So of course, i can click on any other state and the properties come up but Florida won't click.

So does this list change periodically or is this just a re0list of the cheapest properties already.

Just logged on and saw they have the new promo and other things advertise as part of the "new" choice privileges.

Can anybody click on Florida?

I just tried it for you, no it doesn't work.

Has anyone seen any benefit for this? I just tried multiple dates for three different properties and don't see any difference from the normal rates...

The cynic in me thinks this new "program" may just be an easy way for Choice to jack up their point redemption levels for weekend nights without people noticing.

But I will say, for a little while I've been looking at reserving a property in St. Petersburg, FL (Comfort Inn North) for a weeknight in late March. I do believe the point price was 20k previously but I see that it's now down to 16k.

Also, it appears that the FlexRewards link for Florida is working now.

The list on the FlexRewards page currently reflects hotels with discounted reward nights through April 15, 2016. We will update the list as we get closer to April 16, but you can always see the point level requirement when you search, even after April 15. Also, FlexRewards is meant to help you get to a free night faster by decreasing the point levels required to redeem for a free night at select hotels during either a weekday (Sunday � Thursday) or weekend (Friday � Saturday) stay. When our hotels have more availability either during the week (like those in leisure destinations), or on the weekend (like those in business destinations), we are proactively lowering the required points from the standard level for that season.

- Jennifer, Choice Privileges Team

The aspirational aspect is getting more complicated, adding day of the week variability to the current seasonal variability. (Also possible changes year to year.) Difficult to know what to shoot for. Make that, when to shoot for. As Forrest Gump's mama said, "It's like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." Guessing that it's as challenging for the property GMs to set up, as well.

A wish: If this is a matter of "discounts," might we see the low end drop below 6,000 ever? ...Never mind.

This is bogus (boy, not the word I wanted to use) and it is somewhat insulting.

I haven't searched extensively yet, but I see that my three most common redemption properties are on the 'discount' list - but they are NOT 'proactively lowered' during the week. Their points costs have been INCREASED for the weekends. When I have a bit more time, I can go back and check all the redemptions for myself, friends, and family, but I am quite familiar with the rates for these three properties, and they all reflect only increases.

These are not the temporary 'seasonal' increases, I'm talking about the 'low season' rates that follow them up - my 8k hotels will now be 10k on the weekends, and my 12k hotels will now be 16k on the weekends.


If this is somehow in error, I'll eat these words and apologize, but right now? I REALLY don't like them instructing you to spin things in a deceptive manner. Play up the fact that we can finally see seasonal rates again. Play up the fact that all of your hotels are now on an equal footing for promotions. Play up the fact that you managed to stave off full time devaluations by increasing the points costs only on certain days - but don't pretend that you're decreasing the number of points required for redemption. FT members are, by and large, an informed group, and I can't be the only one that isn't a fan of the misleading language posted above.


EDIT: I will admit that these three properties are all in Florida, and *perhaps* they were all due for an annual increase in points, which happened to coincide with these changes. I edited my post somewhat to be a little less vinegary.
EDIT AGAIN: I checked several other properties that I've booked at, as well as a few I'd had on my list for future trip possibilities. Haven't found an actual decrease in either low or high season points yet, only increases. Sour taste in my mouth when I read 'proactively lowering' remains.

I hadn't actually booked but I had been looking at one hotel in florida and I thought I noticed the same thing as you, that nothing was actually cheaper and the one and only ont he list near me but then I didn't remember exactly the old points redemption but yeah it was 10k, stayed the same but I didnt check if it went up on weekends.

Nice to see that, while there aren't apparent discounts for the hotels I watch around Disney World, neither have they gone up at weekends yet. (Though, at $25-$35, there's no sense in redeeming.) But one I watch in northern California, which has not changed in years, seasonally or otherwise (high demand) has gone up. And my other fun "go-to", Monterey, which seems to be ripe for the weeknight/weekend divergence, bears watching, as revenue rates are rock bottom during the week and much higher at weekends.

A general question: Will there be more (individual hotel) spikes during high demand periods, say, when there is a race at a nearby speedway? Thank you, Jennifer.

The uncertainty around how this works is exactly why we made changes that we feel are universally customer friendly� Some members feel that rewards programs are making things more difficult. The new benefit options gives Choice Privileges members various options to use their points faster and in more ways that work for them.

