As U.S. residents make travel plans for the holidays, or simply for a weekend getaway between now and the end of the year, IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is rewarding their guests by reimbursing checked baggage fees. Beginning Aug. 16, when travellers book two consecutive weekend nights at any one of the 4,500 IHG hotels worldwide for stays between Sept. 1 and Dec. 30, 2010, their checked bag is free. Travellers can participate each and every weekend they stay with an IHG hotel during the “Check It Free” promotion period, when they pay for their hotel stay using their Visa Card.

The average fee for the first checked bag on a roundtrip domestic flight is fifty dollars and according to a recent Consumer Reports magazine survey on travel gripes, luggage charges came out on top.
“With Labor Day, Thanksgiving and the December holidays just around the corner there are many opportunities for weekend getaways, or even a week-long vacation,” said Del Ross, vice president, U.S. Sales & Marketing. “But baggage fees can really add up, dipping into the overall travel budget, so we’d like to cover our guests’ checked bag fees for the next seventeen weeks to help make their leisure more convenient and enjoyable.”

U.S. residents simply submit for reimbursement of baggage fees and receive up to $850 in IHG Visa Prepaid Cards for qualifying visits during the promotional period.