CitizenM simply launched a loyalty program that is breaking all the foundations
It is not usually that lodge corporations come alongside and provide one thing that actually breaks the mould. It is much more uncommon when the identical firm does it twice.
CitizenM is a lodge chain centered on providing reasonably priced locations to work, keep and chill out in well-liked cities all over the world with out paying for extras that individuals aren’t doubtless to make use of.
Now, the chain is providing a loyalty program for the primary time, and the strategy breaks the trade norm. You do not have a required variety of stays or annual spending thresholds to fulfill. As an alternative, the perks and advantages come once you pay a flat, month-to-month charge.
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However is the mycitizenM+ program for you? Let’s have a look.
What’s citizenM, and the place are its resorts?
CitizenM launched its first lodge in 2008 in Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS). The model now has 24 resorts in 16 cities: Amsterdam; Boston; Copenhagen; Geneva; Glasgow, Scotland; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; London; Los Angeles; New York Metropolis; Paris; Rotterdam, Netherlands; San Francisco; Seattle; Taipei, Taiwan; Washington, D.C., and Zurich.
There are six new citizenM resorts opening in 2022 and 5 extra in 2023, together with areas in Austin; Chicago; Dublin; Miami; Menlo Park, California; and Rome.
What makes citizenM resorts distinctive is that the model goals to put its resorts in central areas in well-liked cities, avoiding pointless perks and providing an reasonably priced nightly charge. For instance, its two New York areas are in Occasions Sq. and the Bowery with charges beginning at $149 per evening.
Associated: Evaluation: CitizenM Bowery in New York
CitizenM sees itself as “[n]ot only a place to sleep, however someplace to work, chill out and play – similar to dwelling. Someplace with superfast free Wi-Fi, tech that makes life straightforward, and an incredible mattress to crash in on the finish of an extended day.” Founder Rattan Chadha referred to as this idea “reasonably priced luxurious for the folks.”
Whereas that is an attention-grabbing idea, the lodge chain has lacked one thing we have come to anticipate from resorts lately: a loyalty program.
Introducing mycitizenM+
The rewards program from citizenM is named mycitizenM+, and it is undoubtedly not just like the lodge loyalty applications you are used to. First issues first: There are not any factors.
As an alternative of protecting monitor of factors to earn your approach to a standing degree, you pay a $12 month-to-month charge. There are not any different necessities for attaining this standing.
You need not keep a sure variety of nights every year or meet the required spending thresholds. On this respect, paying $144 over the course of a 12 months is probably going cheaper than what it prices to achieve an identical degree of standing with applications like Marriott Bonvoy or World of Hyatt.
Key perks
Everybody can obtain the citizenM app to get pleasure from perks like checking in by the app and producing a cellular key. This protects you time at check-in, since you will not have to attend in line.
The principle mycitizenM+ perks embody free late checkout, upgrades to a premium-view room and a ten% low cost on the bottom charge obtainable. After all, late checkout and upgrades are each topic to availability.
Elite members are additionally first in line for chat help and get early entry to reductions and invites to members-only occasions. Members even have assured room availability on reservations made no less than 48 hours upfront.
Associated: Which lodge applications provide assured availability advantages?
Because the major perks contain a ten% low cost and room upgrades, it is price investigating what worth these present. Do they offset the price of paying for mycitizenM+ every year?
Take into account this pattern reserving at citizenM Occasions Sq.. You may save $71.73 as a mycitizenM+ member on a two-night weekend keep, practically half of the price of an annual membership.
When it comes to late checkout and premium views, these add-ons do not come free for non-elite members. Late checkout on a three-night keep throughout the week in Los Angeles will value $69 per room. And a premium room improve prices $20.19 per evening, for a complete value of $60.57 on a three-night keep.
Between these two stays, you could possibly presumably recoup the worth of your membership ($144 per 12 months, paid as $12 per thirty days) by reductions and perks. Because the upgrades on perks aren’t technically “cash saved,” you could possibly recoup the price of your annual charge after staying roughly 5 nights in a 12 months.
While you’re charged month-to-month, enrollment is on a yearly foundation. Thus, you commit for 12 months once you join mycitizenM+. Nonetheless, there’s a 14-day cancellation coverage after beginning your membership within the first 12 months.
Membership will mechanically renew for subsequent years, until you choose out or cancel no less than 30 days upfront. This identical 30-day coverage applies to canceling your plan after the primary full 12 months, that means you possibly can cancel in 12 months two and past at any level throughout the membership 12 months. Merely cancel your plan, and funds will finish after 30 days.
