Rumor: 2014 Marriott Rewards Hotel Category Changes?
#16
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: DFW
Programs: AA EXP, Marriott Gold, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Plat, CC Gold, IHG Plat Amb, Choice Plat
Posts: 306
I am looking forward if this happens…as of now cat 1-5 certs are almost useless for me
#17
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Join Date: Nov 1999
Posts: 24,153
Another Con was folks during a very peak demand period used to book award nights and then sell the rooms netting themselves a hefty profit, the hotel had to know what was going on but looked the other way since they ended up getting the going rate . Result at that hotel was many times you couldnt get an award room since all these people held them hoping to sell them and if they didnt all they had to do was CX their res, by then those who were looking for a place booked elsewhere
#18
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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Thailand
Programs: Marriott - P; HH - G; Hyatt - P; Avis - LT First
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#19
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,074
Never seen hotels/airlines give stuff back. Would be interesting. They are more in the habit of cutting.
#20
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2003
Location: AA Plat / UA NOTHING / Alaska 75K / Hyatt Diamond / SPG LT Plat / Marriott Gold / Priority Club Plat / Hertz Pres
Posts: 24,684
I like Marriott hotels in general, I like that there's a Marriott family hotel in just about every city in the country, I like Marriott's on location people, and the promos are fine.
The only drawbacks (again, just mho) are lack of elite recognition and award availability.
#21
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Join Date: Nov 1999
Posts: 24,153
Just fyi - MR isn't even close to available room=available award room. In my experience, MR availability isn't within a mile of SPG. If they were, I probably never would've ended up spending so many nights in Starwood hotels.
I like Marriott hotels in general, I like that there's a Marriott family hotel in just about every city in the country, I like Marriott's on location people, and the promos are fine.
The only drawbacks (again, just mho) are lack of elite recognition and award availability.
I like Marriott hotels in general, I like that there's a Marriott family hotel in just about every city in the country, I like Marriott's on location people, and the promos are fine.
The only drawbacks (again, just mho) are lack of elite recognition and award availability.
How MR allocates the # of rooms per night for award stays isnt really important to what that poster or even the OP said
I cant remember when I wasnt able to use an award night at a Marriott. Now if you want to discuss say Paris or Venice then it doesnt matter which program you want to look at they are all difficult at times. On the other hand there are 4 *Ws @ LAX while there are over 2x that for Marriott, thusly a better chance of being locked out by SPG over MR. Yet by SNA theres 1 *W with a shuttle and well over a dz Marriotts
If all a person wants is a full service hotel then its about equal. Id think most folks arriving late or out early in the morn and spending just a few hrs there between,before or after a flight dont care too much on the type of hotel but just a nice clean room and hot shower
Now if you travel for biz and mainly stay in the citys then *W will work most of the time, if however youre on the road and hitting small - middle size towns as well alot then *W wont work so well. Yet Hilton,Marriott and ICH will have coverage for all 3. btw thats Hyatts problem as well. So Hyatt and *W works great for some folks and are disasters for others. Others are able to maintain Plat status but not hit the 50 or 75 night level
Its no different then the airlines , if you live by a hub city or a place a carrier flys into its haven otherwise lookout. eg till a couple of yrs ago WN wasnt any where near NY, then it went into PHL, today LGA,ISP and EWR But if you lived in NYC it didnt us a bit of good that WN had say a $15 fare. So those flying LAX-SFO were thrilled and sang WNs praises while I couldnt have given 2 hoots about WN
B6 most people sing its praises but a friend who lives in DTW since they dont fly there what good does it do him. Live in SEA B6 has 1 flight a day NY-SEA live near BOS or NYC or LGB, or Florida youre in luck, more flights everyday then you know what to do with
My pt is , its not so simple to say Marriott is best or SPG is best, it all depends on where a person needs to be and if they can be serviced.
#22
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 25
This is such a news to me. Is it easy to get points from certifcates? It's from my marriott credit card. How many points can I get? I doubt this is true for annual certificates from marriot credit card.
#24
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: MR/SPG LT Titanium, AA LT PLT, UA SLV, Avis PreferredPlus
Posts: 30,959
Lots of "I was talking to a guy" threads lately...
#25
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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Thailand
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#26
Join Date: Nov 2005
Programs: HH Diamond; IHG Plat; Marriott Titanium; United Silver
Posts: 254
It makes perfect sense to me. If hotel category is a function of reward redemption rate and average room rate, then a lower rate of redemption will result in a lower category. Then when the redemption rate rises, the next year after, the hotel will go up a category again.
#27
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 25
Oh okay, well hyatt has properties right in cambridge as well as in heart of boston (back bay) and near airport all of which I can use the anniversary certificates for, so I had no reason to use those properties in burlington and quincy..which are way too inconvenient for me even on a normal traffic in boston. Anywho, thanks, and I hope we get some cat 5 hotels in boston that can compete with other brands.
Last edited by JYoon; Oct 20, 2013 at 10:18 pm
#28
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: world
Programs: all
Posts: 1,422
this would be interesting if it happens...generally things move the other way..meaning away from the end user
#29
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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Thailand
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Actually I'm using my Hyatt anniv cert at the airport prop too as I have an early departure for ATL (Ga Tech 50th reunion) so it works out fine........
For whatever reason points were not available and now my June night is sold out so the cert came in real handy....
For whatever reason points were not available and now my June night is sold out so the cert came in real handy....
Oh okay, well hyatt has properties right in cambridge as well as in heart of boston (back bay) and near airport all of which I can use the anniversary certificates for, so I had no reason to use those properties in burlington and quincy..which are way too inconvenient for me even on a normal traffic in boston. Anywho, thanks, and I hope we get some cat 5 hotels in boston that can compete with other brands.
#30
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Virginia
Programs: Marriott Rewards Platinum Member, Starwood, Hilton Honors
Posts: 514
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.
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.
That's good to hear. I tried to use my free night certificate this year at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA, but noticed that they went up from a Category 5 to a 6.
The previous year in 2012 I could redeem the free night certificate there.
So, I hope the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel reduces it's Category level.