For the hotels...eh. I've never had a truly terrible Wyndham hotel (even with Days Inn/Super 8s) but you do have to check reviews ahead of time for most of the budget to mid-range properties. Their brand standards seem to be rather weak or not well-enforced, especially on the budget and mid-range tiers. While I check reviews of every hotel before I book, if you're a "book based on brand without checking reviews" person, there aren't a lot of brands in Wyndham's portfolio that have a decent amount of properties that I'd be comfortable doing that with. Even a Ramada or Microtel I'd still have to recommend checking reviews, and Super 8s, Days Inn, Howard Johnsons, and Travelodges definitely require checking reviews before booking. The other mid-range brands I don't have much experience with, though I'd probably personally book an Americinn without checking reviews if I had to - I've had good luck with that brand in the past.

Earning rewards is okay, though not amazing unless they're having a promotion. Wyndham's promotions seem to be a bit spotty, and without them the earning ratio is simply okay (you're looking at roughly $1500 in spend before tax for a free night unless you have a lot of sub-$100 stays.) It's also worth noting that Wyndham's promotions usually max out fairly quickly - 2-3 stays is the norm before you've earned all you can under a promotion. Status seems to be basically meaningless, as all of the higher-tier benefits are based on availability, and there often isn't anything terribly meaningful to upgrade to even at the highest status.

That said, redeeming points can lead to some good redemptions...if you're able to be selective in your redemptions. There's a lot of bad redemptions in Wyndham's system (now that Go Fast redemptions are based on cash, they're rarely worthwhile, and a Go Free redemption at most lower-end properties results in a very poor value since every Go Free redemption is 15,000 points.) That said, if you're okay with redeeming points in larger cities or during extremely expensive times, Go Free can result in some very good points value - I was able to redeem for some nights in midtown Manhattan that got me 2-3 cents per point in value!

In summary, if you're mainly paying out of pocket or trying to stretch a per diem dollar for your hotels and are willing to put in the legwork to check TripAdvisor and Google reviews for a decent hotel, Wyndham isn't a bad option. Most of their hotels are lower-end (and thus cheaper) than pretty much any other major hotel network, and their network is quite extensive. Their redemption potential also makes it a lucrative program compared to any of the other budget chains I can think of. That said, if you're expecting a hard and soft product even remotely comparable to SPG or Marriott, you're setting yourself up for some major disappointment. They're starting to build out a decent mid-tier hotel network with La Quinta and AmericInn (Baymont seems to be more hit-and-miss, as they have quite a few conversions from other chains) but even those would be a half-step below a Hampton in terms of amenities and quality.

Also, La Quinta's rewards program is still separate from the rest of Wyndham's. While this isn't a huge issue for points earning (they earn at roughly the same rate and points can be transferred between programs relatively easily,) status earning will still be separate until the program merges. (That said, you aren't exactly missing out on much there.)