Originally Posted by
azepine00
As much as i want to be as optimistic as you are i suspect the reality is that MR is heading in hilton direction.
Plat level is not even remotely exclusive - it's a new mid tier (with infux of merged LT elites) and upgrades for plat will be very limited at any interesting places. So benefis will be similar to Hilton Gold/Dia which can be obtained with CC. In order to get meaningful recognition one needs to go way to PP or Amb and that's a lot of nights.
Pretty sure once new re categorization happens it will be very painful - it just doesnt go the other way in this game.
I agree that M has better hotels though.
Marriott Plat has never been exclusive! They have always had wayt too many who had 30 nights from the 2 credit cards, not to mention those who could spend to get extra elite nights on the cards.
SPG Plat has never been so exclusive, either, though it was never as bad as for Marriott Plat. There still were plenty of SPG Plats who earned it through 25 stays of 1 night each at cheap midscale properties in very inexpensive markets.
Those have been nixed. The new Plat will be a lot harder to earn...and therefore more exclusive. That and a much bigger portfolio makes it even more exclusive, I'd say.
Even the new Plat 100 spend requirement nixes those Plats who were staying at cheaper midscale and upscale properties to get their 100 nights. Those were most of the people whining in the SPG Forum Ambassador threads that their Ambassadors didn't do much for them. Well, they spent little, and so they got little. They also tended to stay at hotels that don't exactly offer much in the way of better service or amenities--but they were too foolish or too ignorant to ever notice or care.
Now we see the truth of the matter with the $20K spend requirement for Ambassador Plat Premier 100 status. And let me tell you--having the Ambassador and staying at great hotels makes ALL the difference in the world. As it were, I already have hit my 101 nights (helped by the 2 SPG Amex cards 10 elite nights, as well as earning 3 elite nights for paying for 3 rooms) and the $20K spend--and it's April. I also have had some incredible Ambassador upgrades and assists, including saving me a non-refundable StR Bora Bora night ($2000) from an airline cancellation, while also getting me upgraded to the StR Bora Bora 2 bedroom Royal OWV with private pool from a regular OWV! Including specialty suite upgrades at the Gritti Palace Venice in 2016 (from an award entry level room), the Excelsior Gallia Milan in 2016, the Hotel Imperial Vienna in 2017 (from an award entry level room), the Prince de Galles Paris (from an award entry level room), the StR San Francisco a dozen times since 2015 (from entry level paid and award rooms), the StR New York last month (on entry level paid room), and even the StR Atlanta in a week--already pre-upgraded to a St Regis Suite despite not using any SNAs and well before the SNA window opens! I just came back from the W Boston, where I was pre-upgraded to a Wow Suite 2 weeks before I arrived.
Those who spend more do better in the SPG Ambassador program. Those who spend more and stay more with Marriott will be rewarded in kind, it seems.
Those who were able to manufacture status before cannot do so as easily now--and I'm sorry for them,. But they aren't paying as much as others, and those who pay more are the ones who the program should most reward. The new program seems to do that. The Hilton program doesn't even come close.
The new Marriott program isn't perfect..but it's pretty good so far.