supatight80

OMG MG! lol

I would have to say though if the group polled were all basic and low tier members, then bonvoy would be much better (ie. much larger footprint).

Would love to know what higher tier folks actually think of the new pogram. And it should be 50/50 MR and SPG members

And i dont know if there ever was such a thing as an "MR loyal" to begin with. My take was that pre-bonvoy MR was just convenient as there were MR properties wherever they went.

smokie

ryw

Old MR also had phone agents who actually knew what they were doing and provided great service.

It’s worth noting that Marriott has a lot of customers (whether due to travel patterns, type of work, etc) who have more stays at limited service properties (Courtyard, Fairfield, AC, Springhill, etc). IMO we used to have more discussions about these properties in the old MR forum, while the new Bonvoy forum tends to focus on full service & aspirational properties. Just an observation that the forum posters may not have the same travel patterns as a lot of Bonvoy members.

IME, at these types of limited/select service properties Bonvoy experience is pretty much the same as pre-merger. And there’s usually no games to be played with upgrades with 10 different tiers of rooms. In fact, application of SNAs is a value-add for these properties, and the $10 F&B welcome gift for platinum+ members is a lot better than recent years when elites got nothing at Courtyards (despite a very very rocky rollout of that benefit).

As someone who has about half their nights from select/limited/long term service properties (and at the risk of being labeled one of those old MR lower middle management traveling simpleton types :P), I do think the Bonvoy program has brought increased value and benefits for stays at those properties.

Antarius

I disagree. I was spg before Marriott.

Spg is like being a Virgin America loyalist. It works great, until it doesn't because they don't fly there. There is a limited audience that traveled to the major cities exclusively that spg worked great for, and that seems to be the vocal group with the pitchforks.

Simply put, if spg was so awesome and so sustainable, why did they get swallowed up? This is not to absolve Marriott of some of their slip ups and discourage them from trying to emulate aspects of spg that made their customers so loyal, but spg wasn't this omnipotent entity that it is purveyed to be.

supatight80

SPG and Starwood Hotels were 2 different things. Starwood (the hotels) was making money but not enough compared to competitors as it didnt have much of the "select" service properties and that is where growth was.

SPG was the loyalty program and let's face it, the vast majority knows it was much better than MReward or else Bonvoy wouldnt be almost the exact copy as SPG. Noboby is saying it is perfect.

The intent is there, but the problem with Bonvoy is the execution. It really makes me wonder how 8:1 prefers Bonvoy when CS and corporate culture now is absolutely dismal compared to SPG.

Anyways people were with MR mainly because of the footprint. SPG members were with Starwood for whole different reasons.

And i really wonder why people get offended when we criticize the program or MR, as if it is a reflection of themselves?

christianj

Poll on a FB elite group is asking people if they participated in any sort of questionnaire or poll on this recently. Out of 168 respondents so far only 1 person said “yes” they were asked for their opinion on Bonvoy vs old MR and SPG.

kaizen7

There are possibility that people who claim Bonvoy better are those ex SPG elites who somehow got better treatment after Bonvoyed

CPH-Flyer

As a non US based member, this is the exact opposite. Not having a credit card option made it virtually impossible to get any significant lifetime status with Marriott Rewards. But I was basically instant lifetime Platinum under the new program.

Adding the SNA benefits, an improvement of the breakfast benefits (though admittedly they could be better), getting some very nice additional options like St Regis. I am definitely in a better position than I was.

And while I did not get a survey, I would have responded with the new program being better than the old. An 8 to 1 ratio seems artificially high, and the survey was probably rigged for the outcome. But it does not mean that there are not a lot of people who are better off in the new program

Antarius

Drawing a line between spg and Starwood Hotels is like arguing Bonvoy is different than Marriott. A semantic distinction of no value.

Select properties are a challenge because they may be located in remote areas, operate on lower margins etc. It is why you can routinely expect good service at a StR, but a CY or 4P is hit or miss. Also, I think a lot of legacy SPGers forget how horrible US Sheratons and 4Ps are; both property quality and sometimes management.

And this is the type of condescending statement that many of us find off putting.

Antarius

No one gets offended by the topic. As a former spg-er, I agree that SPG was a better program, just like Hyatt has a better one now. I also accept that it is what it is, and there are also advantages as a result of the merger.

What I object to is the tone used by many here - that anyone who is happy with Bonvoy is an idiot who didn't "understand" spg or wasn't part of the "special"-ness of spg etc. Like it is impossible to be happy with the end result and only a fool or someone needing a large hotel footprint would choose Marriott.

Visconti

I'm not a hotels event coordinator, and spend way more on other things than my hotel bills. Just off the bat, earnings 2 points on general spend is already a 33% devaluation for what's basically the SPG legacy rebranded. It would be remarkable that an 8:1 ratio felt better about this, even if they were hotel professional events bookers, since I'd assume even they would be better off 3 points per on general spend from the original program.

The only you get 8:1 is poll those folks who never experienced and were never a part of Amex SPG rewards.

supatight80

Off putting?? Hey you mentioned it yourself "It is great unless it doesnt fly there" or whatever it was. And what is so off putting about that? You really think people were loyal to SPG because of its footprint?

Stop being insecure.

EuropeanPete

I think it’s understandable that some people find it hard to give the idea that Bonvoy is an improvement any merit. It’s an awful lot like SPG on paper, with better earning and more properties.... only everything is broken, and the program has withdrawn most customer service.

Antarius

And you continue echoing your spg superiority. If Spg fit peoples travel patterns, then they got the best of both worlds, didn't work for everyone and partially as a result, there is no more spg or Starwood.

Hate it so much, move to Hilton or Hyatt. Stop .....ing and acting like we're idiots for not joining the complain fest.

Antarius

The issue is, that these people refuse to accept that there may be others (and many others) that do find it an improvement.

I'm not arguing that everyone must love Bonvoy - we have options such as Hyatt, Hilton and IHG for a reason. But the group that find it hard to give Marriott any merit are insistently shouting down anyone who might be happy with the outcome.