Almost all chains have been through this. Similar situations for sure at the old Club Carlson (now Radisson) and Wyndham--the only chain I've refused to build up any balance with because their devaluations are also without notice and seem worse.

BW holds some interest because the footprint seems adequate for my normal destinations, and I can see them useful as a secondary or tertiary option for stays, which is one of the reasons I've been more interested in the no fee card than the card with the $89 annual fee. Nevertheless, the annual fee card now seems more interesting on second glance. The essential difference I'll have to figure out if I decide to apply is whether the annual bonus of an extra 20K points for $5K spend on the fee card (the 40K offered minus the 20K you'd get with the no fee card) is worth $89. 20K won't get you a room at every BW, but it appears that there are a number of hotels where that would get you at least one night and in some instances, a part of a second night.

Now add in the 20K you get for the no fee card--if I decide I want one of their credit cards--plus the 10K you'd earn for the extra $5K spending, and you're talking 50K per year for spending $5K on the card, which as I've mentioned, would be doable without any likely impact on my other credit card spend. At this point, that's good for a night at several Best Westerns in Manhattan and almost two at the Best Western Herald Square--not a luxury property but a good property in a central location. Even at weekend rates, that's a 2-for-1 situation, and with weekday rates, probably much better.

I pay fees for Hyatt, IHG, and Marriott credit cards where I get one free night annually for each card. I'm still trying to decide whether the BW program is worth a card--whether with a fee or not--but I'm starting to lean towards getting a card--maybe even the one with the annual fee. If the non-BW spend on the fee card were higher than the no fee card, I'd consider it a no brainer to take the annual fee card.