Introduction to ‘1865’, Langham’s loyalty program with good points earn rates and easy to attain status

Langham Hotels is a small hotel chain with 22 hotels in Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, London, Hong Kong and beyond.

When booking directly with Langham, or via a travel agent (such as Amex Travel via FHR), you can earn points in your preferred frequent flyer currency via their 1865 loyalty program.

Given their footprint in the region, a reputation for high-end hotels with good service, and the ability to earn points, I thought I’d take a look at 1865 and see what’s on offer.

About Langham Hotels

Let’s get this out the way first – Nightly rates at The Langham and Langham Place hotels are usually at the higher end, but you may be able to score a deal – more on that later. And secondly, the 1865 website is not exactly modern, not working on mobile or on browsers without flash.

Moving on.

Langham have three hotel brands – The Langham, Langham Place and Eaton Hotels. The business is Hong Kong owned.

“The Langham” hotels include those in Sydney, Melbourne, London and Auckland, and are the classic option in terms of style.

Langham Sydney

Langham Melbourne

Langham Auckland

Langham London

Langham Place hotels seem premium and more modern / contemporary, with hotels in New York , Shanghai and Chicago.

Langham New York

Langham Shanghai

Langham Chicago

Eaton Hotels is a new brand launching in 2017, with a small number of hotels already operating in Hong Kong and New Delhi. Their website doesn’t offer much about their brand or where else they will be opening, yet.

Earning points with Langham Hotels

When it comes to earning points 1865 doesn’t have it’s own points currency – instead choosing to partner with most of the major frequent flyer programs out there.

The earn rates aren’t bad, usually with at least 500 points on offer per stay, and some rewards amping up to a per night earn rate.

Here’s the full list:

The picks, in my book, are:

• 500 AAdvantage, Avios or Mileage Plus miles per night
• 3 Velocity or Qantas Points per dollar for hotels in Australia

Langham Hotels Locations

The full list of Langham hotel locations is here.

Right now, the following hotels are under the Langham brands in Asia:

The Langham Haikou
The Langham Hong Kong
The Langham Shanghai
The Langham Shenzen
Langham Place, Beijing Capital Airport
Langham Place, Guangzhou
Langham Place, Haining
Langham Place, Xiamen
Cordis Hong Kong at Langham Place

2017 should see hotels open across China and in Jakarta, while Bali, Cambodia and Tokyo are on the map for 2018 and 2019.

In Europe, The Langham, London is the only hotel operating – the original Langham, opened in – you guessed it – 1865.

In the Pacific, we have
The Langham Sydney
The Langham Melbourne
The Langham Auckland

And in the US:

The Langham Boston
The Langham Chicago
The Langham Huntingdon, Pasadena
Langham Place New York, 5th Avenue

In the Middle East, Hotels in Dubai and Doha are planned, and in the US, a resort in Santa Fe, San Francisco and Dallas are in the works.

Status in 1865 for those who stay at Langham hotels relatively frequently

Status in the 1865 program is dubbed ‘membership’. For joining you get ‘Explorer’ level, which includes express check in and a 2pm check out. All status levels include points earning into partner airline programs and free internet.

The benefits of ‘Gateway’ level kick in at just 3 stays in a year, adding 4pm late checkout and a welcome amenity.

‘Voyager’, at 5 stays in a year, includes one suite upgrade voucher and room upgrades on availability.

‘Destiny’ level is invite-only but the red carpet really does get rolled out if you are invited – with a one way limo transfer included for each stay, and links to a dedicated reservations office.

1865 membership levels work on membership year, not calendar year.

What’s noteworthy is relatively how few stays it takes to pick up Gateway or Voyager status, which offer some real benefits in terms of upgrades and a few perks – compare this to 25 stays with Starwood or Hilton, for example, for their top tier status.

I have cherry picked the best benefits in the summary above – the full list is here.

Current Langham offers

Langham have an offers listing page which outlines some of their current deals.

Participation in American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts

A decent number of the Langham hotels are part of American Express Fine Hotels, which is accessible by Platinum Charge cardholders.

These are:

Auckland
Melbourne
Sydney
London
Pasadena
Chicago
New York 5th Avenue
Hong Kong
Shanghai

Amex FHR benefits at Langham Hotels typically include a $100 USD or equivalent hotel credit to use during your stay, free breakfast for two people, guaranteed 4pm checkout, and a room upgrade depending on availability.

You’ll also find some hotels periodically offering 3rd or 4th night free offers when booking through Amex FHR too.

Summing up

Langham Hotels are not a massive chain, but given their footprint in Australia and in New Zealand, are well worth knowing about.

If you book direct or through a travel agent you should be able to earn points on your stay, where the pick for most people (in Australia) would be to earn Qantas or Velocity Points.

All status tiers are relatively attainable for travellers who frequent Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland regularly, or go further afield.

For Platinum Charge cardholders, the participation in Amex FHR means that some of the somewhat high nightly rates can be offset from the breakfast and hotel credit on offer.

All photos courtesy of Langham Hotels