What does Fans of M.O. (Mandarin Oriental’s hotel loyalty programme) offer you when you stay?

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Luxury hotel group Mandarin Oriental has its own little-known a loyalty programme – but one that isn’t a loyalty programme in the usual sense.

There are no points to collect or tiers to reach. Instead you get benefits simply for signing up to the programme.

Signing up is free and irrespective of how and where you book you will get complimentary wi-fi, a welcome amenity and members only offers.

Click to enlarge:

Mandarin Oriental is, however, trying to get guests to book directly. There are additional benefits for ‘Fans of M.O.’ who choose to book via the Mandarin Oriental website.

The only condition attached to receiving these benefits is that you book ‘a qualifying rate’. This must be a fully flexible (ie pay on departure, cancellations allowed) rate:

“A qualifying rate is any rate that is fully flexible and publicly available for a Fans of M.O. member to book directly on mandarinoriental.com or with the hotel itself. Negotiated rates or otherwise discounted rates, group rates, rates booked through travel agents or tour operators and rates available on any online third-party website or app do not qualify for the Fans of M.O. direct booking additional privileges.”

The additional benefits available, out of which the guest can choose two per stay for up to two rooms, are:

early check-in at noon
late check-out at 4pm
a dining and spa credit
daily breakfast
a room upgrade
streaming WiFi
a ‘celebratory treat’
pressing services (eg ironing!)

The website states that ‘benefit details may vary by hotel and will be listed during the online booking process’.

It is not clear from the website whether ‘Fans of M.O.’ means that booking via a luxury travel agent who is part of the ‘MO Fan Club’ will become irrelevant or if a ‘preferred partner’ travel agent will be able to arrange more than two benefits for your stay.

Conclusion

As it is free to enrol and certain benefits will be added to your stay irrespective of where you booked, ‘Fans of M.O.’ sounds like a no-brainer if you plan to stay at a Mandarin Oriental hotel in the near future.

Booking direct is now a lot more beneficial than going via a traditional online travel agent if you are booking a fully flexible rate. However, you might want to check with a luxury travel agent who is part of M.O.’s ‘Fan Club’ network (we work with Emyr / Bon Vivant) before booking to see whether or not they can arrange the same or more additional benefits for your stay.

You can learn more about ‘Fans of M.O.’ here.

Hotel offers update – December 2021:

Want to earn more hotel points? Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.

Want to buy hotel points? There is currently a special offer running with IHG Rewards (80% bonus to 4th January 2022) and World of Hyatt (30% discount, equivalent to a 43% bonus, to 30th December 2021).

Category

General

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

The Original David says:

20 Nov20 November 05:27

Is it too late to add a “Worst Loyalty Scheme Name” category to the inaugural HfP awards? The field is now looking rather strong: Fans of MO must be vying with Accor Live Limitless for top spot, with an honourable mention for Bonvoy.
- Phil says:
  
  20 Nov20 November 05:43
  
  I think Fans is rather clever: it references their logo and ties in with their celebrity endorsement campaigns.
  
  As for the others… 🤭
- Nick says:
  
  20 Nov20 November 06:13
  
  Whenever i see some of these rebrands it reminds me of the BBC programme ‘W1A’, especially the one where Siobhan Sharpe, the witless head of PR company Perfect Curve, attempts to rebrand the BBC logo.
  
  https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02pp8bc
- Andrew says:
  
  20 Nov20 November 08:52
  
  They are the worst you could come up with?
  
  What about:-
  
  “Grand” – Britannia Hotels
  “Instant Rewards” – MacDonald Hotels.
  
  I don’t recall Rob doing a review of either of these schemes. The latter sounds like a sachet of Nescafe Original slipped under the door.
  - Peter K says:
    
    20 Nov20 November 09:30
    
    Rob earlier this year mentioned that Instant Rewards was replacing The Club but no details on it were given. I love the Nescafe mental image 😂
    - The Original David says:
      
      20 Nov20 November 10:04
      
      To be fair, “MacDonald Hotels” sounds almost like they should be attached to an American fast-food establishment, so the Nescafé imagery might not be that out of place…
Stu_N says:

20 Nov20 November 08:01

“It is not clear from the website whether ‘Fans of M.O.’ means that booking via a luxury travel agent who is part of the ‘MO Fan Club’ will become irrelevant or if a ‘preferred partner’ travel agent will be able to arrange more than two benefits for your stay.”

We didn’t get the “direct” benefits on a stay booked via Amex FHR at MO Singapore.
- Darren says:
  
  20 Nov20 November 10:44
  
  That’s surmising, FHR would usually be free breakfast, late check and a f&b credit at most MO’s. I haven’t stayed in the Singapore MO, is it any good? Heard a few mixed reports.
  - Darren says:
    
    20 Nov20 November 10:45
    
    Surprising*
  - Michael C says:
    
    20 Nov20 November 11:54
    
    Rooms lovely but not large. Overall vibe is dark and “mature”. Best thing by far is the Sunday brunch.
    - Rob says:
      
      20 Nov20 November 12:05
      
      Emyr tells me he gets you all this (the lot, not two from a list):
      
      Upgrade on arrival, subject to availability
      Complimentary Breakfast for two daily for duration of the stay
      $100 USD equivalent Food & Beverage credit (a couple of hotels, including KL, offer something other than the credit)
      Early check-in/late check-out, subject to availability
      Complimentary Wi-Fi
      - Michael C says:
        
        20 Nov20 November 12:33
        
        Rob, any ideas if that would be the same for MO HKG, including a kid in the room?!
      - Darren says:
        
        20 Nov20 November 15:36
        
        Well, not to get picky as I have booked via Emyr and it was a good service. X2 of those are subject to availability.
  - Stu_N says:
    
    20 Nov20 November 14:43
    
    @Darren – FHR benefits were the F&B amenity that was a buffet dinner (think sushi chef counter, oysters and lobster on ice) and an upgrade to a Marina Bay junior suite. We had booked a room with exec lounge access anyway so we didn’t use breakfast.
    
    I too saw mixed reviews but have no grounds for complaints – the public areas of hotel and room were immaculate, the lounge was great, staff were super-helpful but not in-your-face and fitness centre and pool were brilliant. I’d caveat my review by saying that it was our first (and so far only) MO stay; we often use Ritz Carlton/ Conrad level hotels though.
    - Darren says:
      
      20 Nov20 November 15:32
      
      An upgrade on top is very good as I’ve had a few ‘unfortunately on this occasion…..’
      
      Both HKG MO’s are lovely, but maybe not at the moment? Not sure if they are affected by the unrest.
KBuffett says:

20 Nov20 November 08:19

It’s a useless scheme. I’ve stayed three times, booking via Emyr, Amex FHR and directly. I’ve never received any meaningful benefit. The staff don’t even acknowledge it. I’m going to MO Dubai next week, booked AMEX FHR again, let’s see if offer anything.
- MD says:
  
  20 Nov20 November 09:16
  
  And you presumably did get something from Emyr and Amex FHR?
  - KBuffett says:
    
    20 Nov20 November 21:25
    
    Yes, I’ve had everything when booking via Emyr. Never had an upgrade with AMEX FHR, even though I’ve packed quite a few booking with them. I’m very surprised they haven’t bothered allowing east bookings via their app.