The IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card offers a range of useful benefits, such as automatic Platinum Elite status, every fourth night free when you redeem IHG points for a stay of four nights or more, and up to $50 United TravelBank Cash each calendar year. But one benefit rises above the rest and effectively pays for the card’s annual fee in itself: the account anniversary night certificate. Let’s dive in.

IHG anniversary night certificate

Every year on the anniversary of opening your IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card, you’ll receive a certificate for a one-night stay at a property with a point redemption value of 40,000 points or less. TPG’s March 2025 valuations peg the value of 40,000 IHG points at $200 — more than double the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card’s $95 annual fee. So you can effectively score more than enough value to cover the card’s annual fee just by redeeming your anniversary night certificate each year.

One of my favorite hotels to use an IHG anniversary night certificate at is the Kimpton De Witt in Amsterdam. During shoulder and low season, you can often find award nights bookable for around 40,000 points. For example, for a stay on Dec. 2, I could redeem 40,000 points or pay $282.91 for a reservation that I can cancel for free up until a day before my stay.

Of course, you could use an IHG anniversary night certificate in plenty of other ways. Regardless of how you use it, you’ll likely get at least $99 in value. For example, staying at an airport hotel before an early-morning flight or after a late-night arrival will likely cost you more than $99, even if it costs fewer than 40,000 points. You can also add points from your account to use the anniversary night certificate at more expensive properties if you can’t find anything to your liking within the 40,000-point limit.

You must redeem your anniversary night certificate and complete your stay within 12 months of when IHG issues the certificate.

Related: Why you should get (and keep) the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card

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Bottom line

I love my IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card. Between the welcome offer, ongoing perks and anniversary night certificate, I’m always getting some sort of value out of it. (Speaking of the welcome offer, for a limited time, new cardmembers can earn 170,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months from account opening.) But the anniversary night alone takes makes it a winning choice. When used effectively, a single night’s stay at an IHG property lets you earn your annual fee back twice over in value.

To learn more, see our IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card review.

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