cfabar1

I’ve never had the pleasure of staying at a Towneplace Suites hotel but I may be soon.

will I earn one elite night for each night I stay? I saw that you earn less Bonvoy points for each night than a typical hotel. Do you earn the same number of elite nights as a typical Marriott property? If I stay one night will I earn one night towards my status?

I will be at 49 nights so I want to make sure this visit will qualify me for platinum or I’ll stay at another property.

Jon Maiman

Towneplace suites earn the same number of elite nights as a typical Marriott property (1 elite night per night stayed). All Marriott traditional hotel brands earn 1 elite night per night stayed. Marriott Executive Apartments only earns 1 night for every 3 nights. Points per dollar does vary by brand. The extended stay brands Towneplace Suites, Residence Inn, and Element only earn 5 points/dollar rather than 10 points/dollar.

--Jon

ryw

A night is a night across almost all properties (as long as you're the one staying there), so yes you'll receive a full elite night for every night you stay at a Townplace Suites. (Edit - the exceptions are Marriott Executive Apartments and ExecuStay, where 3 nights stayed = 1 elite night)

As you mention, points earnings will be less (the base earning will be 5 points/dollar, rather than 10 points/dollar).

LAX

I don't understand why the extended stay brands earn less per $. It's not likely those are any cheaper than other brands (except for higher end/luxury brands). I personally value having a refrigerator and a microwave on vacations, so I end up choosing the extended stay brands more often.

LAX

Jon Maiman

I agree with you. It has always been that way. I guess when the brands were originally introduced they were mainly used for longer stays and the complimentary food was more substantial (e.g. full dinner almost every night in addition to breakfast). So the rationale for the value prop I guess is you got more in return for your money so less points. Even pre-covid, the current food options are greatly reduced (light dinner/heavy snacks three nights a week). I also think many folks use these hotels for shorter stays. They should align the points earnings with the other Marriott brands to 10 points/dollar to reflect the current value prop. Doubt it will happen.

I don't keep as up to date on Hilton nor IHG but I believe they also have reduced earning per dollar for their extended stay brands. I.e. this seems to be an industrywide practice and not unique to Marriott.

--Jon

P.S. For family trips, I am frequently redeeming points rather than earning them. I too like RI for those trips and the points/dollar is not relevant on award stays.

MSPeconomist

AFAIK element earned the same in SPG as other brands.

hhoope01

For those interested in the "why do extended stay hotels only earn 5 pts/$" discussion, it has been discussed here before. Most recently it can be found in the Justification for Residence Inn only earning 5 points per dollar? thread.

Jon Maiman

Interesting. I just checked on the MR website:You’ll earn 10 points per US$1 spent on eligible hotel charges, except at Element®, Residence Inn® and TownePlace Suites® hotels, where you’ll earn five points per eligible US$1.

I guess with the merger, Marriott went with the lowest common denominator for the extended stay portfolio and devalued Element rather than enhancing RI and TPS.

--Jon

cmd320

My deepest condolences. Nothing pleasurable about that.

Yes, like all other brands you'll earn one elite night per night stayed. The redeemable point you earn are less however.

margarita girl

It's been like that since Aug 2018 when Marriott tried to create groups for their 30 brands.

https://www.marriott.com/marriott-brands.mi

MSPeconomist

However, it's a somewhat odd grouping in that RI and element traditionally had their evening receptions, usually four times a week at the time of the merger and then cut back to three, while AFAIK the TPS brand always had breakfast but not any F&B in the evening. I suspect that TPS properties are built with smaller kitchens.

cmd320

Yes, considerably smaller and more basic.

Jon Maiman

Originally Posted by cfabar1
I’ve never had the pleasure of staying at a Towneplace Suites hotel but I may be soon.

Posted by cmd320
My deepest condolences. Nothing pleasurable about that.

Until recently, I would have agreed with you on Towneplace Suites. The few I had tried (including the supposingly recently renovated ones), were all dogs. The past couple of years, I needed to stay in a location where TPS was either the only MR option or the only MR option within my budget. They were all newer properties (< 3 years old). All of them were very nice for a budget property with a full kitchen which is what I expect from TPS. General furnishings were on par with Fairfield properties. So it depends on what you're looking for on if TPS will meet your needs.

While I still don't like the 5 points/dollar for my spend, it is no different than when I choose RI (haven't tried Element yet). Sometimes having a full kitchen trumps earning 10 points/dollar. If I don't need a full kitchen, FI or SHS would be preferable if available at a similar price point in the area.Each to their own.... The varying needs of the customer base is one of the reasons why there are so many brands within the portfolio.

--Jon

ryw

Interesting! My TPS experiences have been pretty lackluster, I usually consider more basic than most RIs. Maybe I need to try some of the newer ones. I agree that there are times that having the kitchen is my priority, so I'll book a TPS if there's no other option around (or it's at the right price point). I will say I've gotten some nice upgrades to 2 BR suites at TPS (Platinum member at the time), so that's better than nothing!

LAX

I suspect one's experience at TPS depends on the age of the property (probably true for most other brands as well). I have stayed at some newer TPS properties that are pretty nice. As I mentioned earlier, I value a microwave & a refrigerator more than other amenities, so I end up choosing the extended stay brands more than others.

LAX