yerffej201

still no award chart released???

cruisr

Kagehitokiri

the issue is list of properties, biggest question is spg 'above' cat 7 (require up to 140k spg / 420k mr per night)

marriott released examples for paris and dubai, and dubai did not include the spg 'above' cat 7 (al maha)

mahasamatman

Patience. There are still three days to go.

lovethoselegs

I called this morning and had a quick answer but the agent, a supervisor, only gave less than definitive answers and only pointed me to the members site which she described as what might happen in the merger. What's the point of having a customer service number if the agents can't answer questions.

ankomonkey

Now available. There's a new thread on it.

CPRich

Newark Liberty International Airport Marriott - Cat 5
Marriott County Hall - Cat 7

Proven wrong?

CPRich

So we have a story from a blogger with no affiliation to the program, not even a quote but an interpretation of what one person "indicated", vs. the official information from an authorized representative of the company. Hmmmm - I'll go with the latter.

That official source said by the end of June and, hey, it's not yet the end of June and .... they're published. Well how about that!

CPRich

Guess what...

JW Marriott Essex House New York: Category 7 - 50K off-peak

I can see!!!!!


(98.9% of "highest level Marriott properties" - Cat 9 properties that were 45K - did not jump to 70K off-peak. I.e., there was one)

Marriott Rewards Insider

As you may already know, SPG®, Marriott Rewards® and The Ritz-Carlton Rewards® will become one program this August. You’ll be able to redeem for free nights and unforgettable experiences at over 6,500 participating hotels across 29 brands.

Our Free Night Award Chart will be updated and give you more power to redeem your points. Even better: More hotels are moving down in redemption rates than up – so chances are that you’ll be able to redeem fewer points for free nights at the hotels you love.

Here are our top eight tips to help you maximize your points:
• Plan ahead. Explore the full list of hotel category changes and decide if you want to plan your trip before or after the updates take effect. Here are just a few examples of hotels that are moving to a lower category in August:
- REDEEM FREE NIGHTS FOR 10,000 FEWER POINTS
Hotel Talisa in Vail, Le Méridien Barcelona, W Punta de Mita, The Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Ka'anapali, The Ritz-Carlton in Sarasota, and Le Méridien San Francisco

- REDEEM FREE NIGHTS FOR 5,000 FEWER POINTS
The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort, Renaissance Paris Republique Hotel, The St. Regis Princeville Resort, Courtyard New York Manhattan/Midtown East, Autograph Collection’s Hotel Punta Islita, and Las Alcobas, a Luxury Collection Hotel in Napa Valley

See the complete new award chart here.

• Take advantage of future Category 8 hotels. Future Category 8 hotels will be available at Category 7 rates from August until 2019. Redeem now to save up to 20% and guarantee your rate even if the stay occurs after new rates take effect. Explore future category 8 hotels.
• Use Cash + Points. Stay for as little as $55 and 3,500 points at more hotels than ever. Your next vacation may be closer than you think. See the Cash + Points Chart.
• Stay five nights, pay for four. Get a complimentary night when you redeem four consecutive nights.
• Save more with PointSavers. Enjoy up to 20% off when you redeem points at top destinations. All 29 brands participate, all you have to do is enter the city, state or country along with your dates to find participating hotels. See the PointSavers Chart.
• Upgrade your stay. Use points to upgrade your room (think suite or a room with a picture-perfect view) during your stay.
• Enjoy Travel Packages. Travel Packages now include all SPG hotels. Until now, SPG Nights & Flights applied only to SPG Category 3 and 4 hotels. Starting in August, Marriott Rewards and SPG members can redeem points for airline miles and hotel stays at any of the 6,500 participating hotels. This offer continues to be one of the richest offers among travel loyalty programs.
• Get instant gratification. Instantly redeem points for cocktails, meals, spa treatments or anything else you can charge to your room at participating hotels. Each US$1 is valued at 250 points, so if you would like a spa treatment worth US$50, you would redeem 12,500 points.

Explore all the changes happening in August and read FAQs now by visiting members.marriott.com.

Best regards,

Marriott Rewards Insider

pinniped

Ouch. The categories themselves aren't bad, but that Travel Package devaluation is pretty major.

EDIT: I'm starting to do some math. I may have overreacted: starting to look like a more minor devaluation, based on increased earnings and the fact that on the surface the TP's appear to allow "peak" booking at these prices.

CJKatl

Higher than it should be! But the location must trump it being the hotel it is.

CosmicGirl

Can you now confirm what happens to 7-night certificate of a Marriott travel package? Will they carry over, and if so, will they retain their assigned category? Or will they be converted to points, and if so, what is the conversion factor?

CPRich

Yes, location drives demand which drives cost. I think that's true across all similar programs. The Palacio del Inka I stayed in last summer probably would be a new Cat 8 in NYC, and I garden-variety Cat 4 4Points in a big city would be Cat 1 in rural China. Or Iowa .

exploreaswego

Yea, I believe this is the key question that is still unanswered..
It becomes very hard for us to plan/redeem if these terms are still unclear..