Several companies active in the travel industry are listed on the stock market. Some of the companies offer additional discounts or benefits to their shareholders. Others prefer to work with a paid subscription service, such as IHG’s ambassador status program or Accor’s subscription options, where you can subscribe to a paid service and gain hotel status or other benefits. Below, I’ll focus on the shareholder benefits. The information is not financial advice.
If you’re Belgian and would like to use a cheap broker to buy stocks or other investment instruments, I recommend Saxobank, as they are one of the cheapest Belgian brokers. They are currently offering free transaction budget when registering under an invite link until end of 2024.
Hotel companies with shareholder benefits
Accor Hotels
Accor owns over 5100 hotels around the world. Shareholders with 50 bearer shares of Accor from Euronext Paris (or 1 registered share) can join the Accor Shareholder Club. If you’re buying through a broker, you are owning bearer shares. Subscribers receive 1 year of Accor Gold status. If you’re buying the stocks and register in January, you’ll be able to enjoy the status for the rest of the year plus the full year after that. There is no additional benefit for holding the stocks longer. Accor Gold status holders receive a free welcome drink in some hotels and the benefits listed below. For more information regarding the shareholder club of Accor, see the Terms and Conditions.
NH Hotels
The Spanish hotel chain noted on the Madrid Stock Exchange owns about 300 to 400 hotels and offer Silver, Gold and Platinum status. The status is valid for as long as you hold the shares.
– If you own 1 share, you are eligible to receive silver status
– Owning €2000 worth of shares of NH Hotels Group will set you to Gold
– Over €3000 worth of shares gets you Platinum status
Click here for terms & conditions. The status benefits are listed below:
Mélia Hotels
Shareholders of Mélia Hotels who earn a certain amount of shares for at least one year are eligible to join the shareholders club.
– If you own 1 share, you are eligible to to receive silver status
– If you own 1000 shares, you can get gold status
– Owning 10 000 shares gets you platinum status
Terms & conditions are listed here.
As a Platinum status holder, you can get access to VIP areas, get free upgrades and many more.
Premium Inn Hotels (Whitbread)
A less known hotel chain is Whitbread. Owning 64 shares of the company are eligible for free breakfast for 2 when staying at a Premier Inn hotel. The chain owns over 800 hotels, most of them located in UK & Ireland. The company also owns restaurants, where you’ll get 10% off the bill for up to 4 people. All information can be found here.
Boat cruise companies with shareholder benefits
Carnival Corporation
Mainly known for Caribbean cruises, the company offers onboard credit for shareholders owning at least 100 shares. The offer is valid until end of 2024 and may get extended. Click here for more information.
Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines
Similar to the previous cruise company, a minimum of 100 shares gets you onboard credit on their cruises. More info here.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings
It seems that the competitors all have the same strategy, as Norwegian Cruise Lines also offer onboard credit for holding at least 100 shares. All the details can be found on their page.
Discussion
It is up to every individual to consider the offers from the hotel or cruise companies to be worthwhile. It can pay off to buy shares for the benefits they offer. It is however important to consider the risk. Some companies might not be in good financial shape. If you like cruises and mainly use the same company, it can be very beneficial to consider one of the offers mentioned in this post.