Loyalty Traveler » Marriott Vacation Club

Hilton, Marriott and IHG Hotel Brand Market Segments

Ric Garrido — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:08:20 +0000

Over the next few weeks I will compare aspects of different hotel loyalty programs. While it is easy to look at the different websites and compare member benefits, the proportion of hotel brands and their market segment as a proportion of hotels participating in a hotel loyalty program tends not to be as well known.

Hotel Chain Scales are used by hotel industry analysts at STR.com to segment hotel brands into luxury, upper-upscale, upscale, upper midscale, midscale and economy categories.

The largest hotel loyalty programs for the US are Hilton, Marriott and IHG in terms of the size and broad range of hotels in different market segments. Wyndham Rewards, Choice Privileges and Best Western Rewards are comparable megachain hotels, but there are far fewer hotels in the upscale to luxury segments in these three brands. Starwood (1,100 hotels) and Hyatt (500 hotels) have a high proportion of upscale to luxury hotel brands in their portfolios, however, the number of hotels are far fewer in these chains and not as useful for travelers needing wide geographic coverage.

Hotel Brands and Market Segments

What is a luxury hotel or an upper-upscale hotel?

Price is generally the defining line between hotel market segments. I do not work in the hotel industry and I am an amateur analyst interpreting numbers from hotel industry data. STRGlobal.com provides industry data reports and I gather statistical data about the hotel industry regularly from the free data provided online.

STR has a list of hotel brands in different chain scale segments based on the average room rate data for thousands of hotels worldwide.

This post uses the 2011 STR US Chain Scales along with the latest hotel properties data for each brand from the hotel chain’s websites to compare market segments for hotel brands of Hilton, IHG and Marriott.

Basically I want to see how the hotels in Hilton, IHG and Marriott segment out in each chain and compare to each other when looking at the number of luxury, upscale and midscale hotels in each hotel loyalty program.

Hilton Worldwide Hotel Brands with Market Segment and Number of Hotels

Hilton Worldwide has 3,712 hotels in this list, but this is only an estimate. New hotels open every few days.The percentage of hotels in each brand is listed in ( ).
Conrad Hotels (luxury) = 18 hotels (<1%).
Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts (luxury) = 23 hotels (<1%).
Hilton Hotels and Resorts (upper upscale) = 540 hotels (15%) in 78 countries including 70 Resorts.
Embassy Suites (upper upscale) = 201 hotels (5%) with 193 in US and 8 international.
Hilton Grand Vacations (upper upscale) = 50 properties (1%).
DoubleTree by Hilton (upscale) = 250 hotels (7%) in 17 countries.
Homewood Suites (upscale – extended stay) = 309 hotels (8%) in North America.
Hilton Garden Inn (upscale) = 515 hotels (14%) with 130 in development.
Hampton Inn (upper midscale) = 1,800 hotels (48%) with more than 1,700 in US and growing international expansion recently.
Home2 Suites (upper midscale – extended stay) = 6 hotels (<1%).

Marriott International Hotel Brands with Market Segment and Number of Hotels

3,747 properties in 13 brands in 72 countries. This total does not include Marriott Executive Apartments which earn Marriott Rewards points, but are extended stay contracted properties and not a typical hotel stay.
Ritz-Carlton (luxury) = 81 hotels (2%).
JW Marriott (luxury) = 62 hotels (2%).
Marriott Hotels & Resorts (upper upscale) = 521 hotels (14%).
Renaissance (upper upscale) = 160 hotels (4%).
Autograph Collection (upper upscale) = 29 hotels (<1%).
Marriott Vacation Club (upper upscale) = 59 properties (2%).
Marriott Conference Centers (upper upscale) = 7 hotels (<1%).
Courtyard (upscale) = 926 hotels (25%).
AC Hotels (upscale) = 82 hotels mostly in Spain (2%).
SpringHill Suites (upscale – extended stay) = 299 hotels (8%).
Residence Inn (upscale – extended stay) = 627 hotels (17%).
Fairfield Inn (upper midscale) = 689 hotels (18%).
TownePlace Suites (upper midscale – extended stay)= 205 hotels (5%).

