For a limited time the Nordic Choice hotels program is offering a complimentary status match to members from various elite programs, including Hilton & IHG.
This means if you hold a credit card that gives complimentary elite status, such as the IHG credit card, you’ll be able to match your status with Nordic Choice.
You can submit your match request here. Do note the page is in Finnish but you can easily use google translate.
I was able to match my Hilton Diamond status to Nordic Choice Platinum.
While Choice hotels in the US may have a bit of a jaded reputation, the Choice brand in Scandinavia is quite strong with hotels catering to business travelers.
Many Choice hotels in Scandinavia offer complimentary breakfast, which is no small benefit considering the high cost of food in the region. This isn’t your typical toast and egg spread either, with the food selection more in line with a brunch buffet.
Breakfast at the Clarion Stockholm
Benefits for Elite Choice members
Benefits for Gold & Platinum members are quite strong, with a late check out up to 6 PM, 125 KR (around $20) food and drink voucher, and even guaranteed room upgrades for Platinum members.
Not only that, platinum members can use any Choice hotel gym for absolutely no charge, even when not staying at the hotel! If you happen to be living near a Choice hotel, this could work out to hundreds of dollars in saved gym membership fees!
Benefits for US domestic travelers
If you’re not planning on traveling to Scandinavia in the near future, you may still find value with Choice’s partnership with Hertz. Gold and Platinum members are eligible for a status match to Hertz President’s Circle.
You can apply for your status match here.
This is a nice little backdoor way to free car upgrades and guaranteed availability.
Using Points
Choice Hotels Scandinavia hotels can be booked with Choice points, which open quite a few redemption opportunities. It’s quite common to see hotels costing around 10,000-15,000 points per night, which is quite reasonable.
There is a Choice credit card, although with a sign up bonus of only 25,000 miles, I personally wouldn’t apply for the card.
Instead, I’d recommend directly purchasing points from Choice. Choice frequently runs promotions of 30% bonus points or more.
I was able to stay at the Clarion Stockholm for only $70 worth of Choice points, a bargain considering the going rate was over $200 a night.
How to Status Match:
Simply go to this link and submit your details, along with a screenshot of your current hotel statement. The page is in Finnish so just use Chrome and translate the page to English. The process is quite simple and should take only a few minutes.
I was able to get status matched within 48 hours.
Overall Thoughts:
I’d highly recommend submitting a status match, especially if you’re planning on going to Scandinavia in the near future. The complimentary Hertz Presidents Club status is a nice perk for those who aren’t planning going to Scandinavia anytime soon.
