I just realized that my next Marriot stay will make me a Silver. I also just realized that I'll need to stay at a Renaissance for a week in January. I was surprised to learn that only 10 nights gives you the low tier elite status at Marriott.
Considering you can become Silver just for getting a Marriott Rewards Visa card it doesn't sound like it's worth much.
You only get 20% bonusses on points (not miles). So, I'm also wondering if I should switch to points. For Marriott properties, I would only stay about 12-16 nights per year. I have plenty of miles on UA and NW. It's kind of nice to top of my AA acount with hotel miles. Most of my stays are either at Marriotts, Residence Inn or Spring Hill Suites.
So here are my questions:
1. From your own experience, is it worth it to dedicate my future stays towards Marriott to be and maintain Silver status?
2. Would I be better off accumulating Marriott Reward Points with this level of activity?
3. Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites feel very similar to me. Maybe it's just been my experience, but what is the true difference supposed to be?
1. From your own experience, is it worth it to dedicate my future stays towards Marriott to be and maintain Silver status?
2. Would I be better off accumulating Marriott Reward Points with this level of activity?
3. Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites feel very similar to me. Maybe it's just been my experience, but what is the true difference supposed to be?
1. I'd just get the MR VISA and always be Silver. Basically, signing up should get you 3 nights at a SHS and, if you don't like the fee after the first free year, just cancel. However, the VISA has been and likely will be in the future targeted for promos and specials. For example, as an ongoing promo, using the MR VISA gets us an additional 10% off (35% total) when we use the MOD code for renting additional nights with our timeshare intervals.
2. IMO, no, especially if you stay at RI's a lot...
3. Main difference for me is 5 rate points vs 10, respectively. Since we accumlate a lot of MR points with our intervals, I see each point as a mile, when completing an award travel package. Earning 15 miles per rate dollar (base + Silver elite + MR VISA) has a nice ring to it :)
A search works too :D
Pat
boltor
Sep 16, 04, 5:15 pm
You only get 20% bonusses on points
As a platinum I only get 30%
aaupgrade
Sep 16, 04, 6:57 pm
I think the others mis-understood your question. Either that or I did.
Since you chose to accumulate MILES then the Marriott VISA card would be pointless as you did not choose POINTS.
And yes you are correct you would only get the bonus, in your case 20%, if you had chosen POINTS. Since you chose to accumulate MILES instead of POINTS when you signed up, then you do not get any bonus.
1. If you stay with your selection of MILES then the ONLY thing the MR VISA would give you is Silver status (but you would not get the 20% bonus as it only applies ot those accumulating POINTS). If you changed to POINTS then you will get 3 POINTS for every dollar you charged at Marriott properties, and 1 POINT/dollar for all other charges.
2. Your always better off choosing POINTS in my opinion. Over the long run it counts toward Lifetime Silver, Gold and Platinum (very high thresholds - 12 years, 1, 2, 3 million points respectively, plus nights stayed requirements). It also gets you free days/weeks at Marriott and Ritz Carlton Hotels by cashing inthose points. There are also numerous benefits like 20%, 25%, and 30% bonuses for Silver, Gold, and Platinum elite levels. Now, if you are an Airline Mile enthusiast then by all means stay with MILES, but you will not get the bonuses mentioned above.
3. Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites earn MILES at 1 MILE per dollar spent and that's it. Residence Inn earns POINTS at 5 POINTS per dollar spent and Spring Hill Suites earns POINTS at 10 POINTS per dollar spent, plus with POINTS you get your Elite level bonus of 20%, 25%, or 30%, and also an additional 3 POINTS for every dollar spent if you use your MR VISA.
Note that on Full Service Marriotts, JW Marriotts, and Renaissance you earn POINTS at a rate of 10 POINTS for EVERY dollar spent at the Hotel (excluding taxes and concessions). The only concession I have run into is the Parking at the LAX Marriott, even parking at all other full service properties I have stayed in earned me 10 POINTS per dollar.
Right now you are only staying at Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites, but things may well change down the road. So even though lifetime benefits may be a pipe dream at this point, that could be different in 10 years.
Hopefully you found that helpful and I was not too far off base in understanding what you were looking for. All the best and by all means have fun!
Go for the POINTS.
tcook052
Sep 16, 04, 10:39 pm
Great post, aaupgrade! ^
BTW, this lowly MR silver is a pointschaser, having asked similiar questions a few years back. The only time I may credit towards FF miles is when a promo like NW FFF comes along that has a hotel partner as a participating activity towards the 10K mile bonus. But generally, I leave my options set on points.
jahason
Sep 17, 04, 1:28 am
..........
Go for the POINTS.
I would agree with this but for a much simpler philosophy.
FF miles can get you airline tickets. But I find still having to pay for taxes and airport charges. Which makes the 'free' ticket not much more than a ticket from a low cost airline. In Europe people like Ryan Air give away air tickets anyway charging just for taxes and airport charges.
Hotels, on the other hand, are always proportionately more expensive. And free nights with Marriott rewards (or probably other hotel programmes) really are free (no extra taxes to pay).