InterContinental Hotels Group

4,452 hotels (as of September 2011)
InterContinental Hotels (luxury) = 171 hotels (4%).
Crowne Plaza (upscale) = 401 hotels (9%).
Hotel Indigo (upscale) = 38 hotels (<1%).
Staybridge Suites (upscale – extended stay) = 195 hotels (4%).
Holiday Inn (upper midscale) = 1,238 hotels (28%).
Holiday Inn Express (upper midscale) = 2,103 hotels (47%) with 1,866 in Americas.
Candlewood Suites (midscale) = 300 hotels (7%).
Holiday Inn Club Vacations = 6 properties (<1%).

I have some issue with the broad segmentation of Crowne Plaza and DoubleTree as Upscale rather than Upper Upscale for some locations and Holiday Inn as Upper Midscale for some locations where the Holiday Inn is more upscale. Keep in mind in the real world of travel there will be some Crowne Plaza and DoubleTree hotels that will be just as nice or better than the nearby Marriott, Hilton or Embassy Suites.

How the hotel chains stack up when brands are compared by market segment.

Luxury market segment

IHG = 171 hotels (InterContinental)
Marriott = 143 hotels (Ritz-Carlton, JW Marriott)
Hilton = 41 hotels (Conrad, Waldorf Astoria)

Upper Upscale market segment

Hilton = 791 hotels (Hilton, Embassy Suites, Hilton Grand Vacations)
Marriott = 776 hotels (Marriott, Renaissance, Autograph Collection, Marriott Vacation Club)
IHG = 0 hotels (based on STR chain scale rankings, but in reality many Crowne Plaza hotels are upper upscale).

Upscale market segment

Marriott = 1,934 hotels (Courtyard, Residence Inn, AC Hotels)
Hilton = 1,074 (Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites, DoubleTree)
IHG = 634 hotels (Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Staybridge Suites)

Upper Midscale market segment

IHG = 3,341 hotels (Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express)
Hilton = 1,806 (Hampton Inn)
Marriott = 894 (Fairfield Inn, TownePlace Suites)

Midscale market segment

IHG = 300 (Candlewood Suites)

The key point here is to consider what market segment you desire for your travels. IHG Priority Club will tend to be lower room rates, but Priority Club does not offer frequent guest elite members the level of defined benefits provided by Hilton HHonors or Marriott Rewards to their md-tier and top-tier elite members.

Another point to add is the practice of placing branded hotels in the same chain adjacent to each other. This is really common with Marriott where Courtyard and Residence Inn are literally adjacent hotels in many places. I have seen three Marriott properties in the same location in places. Geographic coverage is not as extensive as you might think when all the locations with multiple properties are considered. On the other hand, the placement of hotels in the same chain next to each other makes hotel hopping for loyalty promotion stay credit an easy task when you want to earn free Marriott MegaBonus nights.

Comparison of hotel loyalty program benefits across these hotel brands will be discussed in future posts.

Marriott Gift Card Bonus Points, More Value or Lower Cost with SkyMiles

Ric Garrido — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 23:01:56 +0000

Marriott Hotels has several promotion offers for gift cards now through January 8, 2012. Gift card shipping is $1 for U.S. addresses.

10% Bonus on Marriott Gift Card Value

Amtrak promotion code AMT or Marriott Associate Friends & Family promotion code MMT both offer 10% added value to a Marriott Gift Card. You can purchase any gift card amount from $25 and up. The 10% added value means the actual value on the card will be $1,100 when you pay $1,000 for a gift card.

Earn 10 Marriott Rewards points per dollar for buying Gift Cards - up to 25,000 bonus points.

Another gift card promotion offers 10 Marriott Rewards points per dollar in gift card value purchased, up to 25,000 bonus points. This could be a better than 10% value depending on how you use points. There are Ritz-Carlton Hotels for 30,000 points per night that are more than $300 per night.

Hertz Rental Car Marriott Gift Card Offer

Get $50 Hertz rental car voucher with $250 Marriott Gift Card purchase. Promotion code = Hertz.

Save 10% on Marriott VacationCards and earn up to 10,000 Delta Skymiles bonus miles.

A Marriott VacationCard promotion with Delta Airlines gives a 10% discount in the cost of a $1,000 or $2,000 VacationCard and 1,000 Delta Skymiles bonus miles for each $1,000 in VacationCard value, up to 10,000 bonus miles. This offer is only available through January 1, 2012.

