Originally Posted by
bhrubin
IFrom the legacy SPG perspective, Cat 8 pricing even with peak at 100K will be just a little less than the old 35K (comparable to 105K in Marriott points) peak pricing for SPG Cat 7 hotels--which comprises the overwhelming bulk of the new Cat 8 list. At non peak 85K, that's still less than the 30K SPG charged. And SPG had no discount for off-peak at all.
For me, these complaints are not realistic at all.
SPG earn and burn was terrible, but the upside was fantastic elite treatment (and the best daily spend card out there). The Marriott deal was good earn and burn, with much more limited on property benefits. Now we're getting good earn (not counting gutting of SPG Amex for daily spend), a blended approach on burn, and a dumpster fire when it comes to program functionality and enforcement of the rules against properties. Against that setting, the Cat 8 pricing undoubtedly feels to some like a slap in the face. It may not matter to you, but there are many here who are not happy about the changes overall, and there is IMO an objectively reasonable basis for that dissatisfaction.