My Intercontinental Royal Ambassador Tenure Begins
A couple months ago a super generous TPG reader offered me a nomination to Intercontinental Hotel Group's Royal Ambassador program. To be honest, I had always heard about this program, but always wrote it off because I never stay at Intercontinental Hotels. I can usually maintain top tier elite status on Hyatt and Starwood, so I didn't want to bite off more than I can chew.
Plus, the Priority Club/Intercontinental loyalty programs confuse the heck out of me. There are three status levels at play here:
1) Priority Club membership. Priority Club is the program that oversees the points of all Priority Club hotels: Intercontinental, Crowne Plaza, Indigo, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Starbridge Suites and Candlewood Suites. In general, their elite program is very weak compared to the other chains - the only real benefits to being a Platinum are complimentary room upgrades (subject to availability), guaranteed room availability (72 hours in advance), a 50% bonus in base points and overall better customer service.
However, Intercontinental has it's own loyalty program called Ambassador. There are two levels: Ambassador and Royal Ambassador. In order to be a Royal Ambassador, you must first be an Ambassador. To become an Ambassador (enrollment page), all you have to do is fill out a form and pay $200. In turn, you get:
- Guaranteed room upgrades
- Priority Club Gold status
- - 4pm late check out
- - Free weekend night
- - Fresh fruit and mineral water
- - Single Rate for Double Occupancy
- - 5,000 PRIORITY CLUB® BONUS POINTS
There are two ways (that I know of) to become a Royal Ambassador:
- Stay at Intercontinental Hotels a bunch of times and spend a lot of money (it's thought to be the top 1% that are invited to become Royal Ambassadors)
- Be nominated by an existing Royal Ambassador (the route I went)
Royal Ambassador status as defined by Priority Club:
"Royal Ambassador status is the highest level of status and entitles Priority Club Rewards members to additional benefits at InterContinental Hotels and Resorts. Royal Ambassador status is granted to Priority Club Rewards members by invitation and at Priority Club Rewards' sole discretion. Priority Club Rewards reserves the right to limit the number of members with Royal Ambassador status. Guaranteed room availability for one room occupied by the Royal Ambassador with 24-hour advance reservation. Reservations must be made before 12:00 midday (local hotel time) 24 hours prior to intended arrival for room availability to be guaranteed. Only in exceptional circumstances where the hotel has been completely reserved by the Government and with explicit Priority Club Rewards approval, may a reservation be declined. Early check-in (8:00 am) shall be available to all Royal Ambassadors. Upgrade to an executive room, Club InterContinental room or a suite for Royal Ambassadors at check-in. In circumstances where an executive room, Club InterContinental room or a suite is not available at 8:00 am, the Royal Ambassador will be checked into an available room until the executive room, Club InterContinental room or the suite is available later on the day of arrival. Use of all in-hotel health club facilities (where available) shall be complimentary for Royal Ambassadors. Treatments such as massage, facials, manicure may incur charges. Complimentary beverages from the mini bar in the Royal Ambassador's personal room only, and for in-room consumption by member only (benefit excludes non beverage items). Void where prohibited by law."
Those are some pretty sweet benefits; 8am check-in alone is a major score, especially when flying in somewhere on an overnight flight. There's nothing worse than waiting for hours before your room is ready. I also can't wait to try out the free minibar benefit :-)
Last November Priority Club was giving away Platinum status, so I went from a general member to a Platinum Royal Ambassador without a single stay at a Priority Club hotel.
So by the time this post goes live, I will have already checked into my first Intercontinental hotel (Madrid), so I'll be sure to report back on my experience. I have several other Intercontinental stays lined-up, so stay tuned! And as always, feel free to share your tips on maximizing Priority Club status and points below. I'm a newbie, so bring it on (and feel free to correct me if I've gotten anything wrong).
And one last THANK YOU to TPG reader Julianne for her generosity. I hope my trip reports and coverage on the program are all you expected and the next time we are in the same city I owe you a drink (and not just a free one from the minibar!).
[card card-name='Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express' card-id='22035076' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees