Hotels

Category Archives for Hotels.

Hyatt Promises To Fix Zeroing Out Award Night Availability In Aruba

view on balcony looking over ocean
Jan 13 2023

The Hyatt Regency Aruba has a history of playing games with free night award availability. They made it nearly impossible to spend Hyatt points, assigning only 22 out of their 357 rooms as potentially eligible for redemption. This hotel is actually owned by Hyatt, and after I brought their shenanigans to corporate’s attention they adjusted the practice.

However Aruba redemptions again became a problem. Some time in the second half of December all award night inventory at the property for 2023 zeroed.

Continue Reading »

Marriott Resort Charges Elites A Cash Co-Pay For Breakfast, Complimentary Doesn’t Mean Free

Dec 24 2022

Marriott offers complimentary breakfast at most of its brands to Platinum elites and higher. Hoewver they don’t really say what breakfast means. And some hotels have figured out that the terms and conditions of the Bonvoy program don’t actually define ‘complimentary’ so they interpret it to mean “charged to the customer, but just for less money.” The Tribute Portfolio Royal Palm South Beach Miami is one of those hotels.

Continue Reading »

Playing Benefits Whack-a-Mole With The Park Hyatt New York

Park Hyatt New York Proves Why Hotel Loyalty Makes Sense
Dec 23 2022

The Park Hyatt New York is a sublime property, and one of the most redeemed-for hotels in the Hyatt program. I’ve had some excellent stays there, including upgrades to suites, and I love that they allow Globalist members to take their elite breakfast as room service or in the restaurant.

Recently, however, they’ve told top tier elites that their benefits are far less than what the program promises.

Continue Reading »

249 Hotel Nights Later: How Marriott, Hyatt and IHG Get It Wrong

outside marriott hotel
Dec 16 2022

An anonymous reader captures something in a guest post that I think is important, based on some pretty extensive experience on the road. Hyatt is great if you can stick to full service properties not owned or managed by bad actors, but there aren’t enough properties and too many limited service ones. So where you going to go? You’re stuck with Marriott, so Marriott can get away with failing to live up to promises and expectations. It’s still better than the alternatives.

Continue Reading »

More Hotels Seem To Be Playing Games With Award Nights, And Chains Aren’t Stopping Them

Dec 15 2022

My sense is that Hyatt clearly enforces the rules that it has, but there are loopholes a few properties drive a truck through. Marriott does have clear rules in its program guide for hotels, which largely exempts all-suite properties from minimum availability requirements. But they aren’t as strong on enforcement. And I’m trying to figure out the broader shift that seems to me to be happening at Hilton.

Continue Reading »