Just another argument for the same conclusion.
AX9465
Sep 17, 04, 5:14 am
if your air line is within these: Air Canada, Alaska, American Airlines, America West, British Airways, Continental, Delta Air Lines, Mexicana, Northwest, United Airlines, US Airways, Varig Brasil - then you will be able to get your miles anyway anytime you want by redeeming mileage reward.
if considering that for $1 spent at Marriott properties you can get either 3 miles or 12 points, it is more economical to get miles through points starting from 10,000 mile (30,000 point) award.
Athena53
Sep 17, 04, 5:53 am
I agree with the Points option. I have a Marriott Visa but will porbably stay enough nights to get Silver status anyway. Between the stays and the stuff we charge on the card (college tuition, septic tank replacement), we accumulate a lot of points. I have to admit that my only experience in redeeming airline miles is with CO, but I've found it a lot easier to get hotel reward stays (Marriott and Hilton) when I want them, and we tend to go for nice properties in Europe with 6 months' notice.
And, yes, it's worth it even if you stay in the low-end properties. I accumulated most of my Hilton points at the Hampton Inn in Lewisville, TX and have redeemed them in Milan, Brussels and Budapest!
John26
Sep 17, 04, 11:49 am
if your air line is within these: Air Canada, Alaska, American Airlines, America West, British Airways, Continental, Delta Air Lines, Mexicana, Northwest, United Airlines, US Airways, Varig Brasil - then you will be able to get your miles anyway anytime you want by redeeming mileage reward.
if considering that for $1 spent at Marriott properties you can get either 3 miles or 12 points, it is more economical to get miles through points starting from 10,000 mile (30,000 point) award.
Ooh - I didn't see this reward option (exchange points for miles). I only saw the free ticket point redemptions. This is looking much better now.
Looks like if you're patient to earn 30,000 points, then the exchange rate beats whatever miles you would have earned (whether accruing 10 or 5 points per night (plus 3 from the MR Visa).
In that case, Silver is worth it because the 20% point bonus will help me reach 30,000 faster. And if I decide I'd rather use the points for a free night, I can make that decision with no regrets as I move along.
One last questions: If RIs are bigger nicer and feature hot breakfasts, why do you think they are giving 10 points accrual per night on Spring Hill Suites??? Is it because they are having trouble selling the Spring Hill brand (I noticed it sometimes costs less to stay at a SH than a RI, too)?
aaupgrade
Sep 17, 04, 1:27 pm
RIs are a slightly higher end property, and as such costs more would be my guess since I have never stayed at SHS. I have stayed at a very few Redsidence Inns, specifically the one that is slopeside at Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort, with outdoor slope-side heated pool and hot tub, and once elsewhere when no other Marriott, Renassance, or JW had a vacancy. You won't find a SHS like the one at Whistler-Blackcomb. I would venture to say that when you compare the two properties in main town USA they are pretty similar, but RIs are a bit better, cost more and as such garner a higher point per dollar pay off. But like I said that is just a guess since I have not stayed at SHS.
pinniped
Sep 17, 04, 1:58 pm
I would definitely opt for points: 12-16 nights paid will yield you approximately a free weekend (2-3 nights) a year in one of Marriott's extended-stay brands. (We use a very nice, new TPS in downtown Minneapolis for awards from time to time - it's a Cat 1!)
The other option - a few thousand FF miles - is OK too, but you can get FF miles anywhere through many different means. If you travel enough to earn a lot of hotel points, you probably have an even bigger pile of FF miles.
I always tend to give a little bit of a value-bias to hotel points because they are harder to get and I tend to redeem them often, which translates to real cash back in my pocket.
SHS = minisuites - more like a larger hotel room. Usually Cat 2, with an occasional 3. I'm not a fan of this chain: I think of it as Fairfield with big rooms.
RI = your choice of a large studio unit w/kitchen or a true suite (1- or 2-bdrm). Usually Cat 3, with some 4's and 2's out there. IMHO, the RI brand varies quite a bit. I've stayed in great ones and bad ones.
TPS = similar room types as an RI, slightly smaller floorplans, limited on-premise services. Usually Cat 2, with some Cat 1's out there. A newer brand in general. If I don't need daily breakfasts, this is where I like to stay.
DENPremEx
Sep 17, 04, 2:18 pm
Go for the points! Through stays and a small group function I have accumulated over 368,000 points since Jan 1, 03. I'm eyeing the JW Marriott in Phuket, Thailand at 105,000 per week. Maybe I'll go next year for a month. ^
The other thing to consider is the financial condition of the airlines. I would rather bet on the long term viability of Marriott than any of the legacy carriers.
John26
Sep 17, 04, 5:50 pm
Is there a big difference in size between RI Studio Suites and 1-bedroom Suites? For my Orlando stay in November, the RI only has Queen bed Studios, but the Embassy Suites (Hilton) has 1-bedroom King beds for $2 more/night (after you factor that you have to pay for wireless internet). (I don't care about bed size, but am curious about the difference in size of the rooms in these scenarios).