Priority Guest Rewards (PGR) is a small loyalty program tied to the mid-scale QT, Rydges and Atura hotel brands. It offers some useful perks even with entry-level membership, so it’s definitely worth signing up if you’re going to stay at any of those properties.
Here is a snapshot of the PGR program, including all the changes you need to know with the basics of earning and redeeming points and status tiers.
How do I join Priority Guest Rewards?
The quickest way to join PGR is to do it online. It’s easy and free to join the program.
- Go to the ‘Become a member’ page on the PGR website.
- Fill in your personal details, and make sure to agree to the two T&C boxes at the bottom.
- Click ‘Join Now’. Your membership details will be sent to your email.
What Priority Guest Reward brands are there?
Within Australia, PGR hotel brands are QT, Rydges and Atura Hotels, plus some ‘Independent Collection‘ hotels such as The Victoria Hotel, Yarra Valley Lodge, and the Pensione Hotel Perth.
Worldwide, your PGR membership is also recognised at more than 550 properties within the Global Hotel Alliance, through the broader Discovery loyalty program.
What are the Priority Guest Reward status levels?
There are three status tiers, starting from the base-level Gold, then Platinum and Black.
PGR Gold
Requirement: just enrolment in the program
- Earns 10 points per night
- 1pm late check-out
- Room upgrade on availability [QT only when booking direct]
- 20% discount on dining and drinks
- 10% discount on best rates online
- Complimentary welcome drink
- QT only: 9am check-in and ‘On the QT Secret Treats’
- Discovery: 10% discount on rates, free bottled water and newspaper
PGR Platinum
Requirement: Stay 5 times or 10 nights in a calendar year
In addition to Gold benefits, you get:
- Earns 15 points per night
- 3pm late check-out
- 15% discount on best rates online
- QT only: 9am check-in and ‘On the QT Secret Treats’
- Discovery: Complimentary local experiences (after meeting certain criteria), 3pm late check-out, single room upgrade, 48 hrs guaranteed availability
PGR Black
Requirement: Stay 10 times or 30 nights in a calendar year
In addition to Gold and Platinum benefits, you get:
- Earn 20 points per night
- 50% discount on dining and drinks
- 6pm late checkout
- Discovery: 6pm late check-out, 9am early check-in, double room upgrade, 24 hrs guaranteed availability
How do I earn PGR points?
Staying at participating QT, Rydges and Atura properties is the main way to earn PGR points. As a baseline, you need 150 points to redeem for a reward night. Based on the status tiers above:
- Gold members earn 10 points per night stayed
- Platinum members earn 15 points per night stayed
- Black members earn 20 points per night stayed
Note that PGR points usually expire after 18 months of inactivity, so make sure you get some regular stays in. Furthermore, points also have an expiry of 36 months after being earned, so you’ve got three years to use them.
These PGR points are earned when booking through Rydges, Atura, QT Hotels and the Priority Guest Rewards websites, or when calling the hotel reservations team directly. Make sure your membership number is included in the booking.
How do I redeem PGR points?
There are six main ways to spend your PGR points:
- Free Night Stay: from 150 points per night at most properties. It’s 300 for QT Sydney, QT Bondi, QT Melbourne, QT Wellington and QT Auckland
- Gift cards: from 80 points for a $50 Rydges gift card
- Free meal at a restaurant: from 40 points for the main meal
- Free bottle of wine: from 40 points
- Free breakfast: from 30 points
- Free drinks at the bar: from 20 points for two drinks
While the points are fairly easy to spend, we’ve noted a number of caveats with certain rewards that are worth highlighting.
- Many hotels don’t offer drinks, breakfast or bottle of wine rewards, including QT Bondi, QT Gold Coast, Rydges Darwin Central, Rydges Gladstone, Pensione Hotel Perth & The Ultimo Hotel.
- In addition, the free main meal is not offered by the properties above and also QT Sydney, QT Melbourne, QT Wellington, QT Perth, plus QT Falls Creek.
- The Free Room Night is not available at QT Falls Creek or Rydges Horizons Snowy during ski season (1 June to 30 Sept).
- Reward night bookings are subject to availability and are also non-refundable, unlike most other hotel chain reward bookings (this is temporarily waived due to COVID-19).
What effect does COVID-19 have on Priority Guest Rewards?
PGR is helping members with various extensions during the COVID-19 period of restrictions and reduced travel. As of July 2021, these temporary perks are in effect:
- Status tier renewal is on hold until 2022
- All direct bookings, including reward nights, have flexible booking conditions
How do I contact Priority Guest Rewards?
Have a question? The easiest way to get in touch is via the web form. The rewards program doesn’t have a direct phone number to call, though, for urgent stay enquiries, you could contact the hotel directly.
Summing up
Priority Guest Rewards is a rather niche program for guests who primarily stay at the mid-scale QT, Rydges or Atura properties around Australia. The ‘earn and burn’ model is fairly simple, with points being earned per stay and six easy reward options.
Infrequent guests might have enough points to get free breakfast or a few drinks at the bar, while busier road warriors might earn enough to enjoy a free night’s stay at their favourite hotel.
Very difficult to make bookings as there hotels i wish to use are being used for quarantine
1. An attempt to read the fine print of the T&Cs for the PGR Rewards Program resulted in confusion rather than clarity
My main area of confusion related to the maintenance of the Black PGR Tier Status: “to maintain the status of a Black PGR Member an individual must continue to stay a certain number of Hotel Room Nights or Hotel Stays – Currently, 10 Hotel Stays or 30 Hotel Room Nights per calendar year is required”
SO does that mean the 10 HOTEL STAYS must be a minimum of three consecutive nights to qualify? Given that would be equal to 30 one night HOTEL ROOM STAYS?
2. Do I now need to join the Discovery Program since they separated in 2021?
OR do existing PGR Program Members automatically get registered in the new Discovery Program? And is there a different digital card issued for this program?
Any clarification would be most appreciated ‍♀️
2.