To the point
The Accor program awards to its shareholders Accor Gold Elite status. Find out how.
Intro - Accor Group
The Accor Group is a leading French hotel group that brings together 5,142 properties in 112 countries under 50 brands ranging from luxury hotels (Raffles, Sofitel, Fairmont) to more economical ones (Ibis, Adagio).
The loyalty program is Accor Live Limitless.
Since 2016, AccorHotels own Fairmont hotels such as:
Why am I interested in Accor GOLD Elite status?
The group has a significant footprint in some countries (unlike Hilton Honors or Marriott Bonvoy).
For example, in Burma, the group has 11 hotels of 7 different brands in several parts of the country while there is only one Sheraton and three Hilton hotels.
Since Accor bought Fairmont in 2016, it’s been harder to get perks and upgrades at these hotels. But we can get them when booking through Visa Infinite Luxury Hotel Collection, American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program, etc.
Unlike other programs (e.g. Wyndham Rewards), it is impossible to get a status match from another program.
The Gold Elite Status offers some benefits such as:
- Early Check-in
- Late check-out
- Upgrade to a next room category subject to availability
The current value of Accor's share
The share prices of hotel groups are at half the price of their pre-COVID-19 value.
It’s a medium to long-term investment.
I bet for tourism resumption after the pandemic; I also bought Marriott shares (when the price was at its lowest).
So, in my opinion, it’s a godsend to qualify as a shareholder for less than CAD 1,800 by buying 50 shares.
And to get Accor GOLD Elite status!
Update: Accor’s cost per share was approximately 30 Euros in May 2022. So the cost is about $2,000 CAD for 50 shares.
Accor Live Limitless enrollment
I always recommend signing up for the various hotel loyalty programs before staying in a hotel. It’s free!
You will benefit, even from the lowest level, of multiple benefits such as:
- The member rate
- Free Wi-Fi
- Online check-in and fast check-out
And you can earn points for your stay.
And even if it’s not enough to get a free night, you can always convert them to Aeroplan points!
How to buy Accor Group shares from Canada
The Accor Group is a French group: the shares are traded on the Paris stock exchange in EURO.
Unlike CAD or USD shares, it isn’t easy to hold them directly in your investment portfolio without going through a broker.
However, you can buy ACCOR shares in USD through the “acronym” ACRFF. Actually, these are the same actions that are available in EURO but available in USD.
So I bought 50 ACRFF shares (ACCOR US LISTED) at 26.42 USD per unit.
With fees and the exchange rate, I invested in just under CA 1,800.
I am talking about investment because I keep the value of my shares, and I hope to resell them with a benefit.
You can also get an Accor GOLD status by applying for the ibis BUSINESS card (90 Euros/year), which I find less appealing.
Accor Group Shareholders' Club Registration
With my shares in hands, I can now register with the group’s shareholder club.
You have to select “I own at least 50 Accor shares in bearer form.”
All that remains is to send a copy of the shares to this email: Communication.Financiere@accor.com. In my case, I sent the purchase order statement with my Accor membership number.
And the trick is done: a week later, my status was changed to Accor Gold – Accor Live Limitless.
This status will be valid until 31 December of the following year, as stated in the Club’s terms and conditions.
The ALL – Accor Live Limitless Gold card is valid until December 31 of the year after the year of subscription. Card holders who meet the conditions required (minimum of 30 nights in a hotel per year or 7,000 bonus points earned over the past year) are eligible for Gold membership status for a further 12 months (365 days). Card holders who do not meet these conditions are eligible for the status that corresponds to their stays and expenditure or bonus points earned between January 1 and December 31.
Conclusion
In my case, I consider this to be an attractive way to get an Elite status for this group, which has 5,142 properties.
I usually try to focus on Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors and Best Western Rewards hotels, especially because of their credit cards in Canada.
But sometimes, for some destinations, the choices are more limited or simply non-existent in some hotel ranges.
Come to discuss that topic in our Facebook Group!