What is the difference between Marriott Gift Card and Marriott VacationCard?

See this FlyerTalk thread where Counsellor posted the difference between Marriott Gift Cards and VacationCards.

Marriott MegaBonus Promotion – Last Day to Register

Ric Garrido — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:49:26 +0000

This is a reminder that October 31, 2011 is the last day you can register for Marriott Rewards MegaBonus offer. The main offer is one free night at a category 1-4 hotel after two hotel stays paid with VISA (any VISA credit card) between September 15 and January 15, 2012.

This offer is one of the highest value hotel promotions currently available, especially if you just need two one-night hotel stays over the next 11 weeks. Hotel rates during the Thanksgiving week, Christmas/New Year’s week and the second week of January are typically among the lowest hotel rates of the year in many locations, particularly where hotels are business traveler oriented like many urban centers.

I think of this offer as the opportunity to spend $100 at two hotels and get a free certificate that might be a $200 value at some other Marriott hotel. The certificate received after two hotel stays is valid only for the lowest four hotel reward categories, but Marriott is bottom heavy meaning a large percentage of the 3,400+ hotels in Marriott are in these four lowest reward categories in Marriott Rewards eight categories of hotel rewards.

Register online or call 1-888-627-7468 and register by phone through October 31, 2011. You must have your account earning preference set to “points” to see the Fall MegaBonus promotion offer.

Here is my Loyalty Traveler post on the MegaBonus promotion from August 16.

Marriott Rewards More Stays, More Miles

For guests who do not use Visa, there is also the Marriott Rewards “More Stays, More Miles” offer. This offer does not require a Visa payment. There is also no registration deadline for Marriott’s Miles promotion.

Earn up to 30,000 bonus miles starting with 1,000 miles on your second stay, 1,500 miles on 3rd and 4th stays and 2,000 bonus miles on additional stays through December 31, 2011. Here is my Loyalty traveler August 31 write-up on Marriott’s miles offer.

Marriott More Stays, More Miles Sep 1-Dec 31

Ric Garrido — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 12:27:00 +0000

Marriott Rewards members choosing miles instead of points have the option to earn up to 30,000 bonus miles for hotel stays from September 1-December 31, 2011. Unlike MegaBonus, this promotion does not require VISA payment. There are six participating airlines and members must select one of these partners when registering for this bonus miles promotion:

Delta Airlines SkyMiles
United Airlines Mileage Plus
British Airways Executive Club
Lufthansa Miles & More
GOL/Varig Smiles
LanPass

Bonus miles earning begins with the second stay after September 1 based on the following earning chart.

Stay 1 = regular base miles of 2 miles/$1 (JW Marriott, Marriott, Renaissance, Ritz-Carlton, Edition, Autograph Collection) or 1 mile/$1 at Courtyard, Residence Inn, Fairfield Inn, SpringHill Suites, TownePlace Suites).
Stay 2 = Base Miles + 1,000 bonus miles.
Stay 3 = Base Miles + 1,500 bonus miles.
Stay 4 = Base Miles + 1,500 bonus miles.
Stays 5 to 17 = Base Miles + 2,000 bonus miles.
Maximum 30,000 bonus miles is reached after 17 stays.
All Marriott brands worldwide, including Ritz-Carlton participate in this promotion. LT Note: the new Marriott AC brand in Europe is not listed on the Marriott miles earning page or in this promotion’s terms.

Loyalty Traveler Analysis:

This “More Stays, More Miles” offer is an alternative promotion to the Marriott Megabonus for Fall 2011 running Sep 15, 2011 to Jan 15, 2012 for members who choose to earn miles. This miles promotion does not require VISA card payment. Your Marriott Rewards account earning preference must be set to miles rather than points to view this offer.

New members must enroll in Marriott Rewards and existing members must register for this promotion either online at www.MarriottRewards.com/MoreStays-MoreMiles or via the Marriott Rewards service center in the U.S. and Canada at 800-859-0686.

The primary points offer for Marriott’s MegaBonus is a possibility of one free night at a category 1 to 4 hotel after two stays, with a maximum bonus of two free nights after four stays when payment is VISA. You must register for MegaBonus by October 31.

