Tag Archives for marriott bonvoy.
Marriott hotels were allowed to close down their club lounges and restaurants during the pandemic. Even where they re-opened restaurants they might not honor elite breakfast, claiming that they weren’t fully staffed or hadn’t fully re-opened.
The elite brown bag breakfast of apple or banana and granola was born. In some cases a credit was offered towards breakfast in the restaurant instead of covering the meal entirely. That “flexibility” ends July 1.
A new hotel in that Maldives let you book overwater villas using Marriott points, and it starts at just 24,000 points per night and is eligible for credit card free night certificates.
Marriott’s top tier 100 night elite status is called Ambassador. The unique selling proposition is supposed to be a dedicated contact who takes care of all the member’s Marriott needs, ensuring a seamless experience.
Only they laid off these agents, and Ambassador members no longer get an Ambassador. Marriott is surveying how these top customers are managing under the new regime.
If you care about your elite benefits part of selecting a hotel now must include finding out what benefits are actually being honored at a property. And if you have to work so hard to get your benefits, the benefits probably aren’t worth it to begin with, and you shouldn’t be choosing a hotel based on loyalty to a chain.
Ritz-Carltons don’t provide the same level of elite benefits that many Marriott brands are supposed to, but I lucked into an incredible suite upgrade anyway.
It was the perfect hotel for seclusion amidst the chaos of Florida during Spring Break, with available services that exceeded what most other properties have been offering during the pandemic. I had beach and pool access without difficulty and didn’t see many other guests despite the property being completely full.
Marriott has just introduced the first hotel co-brand credit card in the South Korean market, Marriott Bonvoy® The BEST Shinhan Card.
It lets cardmembers earn Platinum status with less spend and at a lower fee than U.S. customers have access to, and comes with a hotel breakfast credit benefit.
The J.W. Marriott Las Cabos Resort has been charging Bonvoy members a $30 per night redemption fee when staying on points.
That practice is ending and Marriott will be refunding guests that have been overcharged.
In a move that may be ‘the most Bonvoy thing ever,’ the J.W. Marriott Los Cabos Resort says they charge guests using points a $30 redemption fee. This fee, or loyalty tax, applies only to free night awards and is not billed to guests paying cash. It’s not even disclosed in the rate details when booking a points stay.
Marriott charges resort fees on supposedly free nights. When you use your points you still have a cash co-pay or ‘loyalty tax.’ Neither Hilton nor Hyatt does this. And these resort fees can be $99 per night, plus tax, or even more.
Most Bonvoy members don’t learn there’s a fee to redeem their points until they’ve stayed with the chain, spent time in the program, and accumulated enough points to be ready to redeem. That’s why it’s a loyalty tax.
I have an upcoming award stay at a Marriott property, and I received a note from the hotel warning me that if I don’t show up on the day scheduled, and haven’t cancelled at least a day in advance, they’ll charge me over $2000 cash.
If your flight diverts on the way to this award stay and you can’t check in as scheduled, call your mortgage broker for a second or third lien – quick!
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 »
