nixande

I have been researching how my travel plans can work together with if I want to stay at SPG or not and to see what kind of benefits I get for staying at prices which are so much higher than others.

Giving the prospect of getting 'just' an upgrade to another level instead of best room available _is_ a difference, and a big one.

This is like going into an expensiv restaurant. Usually, if you just go once in a while, you are getting an ok table (simple small room), but not the fancy one with the gorgous view and very comfy seats and extra space on the table (suites).

Now you go there again and again and becoming diamond means having spend a lot of money there. When you come, you get the best seat available - which helps you stay with the expensive meals and whines.

They are not always available, but usually you are at least on the side of the good view and are at least on a table where oyu have some quite and don't sit in the waiters way.

Suddenly, after years of placing you on their better tables, they decide to take you and not place you anymore in this but give you a place on the less desired side of the restaurant and tell that this is now your 'upgrade' because look! You have two flowers instead on one on your table!

Sure, if this was the policy from the start, no problem. The interconti has it for example: One room upgrade and two if you are a Royal Ambassador. I think Gold / Platinum is something alike.

My suggestion:
Don't just write it here, write a letter to customer relation. While Williams surely can pass on some messages, his possibilities will be limited. It is so much easier to hand around letters.

Gather how much business you have spend in the last year (not nights, but value) and make clear that this new programm will make you stay signigicantly less and additionally you will do what every modern person does: Tell all your friends about it an blog about it.


But Starwoood Properties are *much* higher priced in general (except for some few good deals) so in order to book even the basic rooms, you do spend a lot of money. Which is what people keept up with but suddenly they want to restrict that.

I can see the value in this from SPG side, but I think they need to make up for this if they want to rule it out. One reason they have so high prices may even be all those diamonds running around, occupating the best room and using ressources etc.

And my suggestion to Starwood:
Make everybody who is / gets Diamond this year for this and the next year a special Diamond who will get for the next two years the anemities they have earned on basis of the current rules. After that, it is one upgrade for Gold and two for diamond and whatever best room available for 100 nights or so.

But I can imagine that even the hint that this is coming will help people leave the properties. Because besides the high prices you also have to factor in the costs of researching even basic informations like "what price is there on a given day".

Implications for future customers:
In my case - but I am a smaller one - I am looking at around 30 nights I will have to spend this year outside of home. SPG is not an option in all places because it is just too expensive. Would it be less expensive (and had a website one can actually use!) I would perhaps think about 10 nights going for silver.

If it would be competible to others (yes, even on the same level with the anemities important for me) i would give them all 30.

But at the moment they can't do smaller prices - because if you are able to book a room for a decent rate, the diamonds will come in and occupy the best rooms for this small amount. )

So back to your letter:
You should make clear that you would be willing to leave about the amount you have spend now to get the rooms you had (or not) to indicate to them: Go make this programm but lower the prices and we will stay in business with you. Or not.

nixande

Sounds like a sticky to me: "Properties you don't get the best room in as diamond"

bigjim

I don't think Diamond gets you anything in the SPG program.

nixande

I really should refer to them as the "highest shiny one" I always mix them up between the programs ...

dujvari

I think you've hit the nail on the head.

I've been saying for a long time Starwood awards Platinum status way too easily. When I was with Marriott, it took 75 stays... something I can easily do, but too far in the other direction in my opinion.

The fewer they number of platinums, the better the hotel can treat them. I think the number of stays for Platinum should be increased to 35 nights, at least. Gold should be increased to 15 nights. SPG preferred should start at 5 nights.

FreeTravel

I agreed, if this policy will give everybody better chance of some kind of upgrade I’m all for it.

rishiboy

^


You just hit the nail on the head ! I'm not a Plat and doubt I will ever able to earn it but I still remember the time I was offered Plat for LIFE if I bought a Starwood Vacation Ownership (it's still a "time share no matter what they call it).
I also know people who have manipulated their friends HHonors/ Gold-passport card's and statements, it ordered to be comped (it's quite easy too do as they only require a faxed copy).
The bottom line is I bet there thousands of people who have Plat status, who have not earned it and only recently through LM was Starwood even able to increase it's total number of rooms. That's your real problem !

