Shangri-La Circle has fallen off my radar for a while, ever since American Express removed Jade status as an AMEX Platinum Charge benefit, and the programme “enhanced” its points into oblivion in April 2022.
However, for those of you still keeping the faith, Shangri-La Circle is now running a fast-track offer for Jade status. It’s not the easiest way of earning Jade (Singapore Airlines elites have a much simpler route), but it does cut the qualification requirement in half.
Shangri-La Golden Express to Jade
 |
| Golden Express |
Under Shangri-La Circle’s “Golden Express to Jade” promotion, entry-tier Gold members can upgrade to Jade by completing either of the following from 26 February 2024 to 31 May 2024:
- Staying 10 qualifying nights, or
- Earning 3,000 Tier Points
This is half the usual Jade requirement of 20 nights or 6,000 Tier Points.
| ๐จ Shangri-La Circle Elite Qualification (Regular Requirement) |
|||
| Gold | Jade | Diamond | |
| Nights | N/A | 20 | 50 |
| Tier Points | N/A | 6,000 (US$6K spend) |
15,000 (US$15K spend) |
Registration is required, and can be done via this link. Status achieved via this fast-track offer will be valid till 31 December 2025, after which you’ll need to requalify via the usual criteria.
Qualifying nights refer to nights that booked via Shangri-La’s official room reservation channels, excluding online travel agents like Hotels.com and Expedia. Nights at Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts, Kerry Hotels, JEN Hotels and Trades hotels all qualify.
Tier Points are earned at a rate of 1 Point per US$1 on:
- Qualifying room rates
- Qualifying incidental charges
- Qualifying orders on Shangri-La Boutique (cash vouchers or gift cards must be redeemed or utilised within the promotion period)
For avoidance of doubt, this offer is only available for existing Gold members who want to upgrade to Jade. An existing Jade member cannot use this as a reduced means of requalification.
The T&Cs of this offer can be found here.
What benefits do Jade members enjoy?
Here’s a summary of Circle perks by tier:
Jade members enjoy perks such as:
- free breakfast for two adults
- room upgrades (within the same category, whatever that means)
- priority for early check-in (11 a.m) and late check-out (4 p.m), subject to availability
Jade members can also enjoy instant KrisFlyer Elite Silver membership via the Infinite Journeys partnership, with a fast-track to KrisFlyer Elite Gold after three eligible flights.
However, the Shangri-La Circle footprint is extremely limited. While the chain has just over 110 properties worldwide, 56 of these are in Mainland China. With that kind of constraint, the elite benefits would need to be extremely generous to entice travellers away from the big names like Marriott Bonvoy or Hilton Honors, and frankly speaking, they’re just OK.
Moreover, following its April 2022 devaluation, Shangri-La Circle is basically a glorified cashback programme, with no opportunities for outsized value. Forget about aspirational redemptions; you get a fixed value of 15 points = US$1 regardless of tier.
| ๐จ Shangri-La Circle Effective Rebate | |||
| Gold | Jade | Diamond | |
| Points per US$1 | 1 | 1.25 | 1.5 |
| Redeem points | 15 points per US$1 |
||
| Effective rebate | 6.7% | 8.3% | 10% |
| All points are valid for 3 years | |||
Moreover, award redemptions are normally flexible, and avoid taxes and service charges. With this new fixed-value system, you’re subject to the cancellation policy of the rate you booked, and have to cough up extra for taxes and service charges.
When you consider how OTAs like Agoda or Hotels.com sometimes offer upsized cashback of up to 10% on portals like ShopBack (with potentially lower rates), you really wonder if it’s worth the effort staying loyal to Circle.
Alternative Jade fast-track offer
If you’re a Singapore Airlines elite member, there’s a much easier fast-track offer for you.
Thanks to the Infinite Journeys partnership, Solitaire PPS Club, PPS Club or KrisFlyer Elite Gold members can register and earn Jade status with one single night at any Shangri-La Hotel and Resort, Kerry Hotel, Traders Hotel or Hotel Jen worldwide.
The tier upgrade will take place within 6-8 weeks after meeting the upgrade criteria.
Conclusion
Shangri-La Circle is running a fast-track offer for Jade status, which members can earn with 10 nights or 3,000 Tier Points by 31 May 2024.
Given the relatively small footprint of Shangri-La, the middling benefits of Jade and severely devalued Circle points, I can’t say this is something you should go out of your way to earn. 1 night? Maybe. 10 nights? Maybe not.
Was a Diamond Member. Was not really worth it. Few decent t upgrades to premium rooms. Liked what you said…too few properties. I really don’t think they are that focused on loyalty.