Aug 23, 2018, 9:22 am
Last edit by: jspira
Marriott began the IT integration of its 3 loyalty programs on August 18 with a goal of combining them into one unified program. It told members to expect websites and apps to be inaccessible that day and problems stretched into the middle of the week. By Thursday, the dust seemed to settle although members continued to report specific issues.
How Bad Do You Estimate The IT Rollout Will Be?
Aug 25, 2018, 12:35 pm
#226
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Ottawa, Canada.
Programs: AC*SE 2MM, Marriott*Plutonium Lifetime, other stuff
Posts: 485
Weird posing on my account today - Spg Ax Ca Goodwill Cnsr
I guess somebody is apologizing for something, but it isn't clear who, what or why......
TM
I guess somebody is apologizing for something, but it isn't clear who, what or why......
TM
Aug 25, 2018, 12:44 pm
#227
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: KHOU/KIAH
Programs: AA EXP | Marriott Bonvoy Titanium| Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 11,245
I agree with you that this will all work out, now with that being said the challenge, is as a Sheraton person how loyal am I to Marriott? If the point of buying SPG was to get a larger member base that catered to the higher end, you are driving those people away. Unsure what percent's were used for the customer base or was this deal 100% about the real-estate and hotel footprints. When this all works out I will have lifetime plat premier, now is a good time for me to try Hyatt for a backup hotel since I have nothing to loose. It I don't like it I can always go back, to Marriott or in my case Hilton where I also have lifetime status.
the people upset are the ones on here (me included) who have spreadsheets to track points, are plotting to get the best possible outcome and just enjoy traveling. That's a fraction of the regular traveling public.
if Marriott messes up spg for the spgers, then yes, people may leave. But that's a long term outlook and behavior thing vs a week of incorrect point balances. I personally do not feel this merger part will be driving many people away (specifically the physical merger portion, not the result of SPG being acquired and the result on spg as a program).
EDIT: there's also a very vocal group on this site who are making it seem like the sky is falling. Same info, in every thread, every day. And then some. A minority of a minority if you will.
Last edited by Antarius; Aug 25, 2018 at 2:15 pm
Aug 25, 2018, 1:44 pm
#228
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: USA
Programs: AS MVP; UA Gold; DL Gold; Marriott Titanium
Posts: 156
I am wondering about Hyatt, since I need a backup hotel, that I will use mostly at airports or some big cites. I like the Hyatt MCO and PIT since they are attached to the airports, but those are the only two I am aware of.
SPG was my backup hotel, I would do 75 nights a year with them for the bonus pts, but was mostly a Hilton guy, with about 125 nights a year. SPG had the smaller more personnel feel then Hilton or Marriott, but had a lot smaller foot print. Marriott and Hilton are very similar, the reason I choose Hilton was for the Hampton inns, that is their low end hotel, but they are everywhere and in a lot of small towns. In the bigger cities I usually have a favorite hotel where I visit, whether it was a Hilton or SPG.
SPG was my backup hotel, I would do 75 nights a year with them for the bonus pts, but was mostly a Hilton guy, with about 125 nights a year. SPG had the smaller more personnel feel then Hilton or Marriott, but had a lot smaller foot print. Marriott and Hilton are very similar, the reason I choose Hilton was for the Hampton inns, that is their low end hotel, but they are everywhere and in a lot of small towns. In the bigger cities I usually have a favorite hotel where I visit, whether it was a Hilton or SPG.
It's the destination that usually drives my personal travel aspirations, and there will likely be a "new" Marriott there with its now very large property footprint.
Still some blindspots New Zealand, but I can always find an alternative (the IC Wellington was a great property!) when needed.
Nonetheless, I'll continue to jump around to all of Marriott's different brands whether I wants something luxe or even less so for an airport overnighter or just a smaller pricetag for a weekend.
Aug 25, 2018, 2:18 pm
#229
Join Date: Apr 2004
Programs: AA plt 2 mm, Marriott LTT, HH dia
Posts: 1,215
I should be listed as LTPP, but am still listed as LTP. Since status.marriott.com states that lifetime statuses should be correct now, I decided to call today.
FWIW, the agent said that there are still a few people like me with problems. So they are filling out manual tickets for each account to submit to IT. He said it might take a couple of weeks for IT to get to it. But he seemed to think they are correcting lifetime status on an individual basis now. If he is right, if I didn't call in, it might not have been fixed until the January sweep. But I wonder if whatever problem occurred this time could also happen in January. I am glad I called.
Agents aren't always the best source of info, but he did acknowledge that I had earned LTPP, and that the status in the computer was wrong. I doubt it made a difference, but I did tell him I have a screen shot from back in July showing LTP status with over 750 nights and 2 million points in MR.
FWIW, the agent said that there are still a few people like me with problems. So they are filling out manual tickets for each account to submit to IT. He said it might take a couple of weeks for IT to get to it. But he seemed to think they are correcting lifetime status on an individual basis now. If he is right, if I didn't call in, it might not have been fixed until the January sweep. But I wonder if whatever problem occurred this time could also happen in January. I am glad I called.
