Category Archives for Hotels.
Marriott has shared that they’re dropping award charts in March and moving to dynamic pricing. We now know that the date this goes into effect will be March 29, though the transition will be gradual and spread into March 30. And we also know how much more expensive some properties may become.
Here’s something of a new one as hotels begin re-introducing services that guests demand. The London Marriott County Hall has opened up its club lounge but they reportedly want to strictly limit costs. “the happy hour at the M Club [is] table service only…[and you’re] limited to two canapes per person.”
The Marriott Courtyard Jefferson City in Missouri adds $4.90 onto award bookings, and that’s strange since the hotel doesn’t have a resort or destination fee. The website doesn’t tell you what this fee is for. But it’s really quite interesting – and galling.
How do you determine what hotel to book in a city you’ve never been, where there aren’t chain hotels you’re used to staying at or where you aren’t familiar with the particular properties? Let’s assume it’s a hotel and not a home rental you’re looking for – where do you go for information?
There’s a robust discussion in social media about TripAdvisor – and whether it’s still relevant. The answer is yes – if you follow a simple formula to use it correctly.
A year and a half ago an American in Thailand was taken to jail for writing a bad review of a hotel on TripAdvisor. He spent a couple of nights in jail on charges of defamation. Under pressure of public outrage, the hotel finally dropped charges.
Around the same time the owner of the Sri Panwa Resort in Phuket was threatening to sue guests who left negative reviews for the property. Now that Thai hotel owner is again.
Like airlines, Marriott will now sell you points while making a booking, not just on a dedicated page. That way they have more opportunities to sell points. And they’ve increased the limit on the number of points you can buy. They’re also running a new points purchase bonus of up to 50% more points.
Hyatt is making annual hotel category changes – making some hotels to more expensive points redemptions, while making other hotels less expensive, based on the room rates those hotels are projected to achieve. These changes will go into effect at 146 hotels on March 22, 2022 at 8:00 a.m. Central time.
What’s significant here is that even though slightly more hotels will go down in category (76) versus going up in category (70), this should still be seen as a devaluation – and in some cases a big one. For the first time ever Hyatt will charge category 8 prices for hotels that have been in their own portfolio for years, not merely partner hotels or hotels that are part of newly acquired brands.
Hotel owners are grateful for one thing about the pandemic and that’s an opportunity for a ‘reset’ on something they call “amenity creep.” You might call it basic services like housekeeping, or the club lounges you’ve been promised access to in exchange for your loyalty and business with a brand.
The Attorney General of Michigan is getting involved with a family that owns around 20 hotels in Mackinaw City, Michigan and takes reservations for closed properties, moving guests to cheaper accommodations, and refusing refunds and cancellation. This family owns the hotel that went viral nationally last year after kicking a woman (“Dumb Democrat”) out late at night for complaining about leaking pipes in her room.
Marriott says they’ll be offering 20 Bonvoy points per dollar on bookings made through their Homes & Villas by Marriott International site from February 9th to February 11th. That’s four times the usual number of points.
These bookings qualify as Marriott spend for bonus earnings with their cobrand cards, too.
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 »
