Now before we dive into the different loyalty programs in the Philippines, make sure you have a good idea on what hotels you would like to stay in. It makes no sense to join a Hilton Honors when you dislike Hilton hotels and love Marriott hotels more no matter how good their program is. Next is to check for properties in the destinations you want to visit. It will be hard to maximize the loyalty program if there aren't any properties to stay in where you want to go. Depending on the region and city you are going to, some brands have a stronger presence than others. Marriott for example have the most properties for any hotel group, but a majority of them are in the US. Accor has a the most in Europe, while both have a growing presence in Asia.
We'll be focusing on International hotel chains in the Philippines since its easier to travel to domestic destinations, but also consider the destinations you are looking to visit abroad.
Marriott Bonvoy
Now we all know Marriott is a big and well known brand with over 7000+ properties worldwide, but not a lot of people know they have the most brands with 30 brands under their belt ranging from select stays such as Courtyard and Aloft hotels to luxury brands like The Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis hotels. The Marriott portfolio is pretty solid if not the best with a good presence in Asia, a growing presence in the Philippines, and in almost every major tourist destination worldwide. As of today there are 5 opened properties in the Philippines with 10 other properties slated to open in the country within the next 4 years, which shows Marriott is looking to expand their brands in the Philippines making it a good time to hop on the Marriott Bonvoy.
Marriott Manila
Marriott Clark
Sheraton Manila
Sheraton Manila Bay
Courtyard Iloilo
IHG Rewards Club
The InterContinental Hotel Group has around 5000+ hotels worldwide and also has a solid presence in Asia and Europe. Although not as diverse as Marriott and other hotel chains, IHG has its share of midscale, Upscale, and luxury brands in the market. Their most famous brand would arguably be the Holiday Inn and you've probably seen them around while searching for hotels online as they have several properties in Asia. In the Philippines there are currently 5 properties.
Holiday Inn & Suites Makati
Holiday Inn Manila Galleria
Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria
Holiday Inn Express Manila Newport City
Holiday Inn Baguio City Centre
Hilton Honors
With Hilton Worldwide owning 18 brands and 5000+ properties around the world it would be a good choice to be enrolled in Hilton Honors. Unfortunately, in the Philippines they only have 2 properties and no news of any new upcoming hotels in the country. We still hope Hilton would look to expand their portfolio in the future to compete with Marriott as they are direct competitors worldwide. So unless you frequent Conrad and Hilton Manila, the program might be more lucrative for you abroad.
Conrad Manila
Hilton Manila
Accor Live Limitless
The largest hospitality company in Europe with close to 5000 hotels in 100 countries and a surprisingly good presence in the Philippines with 8 properties in Manila, Cebu and Boracay. ALL is a great loyalty program to get into if you have no plans of going to the US or Canada since they have less than 200 properties in North America. However, they have been expanding in Asia with over 1200 properties in Asia Pacific.
Mövenpick Cebu
Mövenpick Boracay
Raffles Makati
Fairmont Makati
Mercure Manila Ortigas
Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila
Novotel Manila Araneta City
Joy Nostalg Hotel & Suites
World of Hyatt
With Hyatt only having 900+ hotels worldwide and 50 in Asia, earning and redeeming on the World of Hyatt program might prove to be difficult unless you're extremely loyal to their brands and frequent the 2 properties they have in the Philippines. They do have a property opening in Clark in 2022, but is it enough to invest in this loyalty program? Not really to be honest unless you're extremely loyal to the brand.
Hyatt Regency Manila City of Dreams
Grand Hyatt Manila
Wyndham Rewards
If you're looking for more midscale to value stays instead of luxury to upscale brands then Wyndham Rewards might be a program to consider. With 19 properties in the Philippines its easy to rack up points for free stays here. Wyndham also has a bunch of properties scattered in Asia.
Days Hotel Tagaytay
Days Hotel Batangas
Days Hotel Iloilo
Microtel Tarlac
Microtel Davao
Microtel Batangas
Microtel Eagle Ridge
Microtel Baguio
Microtel Boracay
Microtel Cabanatuan
Microtel Puerto Prinsesa
Microtel Mall of Asia
Ramada Manila Central
Days Hotel Cebu- Toledo
Microtel Acropolis
Microtel General Santos
Microtel South Forbes
Microtel UP Technohub
TRYP Mall of Asia
Radisson Rewards
Over a thousand properties worldwide Radisson hotels have a pretty decent imprint in the Philippines despite not being a giant like Marriott, Hilton, IHG, or Accor. 5 properties in the Philippines is good although you might have a difficult time looking for hotels abroad as they only have 90 hotels in Asia, slightly more than Hyatt. So unless you're loyal to the brand and really like their hotels it'd be best to choose another program.
Radisson Cebu
Park Inn Davao
Park Inn Clark
Park Inn Iloilo
Park Inn North Edsa
Golden Circle
If you're focused mostly on luxury stays and getaways then Shangri-La's Golden Circle program might be for you. Although they only have around 100 hotels worldwide, They have 6 properties here in the Philippines where you can earn points locally. Now because most of Shangri-La properties are luxury properties, obviously stays would definitely be pricey so be prepared to have a high credit limit before booking and make sure it is within your means. If you don't frequent Shangri-La properties and if you're okay with other luxury brands without that "Shangri-La" luxury I suggest joining other loyalty programs.
Shangri-La at the Fort
Makati Shangri-La
EDSA Shangri-La
Shangri-La Mactan Resort and Spa
Shangri-La Boracay Resort and Spa
Hotel Jen Manila
Setting Goals for your Hotel Program
Aside from the actual staying at hotels this should be the fun part! Once you've selected a hotel loyalty program you'll want to create your strategy on how to earn and redeem free nights. You'll have to read up on your program and know its rules and policies so you have the knowledge to maximize your points. You know those annoying questions when websites ask if you want to be part of the newsletter or be alerted for deals that we always just skip or say no? Well its time to say sign up for those since its a really good way of knowing when there are deals for your program that would help your journey to free nights.
If you travel frequently be it leisure or for business you'll want to rack up some elite nights and earn elite status as fast as you can. This is when you've stayed in a hotel in the program x number of times and earn elite benefits from being so loyal. Sana all loyal noh? Lol. But joking aside achieving elite status has great benefits such as points multiplier, free breakfast, complimentary room upgrades and late checkouts to name a few depending on your status and program.
The more specific your goals are the better. That way you can narrow down which programs are best suited to achieve your goals. For example, If your goal is to book a stunning villa in the Maldives some programs might charge 60,000 points, while another might charge 90,000 points. A certain credit card might have better a better transfer rate to the hotel loyalty program than other cards and so on. Of course there are tons of other factors to consider but it helps to be specific on your goals.
Bottom Line
In the end it all comes down to what hotels you like staying in, whether or not these hotels are in the destinations you are planning to visit and do they align to your goals. It would be useless for you to join the program because of how good it is but don't like staying in their properties. Make sure to be always on the look out for deals or promos as well as keeping track of your points and their expiry. Remember it isn't quick but a few one or two nights stay here and there could amount to free stays by the end of the year.
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