Agents aren't always the best source of info, but he did acknowledge that I had earned LTPP, and that the status in the computer was wrong. I doubt it made a difference, but I did tell him I have a screen shot from back in July showing LTP status with over 750 nights and 2 million points in MR.
Aug 26, 2018, 2:46 pm
#230
Join Date: Jan 2013
Programs: Marriott LTT, DL FO
Posts: 185
My account was listed as Platinum Premiere with Ambassador last weekend, but now I have been dropped down to regular Platinum Premiere. I was a Marriott Platinum Premiere before 8/18, so getting Ambassador based on my Marriott status seemed to be in line with what I was expecting. I did merge my SPG account earlier this week, but my status was still PP+A when I did it. I wonder if this downgrade is just another bug in the process, or if I truly have been dropped down one level.
Last edited by MotelRomeo; Aug 26, 2018 at 3:04 pm
Aug 26, 2018, 3:20 pm
#231
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SLC/HEL/Anywhere with a Beach
Programs: Marriott Ambassador; AA EXP 3MM; AS MVP, Hilton Gold, CH-47/UH-60/C-23/C-130 VET
Posts: 5,234
My account was listed as Platinum Premiere with Ambassador last weekend, but now I have been dropped down to regular Platinum Premiere. I was a Marriott Platinum Premiere before 8/18, so getting Ambassador based on my Marriott status seemed to be in line with what I was expecting. I did merge my SPG account earlier this week, but my status was still PP+A when I did it. I wonder if this downgrade is just another bug in the process, or if I truly have been dropped down one level.
If you were a Marriott Plat Premier before, you will be a Marriott Plat Premier now unless you have 20k in spend. How much is your spend?
Otherwise, you were caught in one of the erroneous codings and your status is accurate. You only will have an ambassador if (a) you had an ambassador through the MR legacy unpublished program, (b) you have 100 stays at SPG properties in 2017 or 2018, or (c) you have hit 20k in spending. I'll avoid commenting about whether legacy Marriott Plat Premiers are having a downgrade in status since that's a while other topic.
Aug 26, 2018, 3:38 pm
#232
Join Date: Jan 2013
Programs: Marriott LTT, DL FO
Posts: 185
My status has been moving up and down over the past several days as they try to fix the status conversions.
If you were a Marriott Plat Premier before, you will be a Marriott Plat Premier now unless you have 20k in spend. How much is your spend?
Otherwise, you were caught in one of the erroneous codings and your status is accurate. You only will have an ambassador if (a) you had an ambassador through the MR legacy unpublished program, (b) you have 100 stays at SPG properties in 2017 or 2018, or (c) you have hit 20k in spending. I'll avoid commenting about whether legacy Marriott Plat Premiers are having a downgrade in status since that's a while other topic.
If you were a Marriott Plat Premier before, you will be a Marriott Plat Premier now unless you have 20k in spend. How much is your spend?
Otherwise, you were caught in one of the erroneous codings and your status is accurate. You only will have an ambassador if (a) you had an ambassador through the MR legacy unpublished program, (b) you have 100 stays at SPG properties in 2017 or 2018, or (c) you have hit 20k in spending. I'll avoid commenting about whether legacy Marriott Plat Premiers are having a downgrade in status since that's a while other topic.
Aug 27, 2018, 1:42 am
#233
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Somewhere in Florida
Posts: 2,621
Actually... when non-FT types go to book at Marriott.com and get a listing that all hotels are sold out/unavailable/erroneously told that no properties exist in that city, OR can't log in to book, they take their $$$ elsewhere. I have at times this year as well. Multiple times I've booked our staff at non-Marriott properties after the website was down and I wasn't about to entertain holding on the phone 30+ minutes to book them.
Aug 27, 2018, 11:14 am
#234
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: KHOU/KIAH
Programs: AA EXP | Marriott Bonvoy Titanium| Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 11,245
Actually... when non-FT types go to book at Marriott.com and get a listing that all hotels are sold out/unavailable/erroneously told that no properties exist in that city, OR can't log in to book, they take their $$$ elsewhere. I have at times this year as well. Multiple times I've booked our staff at non-Marriott properties after the website was down and I wasn't about to entertain holding on the phone 30+ minutes to book them.
Any reservation system outages is a big deal and should have (and likely was) priority 1.
Aug 27, 2018, 11:22 am
#235
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SLC/HEL/Anywhere with a Beach
Programs: Marriott Ambassador; AA EXP 3MM; AS MVP, Hilton Gold, CH-47/UH-60/C-23/C-130 VET
Posts: 5,234
The reservation problem must be killing them. I was looking at making a reservation last night and the Marriott app was only showing the single legacy SPG property in the area when there are a dozen legacy MR properties. When I went to the website, they all showed. The average person won't be doing this ....
