The business of alliances

The average global leisure traveller visiting India for the first time is typically unfamiliar with The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts brand—despite its frequent recognition as one of the world’s top luxury hotel groups. Kristi Gole, Executive Vice President - Strategy at Global Hotel Alliance, explains, “Through the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty platform, we put The Leela in front of 30 million customers worldwide, expanding their footprint and maximising visibility.”

Relais & Châteaux, led by Laurent Gardinier, has onboarded 82 new hotels across 33 countries in just the past two years. (Read about its India outlook in India, Mon Amour in this edition). Its booking data reflects that 82% of the activity generated by Indian, Thai, and Sri Lankan clients is concentrated in Europe for the brand. 

Notably, international spending by Indian GHA DISCOVERY members (54%) has, for the first time, surpassed domestic revenue (46%), with Thailand, the UAE, and Singapore emerging as top international destinations. GHA’s loyalty program, which includes 850 hotels, resorts, and palaces across 45 brands in 100 countries, recently launched a report exploring the key factors driving guest loyalty. At its core: what makes travellers stick around in a crowded loyalty landscape?

Gole highlights three defining trends uncovered by their research—simplicity, personalisation, and experiences over discounts. “We’ve seen a clear shift in traveller expectations and rising demand for loyalty schemes that are intuitive, deliver genuine value, are easy to use, and elevate the overall stay. Independent hotel loyalty programmes that deliver on these fronts are gaining ground on their larger counterparts.”

Loyalty programmes, once associated only with points, are evolving. GHA believes it’s now about meaningful, easy-to-use benefits, clear value, and a sense of recognition.

Preferred Hotels & Resorts has built its brand around celebrating individuality. “While we uphold core quality standards across service and guest experience, we give our member hotels the flexibility to showcase their local heritage and character,” says Seema Roy, Area Managing Director – South Asia, Middle East and Africa. Over the past year, the company has significantly expanded its footprint in India, now with 26 member hotels across its collections—including five within the prestigious Legend Collection.

Artyzen Singapore, a standalone member of Preferred Hotels, faced the classic challenge of visibility as a new entrant in a competitive market. “We needed to find ways to accelerate our traction and reach a wider audience from day one,” says General Manager Marcel NA Holman. Joining the Preferred Hotels & Resorts Legend Collection helped bridge that gap. “The alliance connected us to a curated global audience of high-intent travellers—people who actively seek out independent, culturally driven hotels like Artyzen. Through this network, we’ve been able to deliver greater value to our guests by combining the soul of our brand with the scale, credibility, and booking infrastructure of a global platform.”

These market trends, combined with growing interest in India among GHA DISCOVERY’s 26-million-strong global membership, present immense opportunities for The Leela, says Anuraag Bhatnagar, Chief Executive Officer, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts. The group, he adds, “not only offers luxury accommodation but also the destination experiences today’s travellers seek—from adventure and cuisine to nature.”

Interestingly, The Leela maintains partnerships with both GHA and Preferred Hotels. Gole clarifies, “For hotels affiliated with multiple alliances, we collaborate closely to avoid brand dilution and ensure consistency in positioning and guest messaging.

Are alliances value-adds?

“Benefits resonate with travellers differently depending on the purpose of their stay—business or leisure—and the type of property they book,” says Tullio.

MRS Group of Hotels, which operates Suryagarh Jaisalmer, Narendra Bhawan Bikaner, and Mary Budden Estate, joined Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) last year. Sameer Mehraa, Chief Commercial Officer, notes that the collaboration has delivered value by providing access to a vast global distribution network and greater marketing reach to a discerning international audience. “This partnership also adds value through SLH’s exclusive alliance with Hilton, allowing Hilton Honors members to earn and redeem points at our hotels,” he adds.

Catering to boutique hotels for the past 35 years, SLH has created a community of independent minded travellers and collection of more than 620 independently spirited hotels in more than 90 countries. Mark Wong, Senior Vice President of SLH has taken the path less travelled and journeyed to the edge of the map to seek out and select the distinctive, the diverse, and the downright delightful.

“Our role as a global representation company is to provide value to our member hotels by creating a future where people experience the world with intention, embrace its intimacy, and protect its integrity,” he says. On the principle of “independent-minded” travel, he explains, “What unites our portfolio is not uniformity, but a commitment to excellence, character, and guest intimacy. Some of our member hotels have been in the same family for generations. All are anti-chain and anti-same.”

One of the biggest differentiators of a loyalty alliance is the simplicity of its reward currency. For instance, GHA DISCOVERY doesn’t use points like traditional loyalty programmes. Instead, members earn Discovery Dollars (D$), where D$1 equals US$1—offering clarity and ease of use, with D$ spendable like cash across the globe, minus the complex math of legacy schemes.