mauld

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I've got 2 reservations in WAW for the end of May (Memorial weekend) at the Sheraton & the Westin. Both on very reduced corp rates. I've already been 'upgraded' at the Westin to a large corner suite with access to the executive lounge & fulll breakfast (as per my Starwood reservation ), but my Sheraton still has the same lowest "classic" room ?? Now, it's not a big deal to me, as I am travelling solo and will be there only for 1 night, but if this policy is in effect, it seems strange that the Sheraton Warsaw would be part of it. Obviously the FRA & BRU would get a lot more corporate traffic, but on the weekend I'm staying there are still lots & lots of upgradeable rooms to be had on their website (and I don't even care about a suite-- just a nice room!) and I am talking about Warsaw Poland, where the new highly rated Westin, saw fit to give me an advance upgrade, on this a relatively quiet weekend night

Snoopy

Ahem....IIRC Platinum is actually 25 stays or 40 nights. So, maybe you are a mite confused....

dujvari

Not confused, but did mis-type. I'm typically a one night guest. There may be 3 or 4 weeks out of the entire year that I stay multi-nights (not including vacations). So I think in terms of nights when I should be thinking in terms of stays.

I think the 40 nights thing is right on target. A single "stay" could be one night or many.

IMHO, there should be little to no difference between "stays" and "nights". The hotel actually makes less revenue on single night stays, because they give out the 500 platinum bonus every time we check in. The current plan discriminates against the multi-night guest. They spend the same money, cost the hotel less, yet don't get the perks until after almost twice the time.

TerryK

It is 25 stays or 50 nights for Plat.

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/prefer..._platinum.html

dujvari

Whatever. Like I said, I only care about "stays" because of the way I travel.

So it's even worse for the multi-night guests.

IMHO, the number of stays needed for platinum needs to be raised by at least ten.

emuyshondt

1.) For me it is not so much about the Sheraton Frankfurt but rather a concern about an impending general change in SPG Platinum status. They portrayed it as a "pilot program". Right now SPG Platinum status means that you should get upgraded to the best available room at the time of check-in, according to the SPG site. What is apparent is that several hotels around the world are not following this policy.

2.) For certain trips, lounge access and free internet would be all that is needed, but there are trips where perhaps I am not on business but on vacation or combined business/pleasure with one or more family members with me. I would then want the nicest room available to me.

3.) Consistency means following the letter of the program description. Under member benefits at spg.com says that one of the benefits for platinum members is an upgrade to the best available room at the time of check-in. There should not be any properties that set their own arbitrary rules.

Sure, there is little likelihood that a suite would be useful to me at FRA. They are actually more inconvenient than a Tower room because they are located far away from the lounge. I would also not stay at that hotel for more than the night before a flight to somewhere. However, I am also going to go to Hawaii this summer and I'd certainly like to get the best room I can, based on my status. A tower room without the hassle of talking to a manager would also have been useful - free internet and located on the same floor as the lounge.

The point of this thread was that there seems to be some move afoot for Starwood to change their upgrade policies for Platinum SPG members. It might be just in Europe or it might be worldwide. In any case, they are evaluating something that would take away benefits from platinum members and could cause some to seek more convenient facilities at other chains rather than try to stay at SPG properties to try to retain their status. Availability of the best available room makes a difference to me when selecting where I stay. If that benefit were taken away there would be significantly less incentive to me to go out of my way to stay at a Starwood facility than at a more convenient competitor.

Snoopy

Exactly and what is bothering is that they only tell you when you check in rather than publishing it beforehand. If this is a bona-fide Starwood project it should be noted in the Plat blurb that specific hotels - listed by name - do not grant Plat benefits as listed.

emuyshondt

I agree with noting what hotels are exempt from the current SPG rules.

I'd really like to know how widespread this new policy is going to be once Starwood decides there wasn't enough clamor against it and implements it at other locations. Is this going to be a change to the overall SPG program?

Starwood mostly manages hotel properties (rather than own them) and I can imagine some hotel owners mistakenly thinking that empty rooms going towards upgrades would otherwise be rented for their listed rate. These owners would then try to squeeze Starwood to eliminate some perks to try to get more money in their pocket. I have no problem with them trying to get as much as possible, but I don't think they'll get more people paying for their higher grade rooms if they eliminate these platinum upgrades. I know I wouldn't pay more. The program right now just means I spend the money I have at Starwood rather than somewhere else.

Also, I understand the above policy has been in place for about a year at FRA. The front desk people don't like it because they have a lot of upset guests (something like 20-30 platinums go there every day) with no real explanation for why this is a good thing. There is no information on how the project is going, whether Starwood Headquarters in Brussels considers it a success or failure or whether it will be permanent or perhaps will end soon. Hopefully William can ferret out the information soon. Inquiring minds want to know!