Jan_az,

I couldn't quote the part where you interspersed comments (bold) into my post #172, in your post #173, but I wanted to respond to two points:

I said:

My business travel is restricted to lower cost properties (i.e., Hampton Inns or Marriott Residence Inn or Towneplace Suites). These Marriott brands only earn 5 points/$ spent before elite bonus. Hampton Inns earn a minimum of 10 points/$.

You replied:

Only the RI is 5 points per dollar - all others are 10

My response:

This is not correct. I stayed at TownePlace Suites several times and only received 5 points/dollar there. Another poster provided a link in post $174.

I said:

Hilton allows double dipping (airline miles + HH points) or receiving an extra 5 HH points/$) versus having to choose points or miles at Marriott.

You replied:

You get bonus status points at Marriot also

My response:

I was not talking about elite status points. I understand that Marriott and Hilton both give members with status bonus points - 15% HH or 20% MR for Silver, 25% for Gold, and 50% for Platinum/Diamond. What I was talking about here is that with HH, a member (elite status or not) still earns 10 points/dollar even if he/she chooses to get airline miles. If a member chooses to forego airline miles for a stay, he/she gets an extra 5 points/dollar, for a total of 15 points/dollar. Elite bonuses, if applicable, are on top of that.

Because of these two differences in the programs, in my personal situation, the difference in point earnings was significant:

When earning airline miles:

HH (Hampton): 10 base + 5 elite bonus = 15 HH points/$
MR (RI, TP): 0 MR points

When NOT earning airline miles:

HH (Hampton): 10 base + 5 Points + Points bonus + 5 elite bonus = 20 HH points/$

MR (RI, TP): 5 base + 2.5 elite bonus = 7.5 MR points/$

I left credit card bonuses out of these calculations because I used my corporate card for these stays. I also left out per stay bonus points (e.g., receiving 250 points/stay at Hampton Inn if I choose points instead a bottle of water/snack).

I hope this clarifies for you and/or others who may be reading this.