Any “traitor” Accor-ist inside this group ?
 

Bonvoy to you! ;) I used to keep Hilton Diamond for a while but realised that the grass is not always greener on the other side. There are pros and cons to any loyalty programme but I do like the simplicity of the Le Club programme. Some elements are getting tedious (after more than 10 years the IT problems are just exhausting, no lifetime membership is another). It all depends on your travel patterns. For me Accor has the best geographic coverage, others might have different experiences. I also rarely travel to France, so I am lucky in that regard :D

Traitors.

Traitors...!

TRAITORS!!!!


ALL OF YOU!!!


:D
​​​

We are Plat Premier in Marriott, soon to be Titanium in the Bonvoy program (the name still baffles me), Diamond with Hilton and Platinum with IHG (which gives us practically no benefits besides upgrades). Our fav travel destination is definitely the beaches in Asia and South America, but even with the joint effort of SPG, we faced this problem with Marriott, is that their properties are very centralized. Take BKK for example, we don't want 10 properties within 0.2 miles radius in Sukhumvit, we want options to be near night markets or other districts near central world mall, so this is where Accor comes in for us, we only justify booking with Accor when they are actually cheaper than hotels.com/booking.com when they have those private sale. So like most had mentioned, it depends where you travel, if you can find reasonable properties in your path, go ahead and be loyal. If not, there is always, hotels.com.

For what's worth, Marriotts in the US are not worth the hype, they look great as a branding perspective, but you get very lousy recognition in the states because they are flooded with elites here. Think a JW in downtown Chicago, you can have up to 10-20 plats check in at any given time day, there is only so much free suites inventory you can give away. And the lounge is small, usually packed with families. Overall, you will always get much better perks in Asia.

I'm only "member" with Accor, but this is just my 2 cents with Marriott..

The Ritz-Carlton Rewards Bonvoy Ambassador
and Le Club Accor Hotel Gold

I'm Hilton Diamond *shrugs* lol

I have moved in the opposite direction starting last year.

I completely agree that choice of Loyalty programme/s depends on your main travel destinations (regions), and that the grass is not always greener elsewhere. I will also add that benefits of elite status can be cut by these massive Hotel chains depending on economic conditions/average hotel occupancies, and agree that elite status does not necessarily work as we hope when there are lots of other guests with the same or higher status in the hotels we choose.

Anyway, I can only comment on my recent move to Accor staying so far in only four Southeast Asian countries: Malaysia (my base), Indonesia, Singapore and Cambodia. (Next target: Thailand)

For three years I have held Marriott's Bonvoy Ambassador status (new and current name). I became eligible when it was just SPG Ambassador (old Starwood), then the status name changed to Marriott Platinum Premier with Ambassador.

Anyway, here in Southeast Asia I have been extremely happy with Accor and am winding down my association with Marriott. I keep the status until February 2020 but my final paid Marriott Stay was June 2018. Since then I have just been redeeming nights with Marriott until my points balance reaches zero.

We all know that Accor's IT and centralized customer service needs to be improved. So does Marriott's now. For me, they cancel each other out.

However, I am extremely happy with the quality, range and number of Le Club participating Accor properties in Southeast Asia. We now have top class brands such as Raffles and Banyan Tree (as well as Fairmont and Sofitel), Orient Express is coming and then there are a huge number of more affordable properties (Pullman, Novotel, Grand Mercure, Mercure), as well as the very affordable economy brands, and a few smaller but interesting brands such as MGallery, Angsana etc. I am also content with the various Points promotions. Importantly, for me, I have been extremely happy with Platinum treatment at many/most Accor properties, depending on the particular management culture, staff numbers and attitudes. I have not missed "Ambassador" treatment at these properties at all.

Anyway, taste in hotels/Platinum treatment is very subjective. I just want what works for me and do not want to compete with anybody or convert anybody or get angry at anybody who doesn't like what I like.

And I also agree that excellent value with Platinum type benefits can also be found with OTAs such as Agoda etc etc. Judging from the many informative contributions and photos uploaded here, I may not be quite so content with Accor if I were mainly staying in Europe or North America. So as a European I can understand your interest in allying yourself with a second chain.

If you want to be serious with Marriott status then I suggest aiming for 75 nights to qualify for Titanium status (the new name for Platinum Premier). Otherwise you may find that there are too many other guests who are above you in the pecking order when you check into many hotels.

Good luck to you !

And Marriot wouldn't work for me as 75 nights is about double my usual nights per year. I did stay 1 night at an IHG hotel last year because I had an account with them (atleast get some points) and at JFK airport there is no Le Club option. Accor I can do it with status points and Asia overall just has more options than other brands.

I will draw down my account in 2020 to clear out my points (Looking to be 130k plus) so zero or very little spending of cash but a soft landing to gold in 2021 to extract most value.

Who knows after that point.

Hilton Gold here, I was also driven away from Accor due to their Customer Service and inconsistency. Using both works for me (plus IHG from time to time too). Having said that 2019 seems I will stay mostly at Accor hotels due to the place I am going where Hilton is not really present.

I am Hilton Gold also. Recently I have reduced my stays with Accor and will continue to do so (used to be Plat with 60+ nights). Basically, their incompetent Customer Service and poor IT are driving me away. They must know how bad these things are but seem not to care.

I am now Accor only. I generally use Ibis or Ibis Styles and find that none of the other hotel chains in Europe or Asia can beat their prices
I don't need all the upscale service that most members want/desire.
I maintain my "gold" status each year and I am happy with it. I do stay at a few Novotel and Mercure when the price is right or comparable to Ibis, usually when there is a sale.

I do have some IHG rewards points, about 110,000 and hopefully one day I can use them up.

Other than that I will stick with Accor, my price range, and Ibis or Ibis Styles my hotel types.

I only use Accor in France, and then by no means exclusively. Best Western (in France and Italy) and Relais du Silence also figure somewhat.

Despite acknowledging my status in the program, Accor have consistently failed to credit me with points for any stays during the past 7 years. I have no idea why this happens (it began with a stay at a Moscow Ibis in 2012 and has continued ever since), and repeated phone calls have achieved no result. So now I only stay with them when there is a Mercure in town that is the best choice.

In the US, it will normally be Hilton, now that Marriott have downgraded me in the new merged program,though I do have several Marriott stays booked in places where it is a more convenient option.