Hyatt has a little over 600 hotels. That’s one-tenth the size of Marriott. There’s Marriott, Hilton, IHG, and Accor as players and there just aren’t chains in Hyatt’s peer group anymore.
They did try to buy Starwood themselves but their complex stock structure (two tiered stock giving outsized control to the Pritzker family) was a stopper and Marriott bested them. They tried to buy Kimpton but IHG was willing to pay far more.
There’s less than you can buy at the airport than you might think, I wish there were full pharmacies at major US airports like there are in some other places in the world, plus grocery stores – I could pick up dinner conveniently on the way home – and maybe a dry cleaner I could use on my way in and out of town.
One airport is getting a medical clinic. And even its name tells you it’s for passengers on legacy US Airways planes.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
It seems to me that airlines ought to refuse to transport customers who act uncivilly towards employees, and – union rules notwithstanding – should fire employees who act uncivilly towards customers. It also seems that law enforcement should be a last resort, not a first resort.
The Dallas Fort Worth A Terminal Admirals Club has been renovated, and I’m not sure it’s better than it used to be. Of course I think that was the one Admirals Club in the system that needed renovations the least in my opinion.
Not everyone agrees with me, because one employee kept walking through the lounge talking aloud to himself and engaging customers marveling at how nice he believes it is.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
One of the aspects of Marriott’s announced new program that seems to annoy Starwood’s most loyal customers the most isn’t even where something is being taken away from them.
Under the new program all current lifetime elites keep their current lifetime status, even though the new program is going to have tougher requirements than the Starwood program did to earn that status.
My post on the new Marriott program includes a lot of detail you don’t find anywhere else, and that I haven’t seen picked up anywhere else.
The new program offers a way to ensure hotels comply with the new elite benefits Marriott promises.
Hyatt is offering a 20% bonus on Las Vegas stays May 7 through July 31. Registration required.
This doesn’t just apply to Hyatt’s one property there, but also to MGM hotels as well, which partner with Hyatt.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
