I'm the opposite. I can't understand why a hotel would choose to be a particular brand and then not participate in the brand's loyalty program. I would think that these loyalty programs are what draws a lot of customers to a property. I suppose if a property is doing so much business that it's turning folks away...well...then that might get them to want be excluded from the loyalty program.

But a hotel like the U.S. Grant...which had a very shoddy reputation in it's last few years? You'd think they would want to participate in the full Starwood model including the loyalty program, in order to get business going again.

Which is why I questioned if the statement of non-participation was only there due to the hotel not being open yet, and perhaps does not reflect their intent at all. It's certainly not included in the non-participation lists in the current Terms & Conditions at spg.com.