Air India and IHG Hotels & Resorts have announced a new loyalty partnership that will allow Air India’s Maharaja Club members to earn Maharaja Points on stays at IHG properties worldwide, while IHG One Rewards members can exchange their points for Maharaja Points.
The partnership brings together IHG’s global portfolio of more than 7,100 hotels across over 100 countries with Air India’s network spanning India and five continents. The collaboration is aimed at giving members greater value, choice and flexibility across their travel journeys.
Maharaja Points on IHG stays
Under the partnership, Maharaja Club members can earn 2 Maharaja Points for every US$1 spent on qualifying stays at most IHG Hotels & Resorts properties worldwide.
Stays at Candlewood Suites, Staybridge Suites, IHG Residences and IHG Army Hotels will earn 1 Maharaja Point for every $1 spent.
Maharaja Club members can also convert their IHG One Rewards Points into Maharaja Points. The conversion rate is 1,000 IHG One Rewards Points for 200 Maharaja Points, with a minimum exchange threshold of 1,000 IHG One Rewards Points.
The tie-up expands the Maharaja Club partner ecosystem beyond airline spending while adding greater flexibility to IHG One Rewards, one of the world’s largest hotel loyalty programmes, which has more than 160 million members globally.
IHG Hotels & Resorts Managing Director, South West Asia, Sudeep Jain said the partnership brings together two leading travel brands and creates greater value for members throughout their journeys.
“India continues to be one of IHG’s most important growth markets, and we are focused on expanding our presence while building deeper and more meaningful engagement with our guests,” Jain said.
He added that connecting IHG One Rewards with Maharaja Club would give members more choice and flexibility in using their rewards, while strengthening the reach of IHG One Rewards in India.
Air India expands Maharaja Club ecosystem
Air India Head of Marketing, Loyalty and E-commerce, Sunil Suresh, said Maharaja Club is evolving alongside the airline’s transformation, with a greater focus on experiences beyond the flight itself.
“By partnering with IHG Hotels & Resorts, we are extending the programme’s reach into another important part of the travel journey and making it easier for members to benefit from their loyalty across a broader range of travel experiences,” Suresh said.
Air India said its vision is to make Maharaja Points increasingly relevant to members’ travel and lifestyle journeys, with more opportunities to earn and redeem points across categories and markets.
3x Maharaja Points launch offer
To mark the partnership, Maharaja Club members will be eligible to earn 3x Maharaja Points on qualifying IHG stays between September 15 and December 31, 2026.
There will be no blackout dates during the promotional period. Members, however, will need to register for the promotion to avail themselves of the offer.
IHG strengthens India presence
The partnership comes as IHG continues to expand its presence in India. The company currently operates 53 hotels across seven brands in the country, including Six Senses, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Vignette Collection, Crowne Plaza, voco Hotels, Holiday Inn Resort and Holiday Inn Express.
IHG has a pipeline of 110 hotels expected to open in India over the next three to five years.
For Air India, the partnership marks another step in the expansion of Maharaja Club as a broader, lifestyle-led loyalty programme. The airline recently crossed the milestone of adding more than 100 brands to the Maharaja Club partnership network between FY2023 and FY2026.
During FY2026, Maharaja Club members completed more than 4.2 million transactions across partner brands covering travel, hospitality, lifestyle and everyday spending categories.
The latest partnership with IHG further broadens the programme’s international reach while linking airline and hotel loyalty ecosystems for frequent travellers.