MegaBonus is a targeted offer and Marriott Rewards frequent guests are likely to have a points based offer for 15 to 25 nights. There is also a version awarding 5,000 points every two stays. Here is my August 16 Loyalty Traveler post on Marriott MegaBonus.

Since Marriott Rewards members must choose between earning either points or miles and members have the ability to switch earning preference between stays, there may be potential to earn both MegaBonus and More Stays, More Miles bonuses by switching earning preference from miles to points during the overlapping promotion period of Sep 15-Dec 31 for these two offers.

I’d love to hear Marriott Rewards member input about the feasibility of earning miles for some stays, switching to points and earning MegaBonus credit for some stays, and switching back to miles again for other stays. Does it work to switch earning preference and alternate between a miles promotion and points promotion with Marriott Rewards for different stays?

Marriott Rewards More Stays, More Miles for up to 30,000 miles Sep 1-Dec 31, 2011

Marriott Rewards MegaBonus free nights is my primary backup promotion

Ric Garrido — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 13:47:17 +0000

Marriott Rewards Megabonus from September 15, 2011 - January 15, 2012 offers most “low stay activity” members the opportunity to earn one free night after two Marriott brand stays paid with VISA for a maximum of two earned free nights at Category 1-4 hotels for redemption from September 15, 2011 – May 31, 2012.

Paid with VISA means any VISA card is acceptable. You do not need to use a cobranded Marriott Rewards Visa card.

MegaBonus promotion registration is required by October 31, 2011.

Why I like Marriott Rewards MegaBonus for my primary backup promotion.

Not all Marriott Rewards members receive the targeted two stays earns one free night offer. Infrequent guests with Marriott typically get the free night as a default offer. More active Marriott Rewards members may have a targetted points version for meeting a nights threshold.

This Loyalty Traveler post is written for people like me who rarely stay at Marriott Hotels. Marriott Rewards MegaBonus is a high value rebate for the infrequent Marriott Rewards guest.

This is the third Marriott Rewards MegaBonus promotion for 2011. Marriott Rewards does not seem to put a whole lot of effort in designing clever promotions since MegaBonus has basically been the same deal all year for the infrequent guest with two stays earns one free night at a category 1 to category 4 hotel for a maximum of two free nights during the promotion.

Marriott Rewards is my primary backup hotel plan.

This is the third time this promotion has run in 2011 providing an opportunity to earn 6 free nights with just 12 paid nights at Marriott brand hotels. The redemption restriction of category 1 to 4 hotels in the Marriott Rewards system prevents using the free nights in many major cities where most hotels are category 5 or 6 and the top of line resorts and luxury hotels at category 7 and 8. But there are plenty of $200 per night hotel redemption opportunities in the category 4 hotels and it is quite easy to earn a free night with Marriott Rewards MegaBonus for less than $200 with two one-night sub-$100 rates.

Marriott MegaBonus 2011 #1 – Earn February 1-April 30, 2011. Redeem free nights by September 30, 2011. Register by March 31, 2011.

Marriott MegaBonus 2011 #2 – Earn June 1-August 31, 2011. Redeem free nights by December 31, 2011. Register by June 30, 2011.

Despite Marriott Rewards being two-time Hotel Program of the Year in the Americas winner at the Frequent Traveler Awards 2010 and 2011, my stays at Marriott brand hotels are rather infrequent. I like the Marriott brand hotels I visit and I have seen plenty of new build Fairfield Inn properties alongside the new Holiday Inn Express and Hampton Inn hotels dotting the American landscape.

I only have need for so many hotel nights in a year and Marriott takes 50 nights to reach mid-tier Gold elite. Most hotel loyalty programs offer routes to top elite level with high value benefits for far fewer hotel nights in a year. That makes Marriott Rewards a backup program for me. Free nights are a valuable asset to have in reserve and Marriott Rewards free nights are easily earned with MegaBonus. Marriott currently has more than 3,000 hotels in the USA and over 500 international hotels with plenty of choices for paid and free nights.

Marriott Rewards MegaBonus is a recurring promotion for infrequent Marriott Rewards guests to earn one free night after two hotel stays.

