Using a category 8 7night Package for only 5 nights
 

Calling in the early morning is the best idea to get someone live within 10 minutes. HUCA is the best solution if someone doesn't know. My $20 charge has been posted. First CSR didn't know what to do. Second one did and was able to reverse the charge. I received a reference number. He said I was charged for returning the certificate ( another story with a case number and is solved now) I received 10k points for the inconvenience .

Just spoke to few SPG reps to check Bora Bora/maldives availability. He checked for the whole year and there was zero availability for the base category rooms. The cheapest rooms was 100k spg points. He went on to say , that as internal policy, SPG blocks the base category rooms - thereby making them bookable only with cash.

So now my question to all those people who are looking for the supposed 60K MR points sweetspot - will there be any availability?

CSR rep is right, cheapest room at STR maldives is 90-100k SPG per night. It should come down to 20k per night with the new program. no one knows about availability and the categorizing of base room etc

Yes so theoretically it should come down. I have a feeling the base category rooms might not be bookable.

The releases from yesterday somewhat suggest that nothing at all will happen on August 1st in the Marriott systems. It's possible that you could call between the 1st and 17th and redeem a TP under current rules.

One of the interviews posted by one of the bloggers suggests the big IT cutover day is that Saturday the 18th.

The only thing that appears to be happening on the 1st is the Amex gets nerfed by 1/3rd. But that's Amex's system, not Marriott's.

That said, I'd probably still redeem this week if I was planning on doing one more. As we approach the 17th (and beyond that for some period of time too), it's simply not going to be possible to talk to a human at Marriott.

So an expedite delivery to AS obviously has gone missing.

I redeemed a package on Jul 22nd Sunday in the afternoon. Got a rep based in London, Canada, who offered expedite delivery to AS with $15 waived due to it is a benefit for Plat. I accepted the offer. She said the miles should be in the account on Wed, (48 hours after). If by Thur, 3 business days later the miles still not there I should call back.

Well, today is Thursday. Miles are not there. Had a long hold to get a rep who looked at the AS FFP number which is correct, when he repeated it to me. He did not know what went wrong in the process and now went on his wild goose chase on where the miles have been sent or being sent out at all...

Still holding the call - been over 20 min now after the rep set out to do his "tracing", that already took over 20 min listening to music before this rep came on the line. Dialed Marriott 10:07am EST. Right now it is 10:50am EST. Rep has not returned yet.

I should have called the International numbers on Sunday night when they come to work around 9pm EST. Would be much easier. SIGH.

My recent AS travel package with expedite took 6 business days. Called in on a Monday evening and got the miles Tuesday evening the week after.

I redeemed a TP two weeks ago - credited my miles to AS.
The transfer took about 3 days.

Is this expedited?

What day did you request?

I think the mileage request for AS is processed every Monday, but your request must be made by Friday in order for it to go in the account on Monday.

It may be that the transfers only happen on Sunday (which is true for cc miles as explained by an AS rep) and explains a lot of the variance in my "expedited" transfers taking 5 - more days.

seems fine to me. if it were me i'd just stay 7 nights, but email the hotel that you won't be there your day of check in but the next day early if that is intention.

No, this was not an expedited request.

I think the redemption was early this month.

I dont know which day of the week the regular AS redemption is, but I do know for regular redemption, it generally posted the Wed the next week.

There was a poster many pages ago said he had paid $15 to expedite it, on Jul 18 Wed, before 2pm EST, when he checked his AS account after 6pm but before 7pm (I forgot the exact time), the miles already in his AS account.
His is truly expedited.

The reps would tell you expedite takes maximum 3 business days.

In my situation, after I gave up on the previous call that the rep never came back after an hour, I made another call just before noon. After on hold for about 12 to 13 min got a rep that turned out to be a home-based rep in San Antonio, TX. She took the trouble to fully review the redemption (that none of the rep on Tuesday had done, all just told me it would take 3 business days like a robot), and found out there was NO expedite done on the redemption.

The AS number is correct, but the redemption has not gone anywhere, i.e. no expedite has ever done.

At this point I just want to make sure the miles are ordered, and not being stuck in the system. She said they were definitely ordered but she would need to make a phone call then got back to me.

Upon came back on the call, she told me she had conferred with a supervisor who then went ahead to cancel the existing redemption due to no miles has been sent yet, and reordered a new package plus putting the miles to expedite, should show up in my account Next Tuesday, literally just one day earlier than an ordinary redemption made between now and before Weekend. (those would show up on Next Wed.).

I noticed the activities in my account while we were still on the phone. I also received the Cancellation / Re-ordered package email confirmations. On the re-ordered package email this time it shows both the cert for the hotel nights AND the cert for the Airline Miles.

They also deposited 10K Goodwill pts into my account WITHOUT my ever touched the topic. So the supervisor knew it was a screw up and proactively gave Goodwill pts.

The home-based rep was very competent. She mentioned yesterday they had gone thru some massive training - presumably for the postponed program merger date to August 18th. After we finished the "official matter" I asked if I could do survey so to give positive feedback on her service because she is the first one who actually went thru the record to determine what has or has not done. All previous reps just brushed me off on the "takes 3 business day" chorus line.
She thanked me for the kind gesture and asked for my permission to send me the phone survey which came after she left the call when I was still on my end, i.e. not hang up. I gave questions related to her directly the highest mark of 9. I gave the Marriott transition efforts / phone system / etc marks between 4 and 5 - that to me is already being charitable.

Hope the above help.