cabrits

I was speaking to a trusted source within Marriott International very recently for an unrelated matter. Later in the conversation, they mentioned to me that several current category 6 properties (~ 25% or so) would be downgraded to category 5 in spring 2014. This specifically so that the cat 1-5 certs can be redeemed for stays there.

I asked if they could specify any on the top of their head, but they did not have further details. They did mention, however, that ever since the 2013 category changes (several cat 4's converted to cat 5's, and several cat 5's converted to cat 6's), many Marriott properties have seen a drastic drop in redemption levels, causing them to lose significant revenue. Significant enough to serve as an impetus for what appears to be a forthcoming partial re-valuation.

That's all the details that are known / were shared with me.