Other targetted variations of MegaBonus promotion offer bonus points with VISA payment. Here are some other offers posted on FlyerTalk.

5,000 bonus points every second stay, up to 20,000 bonus points (8 stays) - Marriott Rewards Platinum member.
25,000 bonus points after 15 paid nights + additional 15,000 bonus points after 20 nights – Marriott Rewards Platinum member.
35,000 bonus points after 20 paid nights + additional 15,000 bonus points after 25 nights – Marriott Rewards Platinum member.

Finding the Fall MegaBonus promotion:

Register online or call 1-888-627-7468 and register by phone through October 31, 2011. You must have your account earning preference set to “points” to see the Fall MegaBonus promotion offer. When I did not see this offer last week I checked my account and saw it was set to miles. Once I changed my account earning preference to points the Fall MegaBonus offer for one free night after two stays paid with VISA showed up immediately in “Promotion Central” under “My Account”.

Loyalty Traveler Promotion Rating = 4 keys out of 5. This is my primary backup promotion for a high value rebate when I can’t find higher value in any other hotel program. Over the course of 2011 it has been possible to stay 12 nights and earn six free nights. Marriott Silver elite requires only 10 nights in Marriott Rewards and earns 20% bonus points for hotel stays.

Marriott Rewards MegaBonus Fall 2011 - Earn one free night after two stays.

Marriott Endless Summer breakfast and $50 daily credit

Ric Garrido — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 14:58:32 +0000

Marriott Resorts offers an “Endless Summer” value package at 30 properties that might be a good value package for hotel stays from August 1 through September 16, 2011. Endless Summer packages are promotional code rate ZXO available at 30 select hotels for bookings made by September 11. The package includes:

breakfast for two adults and up to two children under 12 in same room
$50 resort credit per room night
room or view upgrade based on availability

Participating Hotels:

Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa

5350 East Marriott Drive
Phoenix, Arizona 85054

From $149-$319
Check Availability

Scottsdale

JW Marriott Camelback Inn® Scottsdale Resort & Spa

5402 East Lincoln Drive
Scottsdale, Arizona 85253
From $139-$339
Check Availability

Tucson

JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort & Spa

3800 W. Starr Pass Boulevard
Tucson, Arizona 85745
From $149-$299
Check Availability

California

Coronado

Coronado Island Marriott Resort & Spa

2000 Second Street
Coronado, California 92118
From $269
Check Availability

Indian Wells

Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort & Spa

44-400 Indian Wells Lane
Indian Wells, California 92210
From $129-$229
Check Availability

Los Angeles

JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE

900 West Olympic Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90015
From $219
Check Availability

Palm Desert

JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa

74-855 Country Club Drive
Palm Desert, California 92260
From $129-$329
Check Availability