The complete phrases and circumstances are right here.
Evaluating the positives and negatives
The mycitizenM+ program is certainly not like different lodge loyalty applications. Relying in your perspective and your journey model, that could possibly be an excellent or a foul factor.
When it comes to positives, the trail to standing is easy and low-cost. Even in the event you keep solely on the least expensive properties in one other lodge program, you will not get to a mid-tier standing providing room upgrades for lower than $144 in a 12 months. You additionally need not fear about counting your elite nights or how a lot you have spent with the lodge. The simplicity and value are undoubtedly perks. There isn’t any effort required, which can be refreshing for individuals who discover the path to lodge standing exhausting.
After all, there are negatives to this strategy too.
MycitizenM+ lacks a number of the perks we normally affiliate with lodge elite standing, like free breakfast and suite upgrades. Provided that there is no factors program, you can also’t accrue factors in your lodge stays and redeem them for an aspirational property later down the road. This can be a massive deal for street warriors who spend a whole lot of time on the street for work and use the factors earned for household holidays.
There’s additionally no cobranded bank card offering free nights or bonus factors on spending. Since your whole stays might be paid stays, we suggest paying in your stays with a journey rewards bank card.
Associated: Is lodge elite standing price it anymore?
Evaluating mycitizenM+ to different ‘pay to play’ choices
CitizenM is not the primary lodge program to promote elite standing perks outright. For instance, InterContinental Ambassador helps you to purchase standing within the IHG One Rewards program with out assembly any keep necessities or monitoring any necessities alongside the way in which, and benefit from additional perks once you keep at InterContinental resorts and resorts all over the world.
At InterContinental properties, Ambassador perks embody assured room upgrades (not assured on award redemptions), assured late checkout, a complimentary weekend evening legitimate on the second evening of a paid keep, a $20 property credit score for meals and drinks throughout your keep, each day bottled water, a second visitor in your room for no additional cost and Hertz Gold Plus Rewards 5 Star standing.
When staying at different IHG properties, you may get pleasure from Platinum Elite standing. This contains 60% bonus factors earned on paid stays, reward evening reductions, 72-hour assured room availability, room upgrades (primarily based on availability), welcome facilities and early check-in and late checkout (topic to availability).
InterContinental Ambassador standing prices $200 or 40,000 IHG factors per 12 months. That is costlier than mycitizenM+, and you will not save a assured quantity in your lodge stays. On the identical time, it is a extra beneficiant suite of perks and there are much more IHG properties on the market than citizenM resorts.
Associated: Do you have to purchase lodge or airline elite standing?
Standing by way of bank card
One other well-liked possibility for “shopping for” elite standing is opening a cobranded bank card with a selected lodge group.
The Hilton Honors American Categorical Surpass® Card comes with a $0 introductory annual charge for the primary 12 months, then $95 annual charge, (see charges and charges) and affords automated Gold standing within the Hilton Honors program. With Gold standing, you possibly can get pleasure from perks like 80% bonus factors earned on paid stays, free bottled water throughout your keep, a fifth evening free on award stays, upgrades to most popular rooms, meals and beverage credit and welcome presents on every keep.
Likewise, the IHG Rewards Premier Credit score Card affords automated Platinum Elite standing with IHG, and the cardboard has a $99 annual charge. These are the identical IHG Platinum Elite perks mentioned beforehand, however you will not benefit from the InterContinental-specific perks.
You may simply attain standing in these applications by having a bank card with a charge below $100, and the perks rival what mycitizenM+ affords. You’d additionally earn factors that would allow you to get free stays sooner or later, so long as you’ve got paid stays or use the bank card to earn factors.
Associated: The perfect lodge bank cards
Backside line
MycitizenM+ is a novel tackle lodge standing. Gone are the suite upgrades, white-glove therapy and different ideas of luxurious. The thought of factors and free nights is totally absent. As an alternative, the main target is on simplicity, primarily based on key perks like assured reductions, upgrades and late checkout.
For individuals who have a whole lot of paid lodge stays or like staying at smaller properties with fewer frills, this could possibly be thrilling. It also needs to enchantment to individuals who do not like monitoring their stays all year long; as a substitute, they could need one thing easier. On the flip facet, citizenM has a smaller footprint, so this may increasingly not enchantment to you if you end up heading to lesser-traveled locations. It additionally will not enchantment to individuals who need the royal therapy as a part of their lodge standing.
However for vacationers who frequent citizenM properties, it is price doing the maths to see in the event you can come out forward with a mycitizenM+ membership.
For charges and charges of the Hilton Honors Surpass please click on right here.
