Category Archives for Hotels.
Several days ago I flagged the possibility that Marriott would be eliminating the great annual offer of 10 elite nights for booking a meeting at a hotel. Before the Marriott and Starwood programs were combined Marriott used to let you earn 10 elite nights per meeting with no annual cap.
Word on the street was that this offer would be going away entirely. And indeed a leaked internal communication from Marriott bears this out.
Marriott did not deny that the 10 elite nights for any event benefit is changing, although it’s not clear when or what the change will be (they simply promise to tell us if they make changes).
My read is this: if you want to take advantage of this opportunity in 2020 it might be a good idea to do it early in the year.
You’re definitely going to want to register for Hilton’s new promotion and do it now even if you don’t expect to stay at Hiltons because you’ll never remember to go back later to do it when you wind up with an unexpected stay.
Meanwhile Hilton is back selling points at the lowest price Honors points are ever offered – half a cent apiece through a 100% bonus on purchase points valid through December 28.
There were recording devices found in guest rooms at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis. They were discovered by students on a school trip. Police are investigating the cameras.
I believe major chain hotels – as a brand standard – should conduct regular sweeps to ensure guest privacy.
Back in March we learned that $7000 per night all-inclusive North Island in the Seychelles would be joining Marriott’s Luxury Collection and I confirmed that it would become part of the Bonvoy program for earning and redemption.
Marriott updated their program terms to allow for redemptions that cost more than category 8 high season – because we were never going to book this place for just 100,000 points per night. We can only hope though that, having made the change, they aren’t tempted to expand the pool of properties “off award chart.”
There are some incredible hotels in the SLH portfolio, and it’s cool to be able to use Hyatt points for stays (though elite benefits don’t apply). Be careful on paid stays that you don’t overpay booking through Hyatt.
American Airlines ConciergeKey members receive Hyatt Globalist status. It seems like Hyatt is extending a similar reciprocal benefit to some of their top tier Globalist members. Surprisingly, these Globalists – rather than rarified Courtesy Card members – are being given American Airlines Executive Platinum for 2020 (expires January 2021).
UNLV’s Professor Stephen Miller, who runs their Center for Business and Economic Research, finds that resort and parking fees are driving Southern California visitors from Las Vegas.
There are actually some very basic propositions here, each one of which is completely obvious.
In a change that mirrors what other larger hotel chains have done, Hyatt appears to be moving closer to revenue-based redemptions and delivering average rather than outsized value for points.
Starting in March there will be new off-peak and peak pricing levels for each free night award and In late January they’ll improve the value of points for in-hotel redemptions, getting at least a penny per point in value.
The Sheraton Taipei is offering a coupon worth about $3.28 at CVS in exchange for your returning unused single use personal amenities. They pitch this as a green initiative much like declining housekeeping for points.
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 »