Sonoma

The Lodge at Sonoma Renaissance Resort & Spa

1325 Broadway at Leveroni & Napa Roads
Sonoma, California 95476
From $309-$329
Check Availability

Colorado
Vail

Vail Marriott Mountain Resort & Spa

715 West Lionshead Circle
Vail, Colorado 81657
From $159-$219
Check Availability

Florida

Fort Lauderdale

Harbor Beach Marriott Resort & Spa

3030 Holiday Drive
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316
From $269-$379
Check Availability

Fort Myers

Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa

17260 Harbour Pointe Drive
Fort Myers, Florida 33908
From $159-$239
Check Availability

Key Largo

Key Largo Bay Marriott Beach Resort

103800 Overseas Highway, MM 103.8
Key Largo, Florida 33037
From $189
Check Availability

Marco Island

Marco Island Marriott Beach Resort, Golf Club & Spa

400 South Collier Boulevard
Marco Island, Florida 34145
From $239-$379
Check Availability

Miami

Doral Golf Resort & Spa, A Marriott Resort

4400 NW 87th Avenue
Miami, Florida 33178
From $184-$234
Check Availability

Miami Beach

Eden Roc Renaissance Miami Beach

4525 Collins Avenue
Miami Beach, Florida 33140
From $259-$399
Check Availability

Orlando

JW MarriottOrlando Grande Lakes®

4040 Central Florida Parkway
Orlando, Florida 32837
From $239-$369
Check Availability

Orlando World Center Marriott

8701 World Center Drive
Orlando, Florida 32821
From $224-$374
Check Availability

Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld®

6677 Sea Harbor Drive
Orlando, Florida 32821
From $169-$269
Check Availability

Panama City Beach

Bay Point Marriott Golf Resort & Spa

4200 Marriott Drive
Panama City Beach, Florida 32408
From $139-$219
Check Availability

Ponte Vedra Beach

Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa

1000 PGA Tour Boulevard
Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida 32082
From $129-$179
Check Availability

Singer Island Riviera Beach

Palm Beach Marriott Singer Island Beach Resort & Spa

3800 North Ocean Drive
Singer Island Riviera Beach, Florida 33404
From $259-$384
Check Availability

Stuart

Hutchinson Island Marriott Beach Resort & Marina

555 NE Ocean Boulevard
Stuart, Florida 34996
From $165-$215
Check Availability

Hawaii

Honolulu – Oahu

Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa

2552 Kalakaua Avenue
Honolulu – Oahu, Hawaii 96815
From $354
Check Availability

Kapolei – Oahu

JW Marriott Ihilani Ko Olina Resort & Spa

92-1001 Olani Street
Kapolei – Oahu, Hawaii 96707
From $399
Check Availability

Lihue – Kauai

Kaua’i Marriott Resort

Kalapaki Beach, 3610 Rice Street
Lihue – Kauai, Hawaii 96766
From $279-$459
Check Availability

Waikoloa

Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort & Spa

69-275 Waikoloa Beach Drive
Waikoloa, Hawaii 96738
From $259-$334
Check Availability

Wailea – Maui

Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa

3700 Wailea Alanui
Wailea – Maui, Hawaii 96753
From $430-$520
Check Availability

Nevada
Las Vegas

JW Marriott Las Vegas Resort & Spa

221 N Rampart Blvd
Las Vegas, Nevada 89145
From $159-$269
Check Availability

Texas

Horseshoe Bay

Horseshoe Bay Resort Marriott

200 Hi Circle North
Horseshoe Bay, Texas 78657
From $301
Check Availability

San Antonio

JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa

23808 Resort Parkway
San Antonio, Texas 78261
From $259-$389
Check Availability

Loyalty Traveler Rate Analysis

Hotel revenue managers have a variety of strategies for getting more money out of the customer at less cost to the hotel. One of the strategies commonly used is to combine value-added components to package rates. Marriott frequently uses the value-added package rates strategy.

Some of these package deals can be good value rates for the guest and save money if you plan to use some of the hotel services during your stay. Often these rates are not very good deals. The revenue managers know many guests will not take sufficient time to compare all the available rates. Package rates tend to improve hotel revenue more than guest savings.

Marriott’s Endless Summer package rates might be a good deal as long as you have two adults for breakfast and you will use your $50 daily credit.

Analysis of Endless Summer ZXO rate for JW Marriott Camelback Inn, Scottsdale, Arizona

Monday, August 1 – Thursday, August 4, 2011

Endless Summer Package Rate = $169/night (includes free breakfast and $50 daily resort credit and potential upgrade).

Marriott Rewards member exclusive offer = $118/night (includes $25 daily resort credit). This offer is better for an elite guest who already receives complimentary breakfast benefit or for a single guest who won’t benefit from complimentary breakfast for two adults and two young children.

JW Marriott Camelback Inn has 14 other rate packages available during these dates offering complimentary golf for one to four persons, spa services, free breakfast for kids, free appetizers at restaurants, dinner packages, and all sorts of options that may better fit your specific needs. The golf packages look like they could be big savings.

Endless Summer rate Aug 1-4 JW Marriott Camelback Inn, Scottsdale, AZ

Conclusion: Marriott’s Endless Summer rate might be a good value for your stay, but be sure to check out the variety of package rates available at Marriott Resorts to see if there is a better package rate suited for your hotel activities and interests.

Marriott Rewards 4x Miles June 1- August 31

Ric Garrido — Fri, 27 May 2011 16:56:32 +0000

Marriott Rewards offers members 4x miles from June 1 through August 31, 2011 beginning with your second hotel stay during the promotion period. The design of Marriott Rewards site requires your member account be set to earn miles rather than points to enable the 4x miles promotion page to load. Promotion registration begins June 1.

