Originally Posted by
Dreamwalker
I think we just view this differently. I'm not saying you're wrong, I actually agree with the general theme at the top. I'm not against having flexible dates or lower quality properties, though I tend to like Aspirational properties. I do stay at a good number of Holiday Inn Expresses with the IHG free night. My point was that Marriott seems extremely difficult compared to the other programs from my experience. To each their own, the program really lost a lot of value in my opinion and I plan to be moving towards Hilton and Hyatt. I have found Hilton to be the better partner of late, but that could be because I have diamond status through Aspire and only Gold at Marriott.
I personally find the recognition at Hilton pretty good the last few stays I've had, but most of those were Conrads or Waldorf Astoria's. I haven't stayed in a ton of them either since Covid hit. I've searched a lot and perhaps I'm not going far enough out of cities, but the earlier example of 3 hotels in DC under 35,000 points when there are more than 10 hotels seems like they don't like the free nights. The hotels must not get reimbursed very well for these.
My expectations for these cards aren't that high truthfully, my preference are. I am perfectly find with a $110 - $125 free night if I can make it work, though I find of late I could pay for some hotels that are a little better in dollars and stay at a better place, because the cost of the nights aren't that high though they are steadily creeping back up. I just wanted to see if others are having trouble too as I'm the only person in my life doing points haha. No one to ask besides here. It seems some still love them and some don't. Just like everything
I wish I still saw value, I hate the idea of giving up two $95 nights, but I don't see me being able to take any advantages of the overseas for a while after the honeymoon I just went on. So my guess is you're right and its a US problem. I told my buddy if we were going to Thailand or China we'd have no issues using this. I wonder why they make the US so difficult.
Thanks for all the feedback! It was great to hear different opinions
Thank you, the context in this comment has colored a few things in for me.
I think your comparisons are not fair for most frequent travelers but they can make sense in other contexts. For example, comparing Hilton Honors Diamond (Hilton’s top status) to Marriott Bonvoy Gold (Marriott’s second lowest status) only makes sense if you are relying purely on credit cards for hotel status. For many people on this forum that hold top tier status in multiple programs, a comparison of HH Diamond vs WoH Globalist vs Bonvoy Titanium is more reasonable. We have a discussion in the Hilton forum about our frustrations with HH Diamond that is worth checking out. In my personal experience, I have found HH Diamond to be weaker even in Asia (ie Waldorf Astoria Bangkok only upgrades Diamonds to studios whereas the nearby St Regis Bangkok offers multiple category upgrades to one of the hotel’s best 1 bedroom suites). However, any top tier status comparison is moot if earning the other status options is not on the table. If your best path is through a CC, Hilton wins without question. (Also, I have a post on IG about different loyalty programs that you might find interesting
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I also now understand your comparison between the Aspire cert and the $95 Marriott certificate. The Aspire certificate costs much more than the $95 Marriott certificate and you need to make the Aspire travel credits work for you. This is ok with one card but becomes far more difficult when you hold multiple credit cards awarding similar credits. An apples to apples comparison would be to the 50K Brilliant FNA (which I have used at the iconic JW Essex House).
Even with a couple of Amex Aspires and dedicated spend toward earning another cert, there is a low limit to how many Hilton weekend FNAs one person can feasibly acquire. For people that are traveling very frequently, this low limit means that FNAs don’t compete against one another because their travel far exceeds what can be covered with FNAs. Rather, they compete against their own cost. As others have mentioned in this thread, the barometer for value should be comparing the FNA redemption against the $95 you paid for it. What type of hotel can you get in DC on the 4th of July Weekend for $95?
I love my FNAs from Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt because I always get more than I put in. I currently get 2 Hilton weekend FNAs, 3 Marriott FNAs (1 Brilliant 50K, 1 Business 35K, and 1 Titanium choice 40K), and 1 Hyatt FNA. All of those FNAs account for ~5% of my actual travel. I agree that Hyatt’s and especially Hilton’s FNAs deliver more value. However, so long as I get more out of Marriott FNAs than I put in, I do not feel a desire to cancel them. In fact, if I could get more FNAs for ~$100 of similar quality from any chain, I would jump at the opportunity!