MrRST

Thanks SCEflyer - I'd already made the decision, but your post reinforces my opinion that I made the right one. I agree, so far Marriott's been just as good at giving me best room in the house as Hyatt. And you Hyatt-loyals should remember that participation in the suite upgrade program is voluntary for each Hyatt property - so not in any way assured.

TravelStar

Too bad Hyatt doesn't consider qualifying for LT Diamond with, say 1.5mm or 2mm TOTAL points earned. After all, it's all about loyalty and when you're hitting those kinds of numbers, I'd say you're pretty loyal to Hyatt!

ocdb8r

I don't think azepine's comments were off base at all. You started the topic focusing on "ditching" Hyatt for Marriott because of the disparity in requirements to achieve lifetime status. Any discussion of that concept should consider the value of lifetime status itself, which opens the discussion to the lack of value and devaluation. It's one thing to say, all other things being equal, you're going to prefer Marriott over Hyatt.

However, to ditch one brand and focus on a single other brand solely because of the disparity in achieving lifetime status does seem foolish to me. IMHO, no amount of illusory "future" benefits are worth "ditching" a brand. There are going to be cities where Hyatt's are significantly better than a Marriott. If both Marriott and Hyatt ALWAYS are equal, more power to you. I don't blame you for looking for something to break the tie. I personally don't find Marriott is always as up to the standard of Hyatt. Admittedly, there are plenty of examples where Hyatt was easily beat out by a Marriott property. Abroad I have found Hyatt consistently superior to the Marriott options.

FlyerChrisK

If you're putting in these sorts of nights in hotels, shouldn't you be optimizing for year, rather than lifetime status? Programs change, companies merge, etc. Tomorrow's lifetime status might not be as glamorous as it is today.

MrRST

But since no one knows how a specific program is going to devalue itself over the source of the next 20-30 years, the only thing we know with any kind of certainty is that, based on past performance, ALL the programs will devalue themselves. With that assumption, I think it's fair to remain focused on the question at hand, the vast disparity between Marriott's and Hyatt's LT requirements as they stand today.

Then I must be in a unique industry, because most of my colleagues pay attention to LT as one of the benefits of the loyalty programs. As I've already stated previously, it is not the ONLY parameter that counts, but since both chains can meet my other needs, where they set themselves apart is on their LT requirements, where I find their disparity to be ridiculously staggering.

Actually, in the US, I have yet to be in a city where the Marriott choices weren't at least comparable to the Hyatts. And in more than one instance, at least one Marriott property was significantly nicer.

RTW1

Then you should also consider the differences in benefits between the programs at those status levels.... there is a difference between those as well. That's why these "simple" comparisons never really work. But you should look at your personal situation and decide what is best.

hungarianhc

I'm pretty close to lifetime Marriott, and I attribute my being so close to naiveté / over-loyalty early in my career. The past four or five years, I mix it up between SPG, Hyatt, and Marriott, but when I first started out, I worked as a consultant where we had a $69 / night rate at rural Springhill Suites, and I stayed there four nights / week for about 18 months. Between that, spending almost exclusively on the Marriott card, and 7ish years of sporadic Marriott travel, I'm just about 50 nights short of lifetime. I'm not currently staying w/ Marriott these days, just counting on my 15 credit card nights / year to get me there in a few years.

One thing to consider, though, is that the platinum benefits with Marriott aren't that great... No breakfast at resorts, no suite upgrades, etc. I love Marriott for city properties, but when I'm on vacation with my wife, those resort breakfasts can add up, and it's a guarantee that we won't get a suite. The benefits of platinum aren't really much over gold, and gold is relatively easy to come by - If I were starting from scratch, I'd probably start from scratch on SPG lifetime platinum while just working to maintain mid-tier status levels in Hyatt / Marriott over my lifetime.

MrRST

Dirty little secret that some of my fellow consultants have shared - you can book a suite at Marriotts with points...or upgrade, using points. Just like Hyatt - it's just that you can't do it online - you have to call Marriott Rewards.

kenbo

I think OP knows what he's getting into with the quest for lifetime status with Marriott. While I prefer Hyatt to Marriott, it's clear that suite upgrades and aspirational properties are not as high of a priority to OP as they are to the rest of us.

I met someone at a mini-DO once who didn't care about those either and he didn't think shelling out 25,000 points/night was worth it when he could spend that amount for an entire trip at lower tier properties. He was perfectly fine as long as he had a nice, clean place to stay and it didn't cost any money out of pocket.

If I took that route I could certainly stretch my points further, but I like aspirational properties so I'm SOL.

RTW1

Don't you think those spending $200k are even a bit more "loyal". Hyatt has decided to set the level at that point, like it or not... That's what it is.

And base points does seem more fair, only one way to get those... Bonusses are very time and property dependant.

crazyhorse

One thing that tips the scale a good bit in Marriott's favor is their partnership with United. I am LT PLat with Marriott (currently at 1400+ nights) and if the RewardsPlus partnership continues, I am effectively LT Silver on United.

While I dont fly United much, it certainly helps to have status than not on those rare occasions when a UA flight is more convenient (or a good bit cheaper)

MrRST

No, I actually don't think spending $200/nt is more loyal than spending $90. A night is a night is a night. They're only selling you the night at $90 because it's a choice of selling it or not. If they could sell it for $200, they would.

But you're right, Hyatt has decided, like it or not...so I have decided to ditch Hyatt, and they don't have to like it, but if they want to change it, they have to be competitive on LT requirements, which they're not.

And I don't have a problem with using basepoints as the measure - only the level needed, and the time it would take when compared to Marriott. Halving the basepoints requirements while keeping the 10 years requirement would still allow for exclusivity while also giving price-conscious (or restricted by clients, as in my case) frequent guests a fighting chance at achieving LT.

Instead, they're essentially telling us that they do not care for our business - and apparently would rather have unsold rooms. Well, that may be what Hyatt corporate thinks, but I can tell you, individual property managers would opt for the sold rooms any day of the week.

Since starting this thread, I've talked to the colleagues on my current project about this disparity, and 4 out of 6 are switching from a Hyatt Place to a Marriott Renaissance for the duration of the project (yes, at the same nightly rate). The Hyatt manager offered to lower the rate to keep us, but that would just have made it even harder to reach LT.

RTW1

You must be working for a non-profit..... Loyalty between a company and a customer, really. For both it's a business decision where money counts. You're foolling yourself to even think that it's anything other than that. In fact your post proves the point... You think you can get a better deal somewhere else, out the window with your "loyalty".

MrRST

I believe you're the one who asked if $200 wasn't more loyal - I simply responded...and, I believe, with the statement that money is what counts in the hotel's decision to sell the rooms - or did you forget to read the rest of the post?

As does money play a major part in which hotel I give my business to, indeed...but I COULD stay at Motel 6 for half the price if money was ALL that mattered. So another factor in my decision (as for everyone I'm aware of in our niche of consulting) is how our choice of (since you seem to dislike my calling it loyalty towards) a particular brand is rewarded.

However, these companies HAVE chosen to call their programs LOYALTY programs - in case that missed your attention

angatol

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