Ritz Carlton will launch its own loyalty program September 15, 2010. Marriott Rewards will be a partner program with many reciprocal benefits for members of each program.

Marriott Rewards members will earn 10 points or 2 airline miles per $1 on room rate only for Ritz Carlton Hotel stays. This is the same earning rate currently for Marriott full-service brands, however, the lack of points for incidental spend is a drawback.

Advance notice of some details were provided this morning to readers of MarriottRewardsInsiders.com member forums and FlyerTalk. The real advance notice was published yesterday evening, as “Ritz Carlton Bows to Recession, Adds Rewards” in this Wall Street Journal article. 

There were several questions from FlyerTalkers about how the two programs will be integrated for purposes of elite credit and benefits and participating properties. Marriott Concierge posted some advance release additional details on FlyerTalk this morning:

-All Ritz-Carlton Hotels will be participating in Marriott Rewards with the exception of the following: 

• Bulgari Bali
• Bulgari Milan
• Hotel Ritz Lisbon
• Hotel Ritz London
• Hotel Ritz Madrid
• New Orleans Iberville Suites
• The Ritz Hotel Paris
• Ritz-Carlton Destination Club
• Ritz-Carlton Residences
• The Abaco Club
• Millennia Singapore
• Krabi (Phulay Bay) 

A complete list of all properties participating in Marriott Rewards will be available tomorrow with the official launch of the new landing page on MarriottRewards.com. I will be sure to provide this link once the page is live tomorrow. 

-This is the first point-earning program associated with The Ritz-Carlton. As noted, this extension of the Marriott Rewards program will apply credit for all stays made as of the official launch date of September 15, 2010. 

-Members earn both Marriott Rewards points and elite night credits at all participating Marriott Rewards properties, now including The Ritz-Carlton Hotels and EDITION. 

-A chart of elite membership benefits at The Ritz-Carlton Hotels by membership level will be available tomorrow upon launch of the new landing page on MarriottRewards.com. 

-Gold and Platinum benefits at The Ritz-Carlton Hotels worldwide will include free HSIA beginning September 15, 2010. All other brands noted in yesterday’s announcement will participate beginning January, 2011. 

-PointSavers Rewards will be offered at up to a 33% points discount off Hotel Rewards at participating Ritz-Carlton Hotels. PointSavers Rewards are available for limited time periods and participation and availability of PointSavers Rewards are at the discretion of the hotel. Members can redeem their points for PointSavers Rewards at participating Ritz-Carlton Hotels. Information detailing the points required for PointSavers Rewards at The Ritz-Carlton Hotels will be available tomorrow with the official launch of the new landing page on MarriottRewards.com. 

-The Club Lounge and Club levels at The Ritz-Carlton Hotels are different from those at a full-service Marriott property – Club Lounge access is not offered as an Elite benefit. Similarly, breakfast and other amenities are different from those of Marriott’s full-service properties. Marriott Rewards member benefits vary by brand, and this includes The Ritz-Carlton participating properties. A chart of elite membership benefits at The Ritz-Carlton Hotels by membership level will be available tomorrow upon launch of the new landing page on MarriottRewards.com. 

Thank you, 

Andrew and the Marriott Concierge Team 

This was the first hotel news item I saw this morning when I opened up BoardingArea.com to see Gary’s post on View from the Wing. My first thought was this could mean the end of the great reward table for Ritz-Carlton Hotel stays available through Marriott Rewards. 

While the Marriott Concierge post above states PointSavers will still be offered to Marriott Rewards members for Ritz-Carlton stays, my question is: Will we have the same great reward options currently available for 5- and 7-night Ritz-Carlton reward stays?

Marriott Rewards Ritz Carlton Partner Hotel Rewards 9-14-10

More details tomorrow when the RitzCarltonRewards.com website goes live.

“Consumers should remember that hotel affordability across the world has not been this good since 2004.” – David Roche, President Hotels.com 

Hotels.com Hotel Price Index is a good report for the frequent guest to gauge global hotel prices and price changes over the past year. There are many tables and graphs for the reader accompanied with some insightful commentary that coincides with industry forecasts from other sources I’ve read this summer.

The survey provides travel destination indicators like Bali, Indonesia. Hotel prices have gone through the roof year-over-year – up 57% from $129 per night 2009-Q2 to $203 per night 2010-Q2 in the wake of ”Eat, Pray, Love” fascination with this location. A flood of tourism dollars is a good sort of tsunami for the region, but rapidly inflated prices steer me to better value locations for my travels.

Bargain destinations like Ireland and Portugal may be the better choice for a budget vacation.  Eastern Europe is giving out great value for travel dollars.

The Hotel Price Index preface notes by David Roche, President of Hotels.com, indicate hotel room rates have shown a global rise, about 2% year-over-year for the first time since 2007.  

Asia is recovering most rapidly. Singapore and Bali aid that growth.

Much of North America, Europe and the Middle East are sitting at hotel rates common to 2004. David Roche points to corporate travel picking up more in North America than in Europe in 2010.

And staycations seem here to stay. Recession travel. There are tables showing the average room rates for the 50 states and major cities.

Hotels.com Hotel Price Index survey

1. Global price changes in the first half of 2010
   Overall
   By region
2. Price changes in global destinations
   Prices across the world’s top cities
   Most expensive destinations
   Highest price rises and falls
3. U.S. hotel prices by state
4. U.S. hotel prices by city
5. Caribbean and Latin American destinations
6. European city destinations
7. Prices paid at home and away
8. Where to go for $150 or $100 per night
9. Average room prices by star rating
10. Luxury for less
11. Travel habits
    Top U.S. destinations for U.S. travelers
    Top overseas destinations for U.S. travelers
    Top U.S. destinations for travelers from overseas

I particularly like the sections “Where to Go for $150 and $100 per night” and “Average room prices by star rating”. Cities where I can expect to find a 4-star hotel for $150 per night is the kind of information I find valuable for travel planning.

“Average Room Prices by Star Rating” table shows a European vacation can be upscale and significantly cheaper if you stay in hotels in countries like Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Austria and Germany. 4-star hotels may be half the rate in cities around these countries compared to Paris, Rome and London.

I look most closely at the spread between the 3-star, 4-star and 5-star room rates. In Europe I particularly prefer the 4-star rating due to several experiences in unacceptable 3-star hotels. I am looking for a place where there is a low spread in room rates between 4-star and 3-star hotels and a high spread between 4-star and 5-star.  A place like Amsterdam shows a 4-star hotel is on average $36 more than a 3-star hotel. The rate difference is a high $72 to move up to 5-star room rates. This is a good example of a city where the step up to 4-star is half the cost compared to the step up from 4-star to 5-star rates.

15 cities with the best 5-star value is another great table for cities where a luxury hotel is still available for under $200 per night. Las Vegas is the only cheap hotel destination in the USA.

New York City just blows my mind with its room rates. $150 per night doesn’t even buy a 2-star hotel room. $300 is the average room rate for a 4-star hotel. When I wrote about the InterContinental Hotel New York Times Square yesterday all I could think is how I could save $500 to $600 per night on this luxury hotel by using 40,000 points. Loyalty points are a great investment travel plan if you have need for NYC hotel rooms and you are paying your own bill.

There are several Starwood resorts in Portugal on my bucket list and  I see Cash & Points awards at 4,000 points + $60 for a hotel like the Convento de Espinheiro, Evora. Provided the right SPG promotion I might even go for 149€ per night. My frequent flyer accounts call to me – redeem.