Originally Posted by
SanDiego1K
Thank you. This was very helpful.
I only tried chat once. Agent said no, that I had to find a travel agent who has access to Starwood Pro rates. No, she couldn't tell me who an agent might be. That is confidential.
Great tip. I didn't try it as the next tip worked but certainly would if I had a four night stay as I have the card with the complimentary 4th night.
This worked. Thank you so much. Do you get your Starwood perks if you don't book directly with Starwood?
Price on SPG.com: $340++
Price on whatahotel.com: $410++
Given that what intrigued me was the $100 food credit, I didn't go ahead and book. There wasn't sufficient potential savings to forego my plat upgrade possibilities. If someone isn't a plat, then this rate would appeal as it includes breakfast, early check in, late check out, and a potential upgrade.
I'm deeply appreciative as I now know how to check rates in the future for other properties. Thank you.
Generally, the FHR/Virtuoso/*WLP rates are the same as the BAR for the day. The lowest available rate is usually the Member Exclusive Rate, which is prepaid. The lowest flexible rate is, unfortunately, usually lower than BAR. But there are sweet spots, and you will generally get stay/night credit from these rates--since they're refundable, you can always call SPG to confirm that. The benefits are therefore in addition to, not in lieu of, your platinum benefits. At worst, you'll get the standard Platinum upgrade at a property after booking a *WLP rate. At best, you'll get an upgrade better than that. At the very least, you get a full breakfast (vs the continental breakfast SPG guarantees as a welcome amenity), and you can keep the 500 points.