Originally Posted by
bldr1k
Jump to where? I'm top level at Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott and the experience is the same at all of them. The Hotels don't care about loyalty right now - their occupancy rates are very high and they are trying to squeeze every penny from every traveler. The fact that I stayed 100 nights a year at Hilton from 2008-2010 when their hotels were empty doesn't matter much.
Unfortunately that is the most important element of the current state of not just hotel stays, but also air travel (and its even worse there because now it is pretty much a genuine oligarchy domestically). The economy will eventually cycle south and then the ball will be back in the court of those of us who travel. In the meantime, its sadly more of a "coping" strategy, figure out what works best for you and what you prefer and try to reward those properties that treat you better with business. What is not helpful are the rants about taking your ball and moving it elsewhere because the grass is not greener, its just a different type of grass.