itsaboutthejourney

Part of the problem is that Arne "noise around the edges" Sorenson really wanted to check off a box saying he would keep SPG loyalists happy so he went against what he did in other areas and kept a Starwood person, (Flueck) the #2 guy in charge of SPG. But in the focus to remake Marriott Rewards into something closer to SPG, they paid zero attention to the lower quality IT systems Marriott has, while ignoring the cultural differences between the companies in terms of how they approach and communicate with high value customers. It should be noted that at Starwood, customer facing web & mobile had the same executive (who Marriott was unwilling or unable to retain) as loyalty and the loyalty team had a big say in other areas such as policies. The Marriott Borg is so large that these areas are separate, and as we are finding, there is not a big concerted approach to look out for the customer as Starwood did.

hockeyinsider

In other words, the perfect hatchet man.

margarita girl

I think you just proved my point. There was no confusion about the breakfast benefit with the Starwood loyalty program.

hockeyinsider

If we want to be apologists for Flueck and legacy SPG then the only explanation is there was an internal Marriott battle between the loyalty division and the hotel development division. The hotel development division, which seeks to grow the company's bottom line by planting the Marriott flag, won the day.

To this day, the loyalty division can't do much but through points your way if properties tell you or them to pound sand. Hence why we're seeing so many properties claim a muffin or bagel with coffee is the much-hyped "breakfast offering" that was promised in April 2018.

Amitbe11

hockeyinsider

I agree, but, ultimately, Marriott is ignoring this. They know this is happening and they choose not to do anything about it.

1120

I got the triple Bonvoy! That's right, I had the distinct pleasure of calling three days in a row to correctly book a reservation at the Ritz Carlton in Bali. This was no triple lutz, as the difficulty level for them was 0.0

Was this an unusually complex reservation? No! I was simply trying to add a club level upgrade obtained via the Ritz Carlton card.

KRSW

Well, the derogatory term "Bonvoyed" is taking off:

besides http://www.bonvoyed.com , there's now:
https://twitter.com/FakeBonvoyArne
https://twitter.com/bonvoyed
https://www.facebook.com/Bonvoyed/

and people are noticing...

https://liveandletsfly.boardingarea....rogatory-verb/
https://loyaltylobby.com/2019/03/08/...rody-accounts/
https://travelingformiles.com/marrio...r-image-issue/
https://onemileatatime.com/marriott-...-reservations/
https://saverocity.com/thedealmommy/...t-influencers/ (includes a link to Marriott bribing bloggers to look the other way)
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/recap...eeze-pin-more/
https://insiders.marriott.com/thread/57363 (I wonder how long this thread will last)
https://travelbloggerbuzz.com/bonvoy...g-card-drawer/
https://viewfromthewing.boardingarea...0-chase-bonus/ (It wouldn't be a Gary Leff article without credit card referal pumpage)

From the Happiest Forum on Earth: https://www.disboards.com/threads/i-...#post-60354435

In German: https://www.buzzsprout.com/248390/989953
In Korean: https://www.milemoa.com/bbs/board/6010124
In Swedish: Marriott Bonvoy | Sida 3 | BusinessClass.se forum | 500 000 inlägg om resor

Kacee

Urban Dictionary really nailed it. You'll have to google it yourself, I believe linking would violate ToS.

Aventine

If it ends up in Webster's words of 2019 then Marriott knows they really have a winner on their hands.

Oxon Flyer

So, we need a reverse term for those who have unexpectedly and underservingly benefitted from some sort of Marriott muppety, say, for example, being made Lifetime after only 85 nights.

“Yovnobbed”.

pinniped

I got Bonvoyed this week at the Westin Seattle. I was told that I now have to choose between the welcome amenity and breakfast (as a Titanium).

I never had to do this in either Marriott or Starwood. There was the points amenity *and* lounge access or a restaurant breakfast.

This week, I was at a conference that included breakfast, so I took the points. But it's another subtle devaluation vs. what we have always had. And yet another reason why I'll keep 80% of my 2019 stays at Hilton, only going to Marriott when I'm basically forced to.

Kacee

You're saying none of the SPG properties you stayed at ever followed the rules? Because that was the published rule with SPG - points or breakfast.

AbuCordoba

to be fair...in the middle east at say Westin Doha or W Doha it used to be that you could have both points and breakfast however now its either or.

Marriott has ensured hotels follow rules and procedures much more tightly (when it suits them).

laxmillenial

[Quote removed as the original post has been removed]

Wait, so I didn't get bonvoyed because I had to pay for parking in downtown San Francisco?!
I've never had to do that before in any of my Marriott or SPG hotel stays there before...they would always valet my car for free and tip themselves. hmph.
(#sarcasm)

It's already happening unfortunately. People (in general, not pointing at the OP) will use any excuse they can to say they were 'wronged'. But it's never their fault for not reading the program website or terms/conditions.