In regards to Flex Rewards, we are surprised to see this reaction. From the beginning, FlexRewards was conceived to be a benefit to offer members discounted point levels so you need fewer points to redeem for a free night at select hotels. We wanted to have a lot of nights at discounted point levels, and we noticed there was significant variability in when hotels need business by day of the week. So, we looked at where hotels were expected to be for the season, and lowered the point value for when certain hotels may have more occupancy available, and we pass those discounted point levels to you. Because FlexRewards depends on the occupancy needs of Choice branded hotels, which vary by location and season, not all hotels are available for this benefit each season. We feel that FlexRewards gives you more flexibility and options to get free nights for fewer points. And, we assure you, this change, like our others, is meant to make nights, instant rewards, and other options better and faster for our members.

Could you please let me know which properties you're looking at so that we can get back to you with some more information?

You are surprised that we are disappointed when hotels which cost 10k points before now are 16k on weekdays and 12k on weekends? And that is being presented as a discount?

I know there are corporate communication guidelines you have to stay within, but surely there is a way to do that without becoming absurd...

Last year Choice launches a new website.

We have yet to find a single way that the new website makes things easier than the old website. We constantly find things that are harder on the new website than they were on the older website. Yes, maybe the newsite looks prettier, but that's about the only improvement.

Now, how that relates to this specific issue: On the old website, we could see on each hotel page a chart such as:
(The chart didn't show a full year; it showed the current period and one or two periods into the future.)

But these charts disappeared with the new website, and with the disappearance of those charts there's less visibility about what the "normal" hotel redemption rate is, and thus it's less clear about what is a discount than if the website still showed those charts (and then explained that there may a discount on certain nights of the week).

Meanwhile, to those people who are claiming that "this hotel used to be so and so many points, and now it's this many points", those charts showed that hotel points requirements have varied for many years at Choice, though they used to vary only by season, not by day of the week. So hotel redemption rates going up and down is nothing new.

However, what is new is that now there's no "published visibility" of when a hotel redemption rate goes up or down (because of that missing chart online). And many guests don't like lack of visibility of redemption rate changes.

I actually understand and approve of what you are trying to do with the flex program - Starwood has a similar system where weekend points redemptions are lower than weekday redemptions at some properties. It makes sense, and if Choice was actually lowering (you keep using that word, but I don't think you know what it means) the low occupancy night cost, I'd be cheering the change wholeheartedly.

Unfortunately, despite what they're telling you to post, it appears that few if any properties had their points cost lowered on low occupancy nights - the vast majority of properties participating in the flex program had their points cost raised on high occupancy nights.

A few properties:

FL117 - high season cost before: 8000 now: 8000/10000
FLA70 - low season cost before: 8000 now: 8000/10000
FL508 - low season cost before: 12000 now: 12000/16000
FLC01 - low season cost before: 8000 now: 8000/10000
IT401 - low season cost before: 10000 now: 10000/12000
IT057 - low season cost before: 8000 now: 8000/10000
NV070 - low season cost before: 10000 now: 10000/12000

As I said before, perhaps they were all due for an increase in points costs. If that's the case, I must be incredibly (un?)lucky - every property I stayed in that is participating in the flex program went up, and nearly every property I stayed in that is not participating remained the same.

I say nearly because one property I redeemed at was increased from 10000 to 20000 to 30000 this year - it was a new Cambria property in NYC, and I took advantage of their introductory points rate. The other ten properties I redeemed at have not changed their points cost.


So, out of 18 properties that I have data for at the moment, 7 of them are in the flex program, and all posted increases. 11 of them are not in the flex program, and only one of them increased.


EDIT: To be fair, upon rereading, you did used the phrase 'lowered the point value' as opposed to 'lowered the points cost' - I guess you could argue that you're being truthful, as these changes do indeed lower the value of my Choice points.

Actually, they gave us back that chart with these changes - you can see the points cost on each hotel page again, currently updated through 30 June. Hotels participating in the FlexRewards program also show the days of the week that the 'discounted' rates apply to.

The Henderson property mentioned above is an excellent example. The 12k/16k rates that are referenced appear to be 'high season' rates - now through April 15th. From April 16th through June 30th, the 'low season' rates of 10k/12k will apply. I unfortunately don't have the data on what the 'high season' rate was last year, so I can't speak to that, but the 'low season' rate is definitely showing an increased cost for weekend nights.

My complaint is not with the FlexRewards concept. I don't like any devaluations, of course, but even that isn't my issue in this thread. My issue here is with Choice being blatantly dishonest when describing these changes. As I said in my first missive,

Good catch!

Interestingly none of the Scandinavian properties show that info. Maybe they just haven't loaded the point rates?