Marriott Rewards members on FlyerTalk state the miles promotion and points promotions can both be earned if you switch your earning preference and register for both promotions. This makes it possible to toggle between earning points for the MegaBonus offer of one free night at a category 1 to 4 hotel after two stays which is great for one night hotel stays and then earn miles for longer, more expensive stays when the bonus miles will add up quickly. You just need to manage your earning preference by switching between miles or points to maximize the best earning option for each hotel stay.

Earn 8 miles per $1 for most charges at these hotel brands:

JW Marriott
Marriott Hotels & Resorts
Renaissance
Autograph Collection
Marriott Vacation Club
Edition

Earn 4 miles per $1 on room rate only at these hotel brands:

Courtyard
Residence Inn
Fairfield Inn
TownePlace Suites
SpringHill Suites

Participating Airlines for 4x Miles:

Aeroplan (Air Canada)
British Airways
Cathay Pacific Airways
Delta Air Lines
Frontier Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
JetBlue Airways
Jet Airways JetPrivilege
Kingfisher Airlines
LifeMiles (Avianca-TACA)
Southwest Airlines
United Airlines
US Airways

Southwest Airlines normally earns 600 points per stay for any Marriott hotel brand, so quadruple points = 2,400 points per stay at any hotel brand.

JetBlue with this promotion earns 4 points per $1 at upper tier brands (Marriott, Renaissance) and 2 points per $1 at the lower tier hotel brands (Courtyard, Residence Inn) shown above.

Marriott Rewards 4x Miles Promotion link (registration begins June 1).

4x Miles Promotion Terms & Conditions.

Please note: You must have your Marriott Rewards member account earning preference set to earn miles in order to load the webpages in these links. They will not load if your account is set for earning points.

Related Loyalty Traveler post: Marriott Rewards MegaBonus June 1-August 31, 2011 (May 16)

Marriott Rewards Quadruple Miles

Marriott Caribbean and Mexico Resorts sale; book by 4/30

Ric Garrido — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 16:16:31 +0000

Save up to 40% at ten Marriott Resorts in the Caribbean and Mexico for stays to September 30, 2011. Must book by April 30. Promotion code LLF.

Participating Resorts:

Aruba Oranjestad

Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino

From $176.40 USD

Aruba Palm Beach

Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino

From $209 USD

Grand Cayman

Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort

From $144 USD

Cancun, Mexico

JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa

From $149.25 – $314.25 USD

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa

From $107 USD

Netherlands Antilles

Curacao

Curacao Marriott Beach Resort & Emerald Casino

From $119.40 USD

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Frigate Bay

St. Kitts Marriott Resort & The Royal Beach Casino

From $122 USD

Virgin Islands (US)

St. Thomas

Frenchman’s Reef & Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort

From $214 USD

Loyalty Traveler rate analysis:

In a sample rate check of Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort for May 17-23 for six nights the LLF promotion rate is $209 (lowest advertised rate for LLF promotion is $144) for a 30% discount on the standard rate.

Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort Oceanfront balcony room is $279 per night for $2008.80 total after tax.

Cancellation policy is 7 nights in advance of stay for no penalty or 1 night penalty (plus 20% tax) for cancellation within 7 days.

AAA rate for Oceanfront balcony room for these same dates is $316 per night or $2,275.20 after tax.

This promotional sale rate is a $266.40 discount on the AAA rate with the same cancellation policies for a real LLF promotional savings of 12% on the comparable AAA rate.

Marriott TravelCards 20% Off Sale 12noon ET Monday April 11

Ric Garrido — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 04:03:10 +0000

Purchase Marriott Travel Cards at 10% to 20% face value discount Monday, April 11, 2011 at DiscoverAmerica.com. The sale begins at 12 noon ET (New York time).

DiscoverAmerica.com Daily Getaways link.

$50 Marriott Travel Card for $44. (Maximum purchase = 5 cards.)
$100 Marriott TravelCard for $89. (Maximum purchase = 5 cards.)
$250 Marriott TravelCard for $222. (Maximum purchase = 2 cards.)
$500 Marriott TravelCard for $445. (Maximum purchase = 2 cards.)
$1,000 Marriott TravelCard for $890. (Maximum purchase = 1 card.)
Get an extra 10% off purchase price for payment with any American Express card.
You can buy up to five $100 cards and up to five $50 cards and so on.
Marriott TravelCards will be delivered via U.S. mail within 10 days.

