Starwood Preferred Guest - Family Status Plan

Often when I travel, my wife joins me. Of course, since I travel more and have Plat status while she has none, the reservations are in my name. My wife has recently taken a new job where she travels. Unfortunately, while she has numerous stays with me at *woods, she has aquired no status and minimal points. I think this is wrong and it's almost like she's being punished because I made the reservation So I was thinking about this and came up with an idea. What about Gold and Platinum individual programs and a gold and Platinum Family program?

Instead of requiring 25 stays for Platinum, maybe *wood could raise that number and make it 35 or 40 stays combined by either or both spouses. It wouldn't cost much extra and instead of individual loyalty you're building family loyalty. Best of all, my wife doesn't complain that she gets crap compaired to me :) Hell, i couldn't even get her comped Gold which they seem to give to everyone!

Seriously, I think it's a fairly unique idea. It would definately give *wood an edge over some of the other programs. What do you think William? Is it an idea you can take back to your higher ups?

...Seriously, I think it's a fairly unique idea. It would definately give *wood an edge over some of the other programs. What do you think William? Is it an idea you can take back to your higher ups?

I'll be glad to pass it on; however, I personally think it will float like a lead brick.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

I think that something like this would be a great plan.

Hilton HHonors used to offer a program called the Hilton HHonors Mutual Fund, but they stopped accepting enrollment for it in 2004. I think that it might have been similar to this idea.

Hilton still has a Senior HHonors program that I think offers something like this for a $60 annual fee. Members must be 60 years of age or older. In the case of married couples, only one spouse must be 60 years or older. (I'm far from qualifying.)

I think that spouses ought to at least be able to gift a Gold membership to their spouse or domestic partner as you requested. My wife was given a Gold membership after getting a Delta AmEx, but when she and I travel together we always use my SPG Plat account. She'll never get to Plat status and I don't think that we have any commitment of her annual Gold renewal. I'll end this year with 57 stays and 122 nights.

I've got mixed emotions about this whole topic. In theory it sounds good, but I see several problems and potentially inequities.

1.) If it's going to be only a legally married couple, I don't think that it would fly with SPG.

2.) Also, I would probably require a qualification based on nights of at least 75 nights per year for the two combined.

3.) Given 2.) above, you could conceptually wind up with a lot more platinums (for instance if each individual only had 38 nights individually, they would both only be Gold under current requirements - now both would be Platinum).

4.) I don't know how most of us Platinums would feel about losing or potentially losing our upgrades to the wife or husband of some Platinum member.

I sorta hope that this one does fly just like a lead brick. My Gold partner won't be real happy with my opinion on this one, but it does make him appreciate me more when we travel together. ;)