SanDiego1K

Marriott is discontinuing travel packages as of 19 Jan 2022. Will Marriott continue to allow movement of points to airlines? Right now, for every 60,000 points, we get 20,000 airline miles plus a 5,000 mile bonus. It's one of the only ways to top up miles in programs that do not have credit card transfer partners such as Chase Ultimate Rewards or AMEX Membership Rewards. Alaska Air is one example.

https://www.marriott.com/loyalty/red...ts-to-miles.mi

Does anyone have any insight as to whether this benefit will continue?

goodeats21

With the tight relationship between United, Marriott, and Chase...I would wager this continues.
Of course, always subject to them changing the rates of transfers.

hhoope01

Just a guess on my part, but I see three issues with the TPs that might have pushed Marriott to get rid of them:

1. Outsized benefit. While TPs aren't the pinnacle of hotel awards they once were, they still gave a sizeable benefit. Individually 7 nights at a Cat. 8 (standard points cost) would be 510K points plus 300K points for 110,000 United miles. This translates into 810K points cost where the TP only costs 750K points. And the benefit only gets better if the Cat 8 requires Peak pricing. Which leads to #2 below.
2. With Off-Peak/Standard/Peak award pricing within a single category for most of this year (2022) and then to a more fully flexible award pricing from there, the whole TP structure around hotel category levels becomes unwieldy. Marriott would have to completely overhall how TPs awards would be priced or they just get rid of them.
3. Also, Marriott's program used to be based off optimizing awards for 7 night stays. Their awards are really more optimized for 5 night stays now. So again, they need to overhall TP awards or just get rid of them.

Note that for all 3 above issues with TPs, none of those are a concern or issue with a straight points to miles conversion award. So my guess is those aren't going away as probably both the airlines and Marriott get benefits from offering those awards.

GUWonder

The big thing putting the TPs on the cutting block: Marriott being cheap and aiming to go cheaper, even at the expense of customers.

Marriott probably wants to cut its costs of buying airline miles since the miles aren't getting cheaper for bulk-buying in an environment where the best prices go to the big-mile-buying banks but otherwise increase to some extent for other buyers. And what's most financially important for Marriott when it comes to points being redeemed? To reduce its expense per point redeemed by customers. My guess is that gutting the value of travel packages was likely only the first step en route to eliminating the travel packages. And in an environment of flexible points pricing for award nights, Marriott will probably not want to maintain a parallel -- but fixed award pricing -- system which is shrinking in customer utility as and because Marriott continues on the path away from fixed award pricing and on gutting the value of the TPs.

The points-to-miles conversion options will almost certainly outlive the TPs, but I expect that they will be on the cutting block to some extent too -- with worse transfer rates for more an more airlines and with some transfer options perhaps even being eliminated. Bonvoy is about going tres cheap.

Lizie

Just to be clear, are we talking about the hotel and air packages?: https://www.marriott.co.uk/loyalty/r...el/packages.mi

First I've heard of it so thanks if it's so as can book up pronto.

SanDiego1K

Yes, they are going away. Go to the end of this thread for discussion.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...19-2022-a.html

Lizie

Thank you for highlighting it. Very helpful, although I have to ask myself why as an alleged elite Marriott member I always seem to be getting my program knowledge off a forum based on another continent rather than in my email box. Anyway, back to the question, with the closure of the travel packages and Marriott's enhancement track record I wouldn't be surprised to see them go. Really frustrating if it does because we have so few Amex transfer partners over here in the UK as it is.

cfischer

TP were worthless anyway since the last devaluation IMO. No big loss here and IMO not unexpected. Few agents knew anyway how to deal with them.

nobody2

Pure speculation and call me alarmist: but I think they’ll be (bad) news on 1/19 overall. Some blogger said Marriott said that the communication of the elimination travel packages was a blunder (that it was just slipped into the terms and conditions of the program with no announcement). That makes me think there is broader news on 1/19 that could be effective immediately.

Again pure speculation. But I booked stuff to get down to <10000 points.

GUWonder

Arguably for those who want to redeem for hotel nights, redeeming points for TPs before the 19th could be considered a better use for the points than waiting to get hit by the devaluation that comes from a more "flexible pricing" redemption scheme that doesn't price award nights strictly along published category levels.

Sohan

When do the nights expire on packages? Wouldn't mind locking up some nights for some Cat 8 stuff in the Maldives etc before the devalue

SanDiego1K

You'll find people who can answer that question in this thread: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...19-2022-a.html

KDCAflyer

Only need 3700 points to hit 420K.

I'll be ready to dump them into United at a moment's notice

Marriott can get bent.

seat38a

If anything, I'm going to guess that the transfer to United lives and all the other Airlines get scrapped.