The naysayers

Contrarily, while they don’t speak about it, Aman Hotels has deliberately chosen to remain outside any alliances—yet continues to attract guests worldwide to its distinguished properties. Being part of an alliance offers distinctive benefits, but it isn’t for everyone. Some brands fear that their image may be diluted amid the array of properties within such networks.

Wong notes, “Boutique hotels are naturally well-positioned to build emotional loyalty through bespoke service. Front-line staff can be empowered to deliver small but memorable touches, like remembering a returning guest’s preferences. Hotels also work closely with the local community to deliver exceptional experiences.” Still, only a few choose to do this independently, without the guidance of global benchmarks and best practices.

Sustainability leg-up

Recently, Minor Hotels evolved its master brand strategy to become guest-facing, fuelling strategic growth for the group. Tullio elaborates, “Our sustainability strategy guides all our decision-making, ensuring that all our actions improve economic, social, and environmental outcomes for everyone involved.”

GHA’s Green Collection helps loyalty programme members identify properties that align with their values and promote conscious travel. Each Green Collection property holds at least one certification from a globally recognised environmental organisation—among them EarthCheck, Green Growth 2050, Green Key, and Green Globe. These 20 leading certification bodies require hotels to meet the highest international standards for sustainability, with regular third-party audits to maintain certification. “The growth of the Green Collection is a powerful testament to our brands’ shared commitment to responsible travel,” says Jelena Kezika, Vice President - Strategy, Global Hotel Alliance. “In just two years, it has grown to represent more than half of our global portfolio, proving that sustainability is not just a priority but a defining pillar of hospitality today.”

While the Green Collection helps conscious consumers make more informed choices, it also supports member hotels on their sustainability journeys—sharing best practices, success stories, and meaningful initiatives to expand collective impact.

Similarly, Preferred Travel Group has transformed sustainability from a buzzword into an operational imperative through its Beyond Green initiative. Launched in 2021, this rigorous certification programme subjects luxury properties to 54 core sustainability criteria based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Unlike traditional eco-labels, Beyond Green demands measurable impact across three pillars: environmental stewardship (including eliminating single-use plastics and restoring eco-systems), cultural heritage protection, and direct economic benefits to local communities through prioritised hiring and sourcing.

Properties undergo detailed applications, biennial on-site inspections, and must demonstrate achievements that exceed baseline requirements—from habitat restoration to cultural preservation. This commitment extends to the corporate level: Preferred Travel Group’s December 2024 Climate Action Plan targets a 50% emissions reduction by 2030 and Net Zero by 2050—turning sustainability standards into competitive advantages rather than compliance checkboxes.

Holman offers a grounded perspective: “From architectural choices promoting natural ventilation to wellness programming that integrates mindful living, we’ve embedded environmental consciousness into the way we design, operate, and engage with our community. That said, our alliance provides a useful portal to benchmark ourselves against like-minded properties around the world. While the initiatives come primarily from our end, the alliance offers a valuable reference that keeps us informed, accountable, and inspired to do more.”

Small Luxury Hotels' Considerate Collection, launched in 2021, distinguishes itself through dual-validation rigour. Properties must achieve GSTC recognition and pass both an internal SLH panel review and an independent GSTC assessment across UNSDG pillars. With 74 certified members, this transparent framework helps combat greenwashing by ensuring that luxury hospitality delivers measurable sustainability outcomes—not just marketing claims.

The final view

Recent research by Preferred Hotels, part of The Luxury Travel Report, reveals that 85% of affluent travellers rely on “luxury hacks” to enjoy high-end travel without overspending. For 82%, loyalty programs are essential to ensuring quality, and nearly two-thirds cite a great past stay as the top reason they return.

As luxury travel becomes more intentional, immersive, and value-driven, hotel alliances are becoming essential. For independent and boutique properties, they offer not only global reach but also the infrastructure, intelligence, and loyalty ecosystems to compete with legacy chains. For travellers, they promise seamless cross-border experiences anchored in personalisation, recognition, and increasingly, sustainability. These alliances are no longer just about distribution—they’re evolving into platforms for identity, values, and shared excellence. The rise of sustainability-centric collections marks a shift where luxury is defined not only by opulence, but by impact.

Yet, there is space for outliers. Some brands continue to stand apart, proving that a strong narrative and consistent excellence can still command loyalty through a different playbook. Ultimately, today’s hotel alliances reflect a new hospitality order: one where collaboration trumps competition, and loyalty is earned through purpose, not just points. It’s clear that those who ally wisely, thrive widely.