I received a puzzling email from Starwood Platinum Concierge this morning with a link to Hotel.com for hotels in Auckland for next week. Odd, I thought, as I have a reservation at the Westin next week.... (enter ominous sound track)

As posted above, the hotel is leaving Starwood (or was kicked out, whatever). The shocker is they are not honoring award stays effective immediately. Even for those of us with stays in the next week! Moreover, I wasn't offered an apology, compensation, a room at a comparable property---nada! Heck, I wasn't even properly notified (I only discovered what was going on because I called in after receiving the odd email while packing up to leave for the trip).

Needless to say, this is a huge issue for me. Not only do I have the headache of securing accommodations while in transit, but I have to pay for them with cash (as opposed to points as planned), which will make a dramatic impact on my vacation budget considering it was a 5-night stay. While it sounds like something funny is going on with this hotel, I can't believe Starwood is leaving (at least this) Platinum guests out to dry without any assistance or compensation.

I'm going to PM the lurkers and see if there's more to the story. Right now I'm thinking I might move to the Hilton, not only for this stay, but for the rest of the year. I'm just glad I checked email one last time before showing up at the hotel to find there was literally no room at the inn for my family.