InterContinental Los Angeles Century City: Revisiting the Topic of the IHG Best Price Guarantee

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Have any of my readers stayed at this hotel as a result of a successful IHG BRG claim? Or, is there someone out there who feels they've mastered the IHG BRG? If this is you, maybe you'd like to weigh in on this.

Today I was emailed the following question:

"I found the InterContinental LA Near Beverly Hills (same hotel) on Onhotels.com for 8/17 for $245.92 (Superior Double) for 2 Adults. IHG.com has (Superior 2 Doubles) for $318.29 - the "Advanced Purchase", non-refundable rate. I strongly believe this to be a room type match, as no other room descriptions even come close. Will this work?" .. he also states: "I found the Deluxe Room to be lower as well."

So to make a long story hopefully short, I verified the numbers he provided me with to be accurate. In fact, my checking around found many summer dates with these large price discrepancies. The only question is, will he stand a good chance of getting this claim approved? After all, the wording is not exactly the same. However, I do feel that there are exceptions when wording needn't be 100% exact. In this case, there appears to be only 2 "Superior" types on IHG - a 1 King or 2 Doubles (both $318.29). The word "Double" in SUPERIOR DOUBLE could refer to 2 adults or 2 double beds - in any case, logic would tell you that the competitor site is lower - Period. End of story. (or does logic really come into play, with any BRG!?)

When IHG initially came out with their Best Price Guarantee a few years ago, I was very excited about it's potential. Unfortunately, the ridiculously-tight rules in their T&Cs, my denied claims, and having to almost always book a non-refundable rate put me off almost immediately (understandably, my readers also DO NOT like booking non-refundable!). These reasons led me right back to primarily posting Expedia deals (and later Choice ones). Other reasons were total frustration and my belief that IHG was giving people the run-around. But now I must admit, looking at the T&Cs on their BRG, IHG seems to have relaxed their rules since earlier times, don't you think?

I know of another person who could certainly use this deal, should it work (me!). It's just that I cringe at the thought of outright telling this reader, "yes, it may work" when ultimately it may not. If failure results, he's stuck with paying the pricey cost of his hotel stay.

So I leave it in your hands, since my expertise has never been with IHG. Any thoughts on this deal? Perhaps a consensus could sway his decision on whether or not to claim. If not, would anyone like to voice any general thoughts on the current IHG BRG?

We welcome any comments on this post!