The primary advantage to Marriott TravelCards over buying Marriott Rewards points is the ability to earn hotel stay credit for points and promotions when paying for Marriott stays with Marriott TravelCards. The terms and conditions for these cards appear to have restrictions for rates and state no Marriott points earned, but in practice based on anecdotal evidence from last year’s DiscoverAmerica sale (FlyerTalk 2010 thread), the Marriott TravelCards are accepted for rates like AAA and points are earned.

There are few restrictions associated with Marriott TravelCards. The main thing is to treat the card like cash and not lose the card since it will not be replaced. Otherwise, the Marriott TravelCard value does not expire and may be used to pay for any Marriott brand hotels worldwide.

DiscoverAmerica.com Daily Getaways

A similar month-long Daily Getaways sale was offered last May 2010. Last year’s sale offered some of the greatest discounts of the year for hotel points in programs like Hyatt, Starwood, Choice and IHG points.

Last year I purchased several Daily Getaway offers for discount priced hotel loyalty points. The rates last year were actually closer to the American Express discount for this year without the need to use American Express for payment.

These hotel discount sales are high value discounts and some items sell out quickly. You need to be ready to make a purchase at the start of the sale if you really desire one or more of these items.

About DiscoverAmerica.com

DiscoverAmerica.com is the official travel and tourism website of the United States. The Daily Getaways are sponsored by American Express and prices are discounted by 10% when using American Express as payment. DiscoverAmerica.com has 25 days of discounted travel opportunities with a focus on hotels and car rentals through its “Daily Getaways”.

Hyatt Gold Passport points Daily Getaway offer, Friday, April 15 – 12 noon ET

Hyatt Gold Passport points are available at a significant discount through DiscoverAmerica.com ($9.38/1,000 points with American Express discount at $225 for 24,000 points) compared to the purchase price through Hyatt Gold Passport ($24/1,000 points).

Currently the first three weeks of DiscoverAmerica.com DailyGetaways offers have posted.

Week 1: April 11-15, 2011

Week 2: April 18-22, 2011

Week 3: April 25-29, 2011

Related Link: Marriott Gift Cards (essentially same type of card).

Marriott PointSavers April 2011 Hotel List

Ric Garrido — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 01:52:28 +0000

Marriott Rewards PointSavers discount the cost of a hotel reward night by one category level. PointSavers are available only at select hotels at any given time. There are currently 45 hotels listed with PointSavers dates.

A Marriott PointSavers Reward at a category 5 hotel only requires the category 4 reward price – 20,000 points instead of 25,000 points per night so a 3-night stay is 60,000 points rather than 75,000 points for a 20% discount.

The 5^th night free reward rate also applies to PointSaver Rewards for extended stays.

United Kingdom has 32 hotels for the vast majority of participating hotels on the current PointSavers Reward list with many of these hotels posting available dates into December 2011. There are nine hotels in the U.S. and just five more hotels in four other countries including Austria, Denmark, Germany and Costa Rica.

Ritz-Carlton Hotels also participate in PointSavers, however, there has either been a dramatic decline in participation since the September 2010 launch of Ritz Carlton Rewards or the hotels simply do not appear online. The Ritz Carlton Seoul Korea was on a previous 2011 PointSavers list only for two single night dates in January and February.

Marriott PointSavers Reward Chart

The Marriott Rewards system for PointSavers means the discount trends to lower percentage discount overall as the reward category increases. Marriott Rewards category 3 and Ritz-Carlton Rewards category 1 hotels are the sweet spot in the Marriott PointSavers system for the maximum 33% points savings.

At the top three Marriott categories of 6, 7 and 8 and Ritz-Carlton Tiers 4 and 5, the PointSavers discount falls below 20% overall.

Marriott PointSavers List on April 10, 2011

United States

Arizona

The Buttes, A Marriott Resort (Category 5)

Where nature’s beauty, and a warm Arizona welcome create the perfect escape!