Use Your Points to Learn Skills From the World’s Experts

Since acquiring Starwood, Marriott has been making baby steps towards:

  1. Learning from the strong affinity that members have for the Starwood Preferred Guest program

  2. Creating a single unified program which will require IT work and owner buy in

Early on, in a nod to the SPG program, Marriott Rewards added 4pm late checkout for Golds and Platinums and introduced experiential redemptions. They’ve also tested a concierge service for top elites similar to Starwood Ambassador, and worked to align promotions between the programs. It’s also possible to move points back and forth (at 3 Marriott points per 1 Starpoint) and match status between the programs.

Marriott and Starwood are introducing new experiential redemptions that will be available on both the SPG Moments and Marriott Rewards Moments platforms, “Master Classes, a Series of Highly Personal and Interactive Learning Experiences with Renowned Experts”

The first ‘master classes’ that have been loaded, or that will be loaded around Noon eastern today, are:

The first featured opportunities available through the master class series include:

  • NBA Skills Training with Dwyane Wade at the JW Marriott Marquis Miami – Skills and drills with the legendary Dwyane Wade on the hotel’s NBA approved indoor basketball court.
  • Cooking Lessons with Eric Ripert at the Cayman Cookout Hosted by The Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman – Memorable culinary experiences over a four-day event with world-renowned top chefs, with activities that include an exclusive master cooking class with James Beard Award winning and Michelin starred Chef Eric Ripert.
  • Surf Lessons with Laird Hamilton at Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa in Florida – Pro surfer, Laird Hamilton teaches master surfing lesson on the hotel’s SurfStream®, the world’s first standing wave machine.
  • Culinary Experience with Chef Paco Pérez at Hotel Arts Barcelona – Private culinary experience with Michelin starred Chef Paco Pérez at Enoteca, followed by a multi-course private dining experience with wine pairings.
  • Two-day Golf Clinic with Annika Sörenstam at The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe – Improve your swing and get to know golf legend Annika Sörenstam over 18 holes of golf on the Old Greenwood Golf Course.
  • Golf Lessons with Padraig Harrington at The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay in California – Shotgun start and skills brush up with three-time major champion golfer Padraig Harrington at the championship Ocean Course.
  • Golf Skills Clinic with Thomas Bjorn at The Westin La Quinta Golf Resort & Spa, Benahavis, Marbella, Spain – Skills and technique clinic taught by 21-time worldwide champion, Thomas Bjorn at La Quinta Golf and Country Club in the renowned Spanish Golf Valley.
  • Underwater Conservation with Jean-Michel Cousteau at The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua, Hawaii – Join the legendary Jean-Michel Cousteau for an underwater conservation lesson in Maui.

Here’s the full Master Class page. Some are fixed-price and others are auctions.

About Gary Leff

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 »

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