January 2022 inclusive. In addition, members who saw their status downgraded from the end of 2019 until today will see their status reverted up to their previous level, with associated benefits to remain in place until the same date.
The move follows a similar Asia Pacific initiative a few weeks ago from World of Hyatt, where loyalty tiers were frozen until 28 February 2022, with accrued rewards valid until the end of 2021.
BWH Hotel Group President and CEO, David Kong, said the impact of the Coronavirus on the travel industry is far-reaching.
“At BWHR, caring is in our DNA and I am immensely proud that we can demonstrate this spirit of caring by taking steps to protect our valued guests during this time of fear and uncertainty, we very much appreciate their loyalty and business. We are also working diligently to support our hoteliers who have and will continue to experience declines in business as a result of the virus.”
The move applies to all members of Best Western Rewards worldwide, with no action required on behalf of the member to activate the change. Status tiers will remain in place for all members, irrespective of their current level.
“We have worked to build a loyalty program that delivers real value to our members and we’re proud to stand by our commitment to our customers during this challenging time,” said BWH Hotel Group Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Dorothy Dowling,