uxb

If it makes you feel better, I didn't get a USB charger either. Then again, I didn't get that box of chocolates everyone and their mothers got when the merger closed. Let's just hope LT status translates on the Marriott side.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

JackE

All the more so because it will transfer in the other direction. By that I mean that LT Marriotts will keep lifetime elite status in currently-Starwood properties. It only makes sense for it to go both ways.

YYJMSP

I didn't get anything at LTG, but did get a monogrammed robe from my Ambassador at LTP.

I was at some Sheraton on the day of the merger closing, lots of balloons and stuff everywhere, and they had cupcakes.

I just got some little goody bags at a Sheraton today (supposedly for my kid) as I missed the "25 years of SPG" celebration last week? Or maybe I misunderstood what they were saying, as I thought SPG came into being in 2000?

ryan182

I have to imagine/hope that if they make changes to how one earns LT status in the combined program that they would grandfather those that already obtained it. I have way over 500 nights and this year will be my 10th year as SPG plat so just squeezing in before the anticipated changes next year so I for one will be rather disappointed if they don't.

bocastephen

I can't possibly imagine Marriott telling potentially thousands of LTP worldwide "oh sorry, you need to start over" - the negative fallout would be absolutely nasty.

Canada101

Personally, I think what Marriott will have to do if and when they combine the program is retain "LT" status for both Marriott and Starwood LT members but I think they would likely have to map out different equivalent tiers since there are real differences in the thresholds.

LT MR Plat requires 750 nights and 2 million points.

LT SPG Plat requires 500 nights and 10 Plat years.

Both thresholds have their quirks 500 nights vs 750 nights is an obvious difference (with perhaps some minor quirks in how those nights were tallied). Ultimately, Marriott has, so far at least, treated SPG members fairly (3:1 points ratio; status match; instant transfers) but while I think grandfathering LT status is something that members could/should reasonably expect, what tier within LT might be where there will be some changes.

For example, I could see Marriott saying the old SPG LT Plat would equal New LT Gold since MR LT Gold is 500 nights and New LT Plat would require 750 or some other higher number of nights BUT the new LT programs would use the sum of both the MR+SPG lifetime nights as the threshold. Some while a new LT Gold would more or less equal the current SPG LT Plat in terms of benefits etc, New LT Plat, while requiring more nights, would have superior benefits. Just some uninformed musing.

CCIE_Flyer

Given that SPG Plat/LT Plat requirements are arguably pretty light, I'd be disappointed to see a 1:1 match to Marriott LT Plat status, as it exist today. Having said that, my money is on a pretty generous combining/grandfathering program. If one looks to the UA/CO merger example, fairly generous terms were offered where MM status was concerned, but the more stringent pre-merger UA standard (BIS) for MM status was retained going forward. It didn't reset anyone back to ground zero, but it did move the goal post for the pre-merger CO folk (who would've otherwise reached "MM" status potentially long before ever flying their first millionth mile).

margarita girl

And here I thought Marriott Plat requirements were pretty light since one can get 10 night credits by booking a meeting room for $80!

X-ON

I don't 100% agree that the nights requirement is light in SPG vs. MR at least not in the sense that MR can use "no butts in bed nights" towards LT status. I am talking about roll-over nights, CC bonus nights. In that sense the SPG requirements are more stringent and would explain the diffrence in nights threshold. If this obvious diffrence will matter at the end of the day is a totally different question.

JackE

Looking just at nights, an easy solution is to add up MR nights and SPG nights. If they hit 750, then that's that.

I suspect this would cover most SPG Lifetime members. Virtually all of them have more than 500 nights, and certainly lots of them have Marriott nights.

SunshineStay

You are being very US-centric here. The story in Europe and Asia wrt to brand footprint is a totally different matter.

nologic

How do you find out Marriott lifetime night stays to date?

Oxon Flyer

I really, really cannot see any reason why the integration team would waste more than a nanosecond worrying about the incompleteness of total-SPG-points-accumulated-for-the-purposes-of-lifetime-membership from well over decade ago when that data didn't matter, even back then.

Even if the system which stored this historic data could still be accessed and they could come up with a figure, most SPG members wouldn't be able to verify it. And for those members that have spreadsheeted everything, how would discrepancies and disputes be reconciled ?

IMHO, as an IT project, this is a complete waste of time and effort, so a non-starter and can be discounted as a method of integrating SPG lifetime into MR.

While they're doing their detective work, why don't they just follow the current fashion for revenue-based status and simply tot up the total combined MR and SPG spend and then award lifetime status in the merged program on that ?

Simple.

3Cforme

Those are assertions by you without offers of evidence.

Canada101

MR LT nights are displayed on marriott.com under Lifetime Status.