Changes to SPG Cash & Points - effective March 05, 2013

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Mar 27, 2013, 4:56 pm

#241

Starwood Lurker

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Quote:

Originally Posted by anchor79

Sheraton Taipei and Le Meridien Taipei do not have any single C&P date available from now until 2014. Are they part of the opt out list as well?

I just published the opt out list and they aren't on it. However, it is optional for them to offer it whenever it pleases them. That did not change.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Social Media Specialist
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

Mar 28, 2013, 2:39 pm

#242

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Forstbetrieb

Nice idea, but:

Cash & points is not offered at this hotel

on www.spg.com...

Must've been a temporary hiccup. There is scads of availability for the Sheraton Genova now.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Social Media Specialist
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

Mar 28, 2013, 2:46 pm

#243

Starwood Lurker

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Quote:

Originally Posted by RogerD408

Your link does not reference the property. Just checked the dates that TerryK presented and shows C&P availability.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keyser

i know what you mean....the airport sheraton had tons of c&p availability before the change....now there is nothing available all year....

Might be worth checking again. C&P seems to be available every night of the week in July and August at the Sheraton Brussels Airport Hotel. Lots of other availability also at the other Brussels properties.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Social Media Specialist
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

Mar 28, 2013, 3:15 pm

#244

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Sphinx

Tried to select a C&P rate for Meridien Heliopolis. Despite the rate appearing in the initial table of results, when I tried to pursue it I got the message "Cash & points is not offered at this hotel"...

Just an update on this...

We found a technical issue that was preventing Cash & Points from being booked over the web. It was always bookable by calling customer service, but the web issue has since been fixed and Cash & Points is wide open for this property now.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Social Media Specialist
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

Mar 28, 2013, 4:12 pm

#245

SanDiego1K

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Is there a similar issue at the Four Points San Diego (Aero Drive)? It goes from being available near daily thru the end of March to not a single date being available from April 1 thru yearend.

Mar 28, 2013, 4:36 pm

#246

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Quote:

Originally Posted by SanDiego1K

Is there a similar issue at the Four Points San Diego (Aero Drive)? It goes from being available near daily thru the end of March to not a single date being available from April 1 thru yearend.

If there was robust availability through March, that sounds like the revenue manager just hasn't made any projections past April 1st, but I'll keep an eye on it.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Social Media Specialist
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

Mar 29, 2013, 3:55 am

#247

Keyser

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Starwood Lurker

thanks again william....^^

Mar 29, 2013, 4:12 am

#248

Sphinx

Join Date: Nov 2007

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Thanks William. It works now!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starwood Lurker

Mar 29, 2013, 4:11 pm

#249

trog

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Quote:

Originally Posted by dsquared37

This was a rather foolish response.

The thread you linked has 49 total posts and many of them have no information on C&P availability. You might want to actually review that thread rather than using it incorrectly.

As you're willing to call this view myopic, or was that directed at me, then please publish the C&P availability numbers to lend credence to this statement. Otherwise your answer serves to do nothing but sweep this under the rug... especially when you bring in the 1000 properties which has no basis in the discussion unless you're willing to publish data on them. Your defense is specious at best.

The thread referred to is targeted to posts commenting on increased C&P availability so of course there will some entries referring to this. I am sure if all posts in other threads are merged into a "Hotels with no increased availability of C&P since the huge March 5 C&P price increase" topic it would also have a large number of entries, especially if this thread had been accepting new posts beginning on March 5 like the other one.

Even so, some posts in the referenced thread ignore the fact that some hotels pulled C&P after the changes were announced in January and reinstated them after March 5.

Also, the fact is that the availability of most things like hotels, food, electronics, etc. increase when the price increases. I am sure if the C&P prices are increased another 25%, and the cash portion of the "award" becomes similar to the average room rate of more and more hotels, the availability of C&P will become even a little better.

Mar 30, 2013, 5:00 am

#250

seanthepilot

formerly known as 2lovelife

Join Date: Dec 2000

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Quote:

Originally Posted by seanthepilot

New rates were a devaluation and in no way a promise to more availability.

In fact, with the new calculation, cash is always a better choice. The have taken away the value from all but those with bucketloads of points.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yul_voyager

If cash is always a better choice, then we have to lower the value we give to a starpoint

I agree
This is the true result of their higher C&P rates, a devalued Starpoint.
There can be no other determination (unless the hotels can all charge a higher rate, not likely given the elasticity in rates lately)

Mar 30, 2013, 7:26 am

#251

mfinn

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We have stayed at Westin Lagunamar in Cancun, Mexico for a couple years in a row on C&P and thoroughly enjoyed it. As of a couple days ago, C&P at this property is gone, kaput, inoperative, nada, for all of 2013 and into 2014.

Update: What was on, then off, is now on again. C&P at WL is now showing as plentiful through 2013. SPG website is quirky to say the least.

Last edited by mfinn; Mar 30, 2013 at 8:16 pm Reason: Update

Apr 1, 2013, 3:21 pm

#252

Red4Point

Join Date: Feb 2013

Posts: 8

You can add to The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort, Le Méridien Bora Bora have "Limited SPG Participation" no C&P, etc.

Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa C&P only on rainy season '13 and '14

)) if you want pay 10kP x 2c=200USD + 180USD and cash is 300USD ...

Last edited by Red4Point; Apr 1, 2013 at 3:29 pm

Apr 1, 2013, 3:28 pm

#253

Starwood Lurker

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Red4Point

You can add to The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort, Le Méridien Bora Bora have "Limited SPG Participation" no C&P, etc.

The St. Regis Bora Bora does not participate at all in Cash & Points and it says this on the web site. With regard to Le Meridien Bora Bora, it says this:

"Cash & Points is only offered in upgraded rooms and/or standard suites and must be booked through an SPG Customer Contact Center..."

So, you have to call/chat to check for availability there.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Social Media Specialist
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

Apr 1, 2013, 3:43 pm

#254

Red4Point

Join Date: Feb 2013

Posts: 8

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starwood Lurker

marketing talk, C&P is not possible to use in this hotel.
As I told, you can add Le Meridien Bora Bora to list at post #239

Apr 1, 2013, 6:10 pm

#255

Christian Abbate

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Quote:

Originally Posted by seanthepilot

Claiming an increase in availibility is meaningless if it just means more poorly valued availibility. What is interesting is that when I am able to find cash & points availability at a property in the United States, it is under one of two conditions. Either the Starwood rates on the date of availibility is less than 90% of the property's 2012 average daily rate or it is in excess of 140% of the property's 2012 ADR. Dumping unlimited C&P availibility during the slow seasons does no one any good because Rates are already low. Likewise, offering C&P availibility when rates are inflated can be good, but are more often just a case of a property having a low-rated group block on the books and flexing the asking rates up to make up the difference. I looked at about 75 hotels throughout the US and this held true when compared to each property's 2012 performance. I'm wondering if Starwood had placed additional restrictions on when C&P availibility can be shown....