Air India Maharaja Club adds IHG Hotels & Resorts as a Stay Partner
Air India has added IHG Hotels & Resorts as Maharaja Club’s newest Stay Partner. Members can earn Maharaja Points on eligible stays across more than 7,000 hotels and 21 brands — InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Six Senses, and the rest of the IHG ladder — and convert leftover IHG One Rewards points into Maharaja Points.
Two ways to elevate your rewards
The partnership is a stay-earn plus a points conversion — not a status match, and not a double-dip.
- Earn Maharaja Points on every eligible IHG stay by setting Air India Maharaja Club as your preferred earning option in IHG One Rewards.
- Convert IHG One Rewards points you already hold into Maharaja Points (1,000 IHG = 200 Maharaja Points; minimum 1,000).
Earn points on every eligible stay
Air India’s published rates are per US dollar of eligible room spend. Taxes, fees, food and beverage, and most incidentals do not count. You pick one currency per stay: Maharaja Points or IHG One Rewards points — not both, and IHG elite nights typically follow the hotel currency, so IHG status chasers should stay on IHG earn.
| IHG brands | Base earn | 3× launch (15 Sept–31 Dec 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Participating hotels (InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Six Senses, and most other brands) | 2 Maharaja Points per USD 1 | 6 Maharaja Points per USD 1 |
| Staybridge Suites, Candlewood Suites, IHG Residences, IHG Army Hotels | 1 Maharaja Point per USD 1 | 3 Maharaja Points per USD 1 |
The 3× column is 3× Air India’s published stay rate. Confirm the live T&Cs when you register — launch maths is only useful if both the booking and the stay sit inside that window.
Convert IHG One Rewards points
If you already sit on IHG points, you can move them into Maharaja Club at 1,000 IHG One Rewards Points = 200 Maharaja Points (5:1). The minimum is 1,000 IHG points — lower than the 10,000-point floor IHG often uses for other airlines — which makes this usable for a leftover stash, not a reason to drain a hotel balance you could still sleep on.
- Request the conversion through the IHG One Rewards contact centre, not an in-app toggle.
- Air India says Maharaja Points can take up to 60 business days to credit.
- Transfers are one-way. Do not convert a balance you might still need for an IHG award night.
How to set it up
- Join or sign in to Maharaja Club and IHG One Rewards. Names should match your ID.
- In your IHG account, set Air India Maharaja Club as the preferred earning option and add your 9-digit Maharaja Club membership number.
- Register for the 3× launch on Air India’s IHG Hotels & Resorts partner page before the stay.
- Book through the Air India / IHG path shown on that page — not a random OTA or travel-agent voucher that skips loyalty.
- Keep the confirmation. Missing stay credit is easier to claim with a folio and membership numbers already on the reservation.
Is the earn rate any good?
Base earn is modest. Two Maharaja Points per US dollar is roughly 2 points per ₹85–90 of room spend — far below the 6–10 Maharaja Points per ₹100 you earn on Air India flights. Treat hotel earn as a side door, not a replacement for flying Air India or transferring bank points.
The 3× window is the part that can compete. Six Maharaja Points per US dollar lands close to a Red-tier Air India flight earn on the same rupees — if you were going to sleep at an IHG hotel anyway, and if you do not need those nights for IHG status or milestones.
Who should use this
- Air India loyalists who already stay at Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, voco, or InterContinental and want Maharaja Points instead of another thin IHG balance.
- Members sitting on a small leftover IHG stash (from 1,000 points up) who would rather dump it into Maharaja Club than leave it idle.
- Anyone with a booked IHG stay between 15 September and 31 December 2026 who can register for 3× and does not need the stay for IHG elite nights.
Who should skip the Maharaja earn toggle
- IHG elites chasing Gold / Platinum / Diamond nights or Milestone Rewards — those usually need IHG as the earning currency.
- Anyone planning an IHG award night in the next few months. Keep the hotel points.
- OTA bookers. If the stay does not go through the qualifying Air India / IHG channel, Maharaja Points will not post.