DownUnderFlyer

Of course those certificates can be used in certain situations. London properties are a good example.
And jvmurph has maybe saved $25 now compared to the best available rate at time of booking.

But the problem with those certificates remain. Firstly, many of us have access to corporate rates so we would have gotten 10-20% off the BAR rate anyway. Secondly, even if this was really the best rate at time of booking we have seen many examples here were the hotel became available for a cheaper rate at a later stage. I always re-check my bookings and frequently cancel stays just to rebook the same room at a cheaper price. And lastly, there is still a big gap between the expectation created by *W ("50% OFF!") and what you then get in reality. And we haven't even talked about the cumbersome booking process which is costing *W unnecessary amounts of money.

makin'miles

Just clicking around on spg.com tonight, searched about 20 properties (Asia-Pacific, primarily), and noticed that for the vast majority of them Rack rates that do no show during a regular search will display when using the 'Promotions and Packages' option... might be helpful for some in planning.

iahphx

Yeah, the frequent stay program that built its reputation on "fair-dealing" and simplicity insists on issuing largely useless and largely misleading certificates.

It's obviously a boneheaded business decision and, for the life of me, I can't understand why SPG insists on continuing this "legacy" certificate.

While I would prefer a USEFUL certificate (how about a BOGO weekend coupon?), a low value certificate like BOGO breakfast would be an excellent replacement. Lurker, why does the company insist on maintaining this customer displeasing certificate, and why not use some of your company's trademark innovation to come up with something better?

Starwood Lurker

While I can appreciate that you have an opinion regarding the SPG50% off redemption opportunity, my best guess is that there are probably a significant number of members who do not hold the same opinion. Otherwise, SPG would have done away with it long ago. And, no disrespect intended, but I find it a bit cavalier to cast aspersions on the program regarding something for which you have no actual data to base it upon other than your own personal experience.

And, while we are clearing the air, I don't appreciate your having made this a personal issue for me. It is a bit like asking me, "So Lurker, when did you quit beating your wife?" I have absolutely no say in what is or is not offered by the program as a redemption opportunity, so I find it a bit over the top to be put into a position to answer for it. Rather, members of the program have the ability to affect what is or is not being offered. If no one - or even a limited number - were using SPG50, it would go away like others have.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Online Guest Feedback Coordinator
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

soitgoes

My biggest frustration with the SPG50 certs is that you can't check rates/availability online. Sure, the certs could have a better value/be more useful than they are, but they do provide good value at a number of hotels, maybe not every night, but not never either.

JFKSFOLAX_friend

This hits the nail on the head, no?

Starwood Lurker

Well, to be fair, it does nothing to diminish a negative opinion that one member may have built up due to their own personal experience, which is most regrettable. But, it does fall short of being the gospel as it applies to the other 10+million members of the program.

Seriously...if this was not a valid redemption option based on the number of redemptions/reservations made at the SPG50 rate, it would have disappeared ages ago. We've all seen some come and go due to non-viability. Even this one will disappear if the numbers suggest that it should. Until then, it is what it is.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Online Guest Feedback Coordinator
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

iahphx

FWIW, I didn't intend to make it PERSONAL. As our official SPG "spokes-lurker," I merely sought to encourage you to lobby the powers-that-be to revisit this promo, whose utility died about a decade ago.

But as far as this being "just one man's opinion" -- c'mon, that's just ridiculous. I'm sure you know that most SPG flyertalkers consider the SPG50 certificate to be, essentially, useless. And this is by no means an ill-informed opinion. Flyertalkers have been saying this for, what, a decade now?

True, it's possible that unsophisticated SPG members could save a few bucks with an SPG50 once-in-awhile, but for everyone else, you're going to be hard pressed to find much value there. Which is not to say it's impossible -- you know what they say about a stopped watch being right twice a day. But as a practical matter, these certs add nothing to the otherwise excellent SPG AMEX program. Especially since, as noted, there's no way to check the savings on line. Do you really expect/want us to call rez and ask about the SPG50 rate when the odds that it would lower the price is, what, 1 percent?