Aug 27, 2018, 11:38 am
#236
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: SFO
Posts: 3,879
About three hours ago, made a few reservations to liquate my points balance, use the timely Amex Plat $60 off $300 and use the expiring soon SPG biz $60 off $300. Haven't received email confirmations nor any notifications on my phone for CC charges. Anyone else experiencing this? Reservations do show on the app/website.
Aug 27, 2018, 11:55 am
#237
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: SNA
Programs: Bonvoy LTTE/AMB, AmEx Plat, National EE, WN A-List, CLEAR+, Covid-19
Posts: 4,964
What is it with people and wanting "apologies"? What does that get you?!
Nearly 10 days in, my upcoming SPG stays show up on the MR app, and vice-versa. I have 48 nights, yet $0 spend, a recent stay post-merger is so late I'm about to give it a pregnancy test, and there's still red banners for some issue or other on the MR site.
They can save some stupid "apology", those are just useless words. I just want all this fixed before it actually ends up screwing up something for me.
Nearly 10 days in, my upcoming SPG stays show up on the MR app, and vice-versa. I have 48 nights, yet $0 spend, a recent stay post-merger is so late I'm about to give it a pregnancy test, and there's still red banners for some issue or other on the MR site.
They can save some stupid "apology", those are just useless words. I just want all this fixed before it actually ends up screwing up something for me.
Aug 27, 2018, 11:58 am
#238
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: SNA
Programs: Bonvoy LTTE/AMB, AmEx Plat, National EE, WN A-List, CLEAR+, Covid-19
Posts: 4,964
I take back what I've said in other threads; your statement is now the most ludicrous thing about the merger.
Aug 27, 2018, 12:02 pm
#239
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: NYC
Programs: Delta Gold, Marriott Platinum, Former Amtrak Select, Former Hilton Gold
Posts: 422
Hi All,
I'm getting the following error when attempting to book a legacy SPG property through either Marriott.com or starwoodhotels.com. I don't see a way to change the number in my personal info. Any ideas?
It does appear to allow me to book through the Marriott or SPG app, but when I get to the confirmation screen on the app, it's giving me different cancelation terms (telling me the cancelation window has passed, as opposed to the website which says I have until 2 days before the reservation with no penalty) so I'm hesitant to proceed with the app. I sent an email to customer service 3 days ago but haven't heard back.
We're unable to locate this Starwood Preferred Guest® account, or you have entered an invalid SPG number. Please re-enter or remove your SPG number, check that the last name you have entered below matches the name on the account, or contact us for assistance.
I'm getting the following error when attempting to book a legacy SPG property through either Marriott.com or starwoodhotels.com. I don't see a way to change the number in my personal info. Any ideas?
It does appear to allow me to book through the Marriott or SPG app, but when I get to the confirmation screen on the app, it's giving me different cancelation terms (telling me the cancelation window has passed, as opposed to the website which says I have until 2 days before the reservation with no penalty) so I'm hesitant to proceed with the app. I sent an email to customer service 3 days ago but haven't heard back.
We're unable to locate this Starwood Preferred Guest® account, or you have entered an invalid SPG number. Please re-enter or remove your SPG number, check that the last name you have entered below matches the name on the account, or contact us for assistance.
Aug 27, 2018, 12:09 pm
#240
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SLC/HEL/Anywhere with a Beach
Programs: Marriott Ambassador; AA EXP 3MM; AS MVP, Hilton Gold, CH-47/UH-60/C-23/C-130 VET
Posts: 5,234
Hi All,
I'm getting the following error when attempting to book a legacy SPG property through either Marriott.com or starwoodhotels.com. I don't see a way to change the number in my personal info. Any ideas?
It does appear to allow me to book through the Marriott or SPG app, but when I get to the confirmation screen on the app, it's giving me different cancelation terms (telling me the cancelation window has passed, as opposed to the website which says I have until 2 days before the reservation with no penalty) so I'm hesitant to proceed with the app. I sent an email to customer service 3 days ago but haven't heard back.
We're unable to locate this Starwood Preferred Guest® account, or you have entered an invalid SPG number. Please re-enter or remove your SPG number, check that the last name you have entered below matches the name on the account, or contact us for assistance.
I'm getting the following error when attempting to book a legacy SPG property through either Marriott.com or starwoodhotels.com. I don't see a way to change the number in my personal info. Any ideas?
It does appear to allow me to book through the Marriott or SPG app, but when I get to the confirmation screen on the app, it's giving me different cancelation terms (telling me the cancelation window has passed, as opposed to the website which says I have until 2 days before the reservation with no penalty) so I'm hesitant to proceed with the app. I sent an email to customer service 3 days ago but haven't heard back.
We're unable to locate this Starwood Preferred Guest® account, or you have entered an invalid SPG number. Please re-enter or remove your SPG number, check that the last name you have entered below matches the name on the account, or contact us for assistance.