The Discovery Loyalty Program is the loyalty program of the Global Hotels Alliance (GHA). Covering a range of brands around the globe, in Australia, the Discovery flag is flown by the Event Hotels (Rydges, QT, Atura and Art Series), Pan Pacific and ParkRoyal brands.
At present, there are only a small number of Pan Pacific and Park Royal hotels in Australia. However, given the recent announcement that the Hilton South Wharf Melbourne was rebranding as a Pan Pacific, there has been a renewed interest in the Discovery program.
Most loyalty programs have two components, recognition and rewards. As an alliance program, Discovery sets a level of recognition that is offered to guests at the various status levels. On the rewards side, the program does not operare the more conventional points based program. In place of points, it offers a range of local experiences.
Discovery Status Levels
As with many programs, the Discovery program offers status levels within the program. As you stay more often during the year, you can move up through the three status levels. On entry into the program, you will be awarded Gold status. From there, you can work your way up through the Platinum and finallt to the Black level.
The following table shows the benefits in offer for the various levels within the program
| Benefits | Discovry Gold Entry |
Discovery Platinum | Discovery Black |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualification | 10-29 nights per year | 30+ nights per year | |
| Complimentary Bottled Water | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Complimentary Internet Access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Late Checkout | No | Yes – 3pm | Yes – 6pm |
| Free Newspaper | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Local Experiences | No | Yes | Yes |
| Guaranteed Availability | No | Yes – 48hrs | Yes – 24hrs |
| Room upgrades | No | Yes – one level |
Yes – Two level |
| Customised room preference | No | No | Yes |
While some programs offer club access or breakfast to top tier elites, the Discovery program does not.They do, however, offer a two level upgrade, which may be enough to get you a room with club lounge access.
Experiences
A unique feature of the program is that it awards members local experiences. These local experiencs cover things such as tours, dinners, room credits, spa treatments or overnight hotel stays. There are two levels of experiences, Platinum and Black, with the Black experiences typically being of higher value.
Local Experiences are awarded as follows:
- Each year that you attain or renew Platinum, one Platinum Local Experience is awarded;
- Each year that you attain or renew Black, one Black Local Experience is awarded;
- Platinum and Black members earn subsequent Local Experience awards every time they stay at a new DISCOVERY hotel brand; the Local Experience award will correspond to your current membership level.
The Hotels
Across the globe, Discovery Hotels cover 35 brands in 76 countries in its membership. In the 35 brands, thete are 550 individual hotels participating.
Locally, the program is represented by the the Rydges, QT, Art Series, Pan Pacific and Parkroyal brands. Further afield, we see brands such as Anantara Hotels, Grace Hotels, Marco Polo Hotel. The full list of brands can be found on the Discovery website.
Event Hotels (Rydges, QT)
While the Event Hotels group (Rydges, QT) participate in the Discovery program, they also operate their own program, Priority Guest Rewards. While PGR members will typically be Discovery members, If you choose to stay at the Rydges chain using your PGR number, that will determine the benefits that apply to you for the stay.
Frequent Flyer Points
As mentioned, the Discovery program does not award points when staying at a participating hotel. Individual hotels, hiwever, may allow you to earn points in Frequent Flyer programs. For example, at Pan Pacific and ParkRoyal hotels you are able to earn Qantas or Velocity points during your stay. For stays in Australia, the hotels offer 3 points per dollar in room charges. Outside Australia, a flat 1,000 points per stay is made available.