Why not provide cardholders a USEFUL cert -- even a low value certificate that anybody could use? Isn't simplicity the cornerstone of the SPG program? The continued existence of the SPG50 just makes no sense.

Triley

The fact remains, that the SPG50 IS useful to some, while not useful to others. Nearly every promotion they offer will be viewed in that way. For example, someone earlier mentioned free breakfast? For my grandmother, free breakfast is a big selling point for a hotel. For me? If I'm at a hotel, it's for leisure, and 4 out of 5 times I'm just getting up within the last moments of breakfast, so the promotion would do me no good. For business travelers, it may be different, true.

Last year I got a room at the Westin Nova Scotian for $169CAD per night, on the busiest week of the year for the city (the Buskers Festival. Ask Flews, a few months ago, I found out he was at the hotel for a few days when I was there), when the rooms were going for $199 easy, and nearly every promotion was showing no availability.

Seeing as I was staying a total of nine days, I ended up using the birth year rate for the first three, the SPG50 for the next five, and a free weekend night award for the last. I didn't even have 1,000 points left in my account at the time, as I've been transferring them all to AGR. So, I paid the $35 for 1,000 points, and saved $150 + the 15.28% tax, so I had a total savings of $137.92. I find that to be a good savings for myself.

Granted, I know it rarely works out that well all the time, there are certainly situations where it does work. As a SPG rep put it to me on Monday, the discount is great in peak season days, where a hotel is near selling out, and have jacked the rate up closer to the RACK rate. (Think NYC during the summer, assuming there's availability.)


In short, I wouldn't be devastated to see the discount go, but I wouldn't push for it either.

DownUnderFlyer

Of course it is a valid redemption option and countless reservations are made using it. And it is a very nice marketing instrument as it leaves a trail of happy people behind who all think that they have made a good deal. So the customers are happy because the have a good feeling and Starwood is happy because people often pay more than they would need to and still feel good about it.
So from this perspective it is and will always be a good redemption option. And I guess this is the shortfall of all the proposals which are made here in this thread in regards to alternative certificates: All of them would cost Starwood money (rather than making it) and most probably wouldn't create more loyalty than the current 50% off certificates.

JFKSFOLAX_friend

I do have to agree with this sentiment (though, again, (I assume) the poster is using his personal experience to come up with the 1% figure).

Having said that, in this day and age we should be able to check for SPG50 rates online. I mean, c'mon...it is 2010, after all.

iahphx

One percent is a wild-... guess since I haven't actually been able to use the 50% off certificate since the days of ITT Sheraton. After you've asked the rez agents 20 times whether you could save money with the SPG and they always say "no," you stop bothering to ask -- especially now that you can do most bookings online. I now only ask a few times a year when I remember, so perhaps my information is old (but I doubt it).

BTW, it's still completely optional whether a hotel will do SPG50, right? Because I recall several conversations where the agent said the property wasn't even participating. Given the general loopiness of "rack rate" these days (aka, the rate NOBODY is paying), I don't think it matters much, but I recall it often not being a booking option to start with.

MilesToGoBeforeISleep

meh... i guess. i have access to corp rates that are decent but i got a $179 rate with spg50 at the sheraton in vail.

also, where i have had great luck with it is the sheraton grand in bangkok and sheraton pattaya. there i use it for the higher level rooms and get rates pretty close to the lowest rate available for a much better room - also most times the best rate is not cancelable (when the corp rate does not work) so SPG is an alternative that still gives stay credit and can cancel easily... I think it has value over... even for the savvy SPG guy (i'm very savvy - my mom said so )

chicagodubs

The corporate rates I have checked in the past always seemed to be better than the spg50 rate, especially when you factor in the bonus starpoints we get for booking through our travel portal. This being the case, I've never redeemed a spg50 coupon. Can you sell the spg50 coupons anywhere?

seanthepilot

Funny. I love the SPG50.

I sure hope you're not lobbying for this part of the SPG Program, that I frequently benefit from, to be shelved?

If you don't like it fine. But there's no need to mess it up for the rest of us!

Oh yeah, instead of just more off topic ramblings, here's a contribution.

I saved $40/night using this rate at the Newark Sheraton not long ago.