15 of the 23 hotels rising one tier level in Ritz-Carlton Rewards hotel category reassignment May 16, 2013 are located in the USA.

Ouch!

There are 78 Ritz-Carlton hotels globally. 39 of these 78 Ritz-Carlton hotels are in the USA.

The good news is Ritz-Carlton Bahrain is dropping by one tier level from RZ2 (40,000 points per night) to RZ1 (30,000 points per night) when new Marriott Rewards hotel award category reassignments take effect May 16, 2013.

The worse news comes with the 10,000 points increase for award nights at 23 Ritz-Carlton hotels rising in hotel award reassignments.

Link to the Marriott Rewards/Ritz-Carlton Rewards announcement of 2013 tier changes.

Link to Marriott Rewards pdf of 1,300+ hotels rising in hotel award category May 16, 2013.

Historical Perspective on Ritz-Carlton Rewards Read More…

Ritz-Carlton Hotels offer the “Extraordinary Returns” promotion for 30,000 bonus points with a 4-night paid stay between July 15 and October 15, 2012. Only one 30,000 points bonus may be earned per Ritz-Carlton Rewards member.

Ritz-Carlton Rewards Extraordinary Returns Promotion registration is required by September 15.

Read More…

First the bad news. This is an offer for new enrollees to Ritz-Carlton Rewards or existing RCR members and you are not eligible for the Ritz-Carlton Rewards free night offer if you are a Marriott Rewards member.

Members of The Ritz-Carlton Rewards program as of January 13, 2012 and new members who were not previously members of the Marriott Rewards® program are eligible to receive this offer.

And now the good news. Register for the Ritz-Carlton Rewards free night offer by March 1, 2012. Stay two times at participating Ritz-Carlton Hotels and earn one free night certificate valid for a Tier 1-3 Ritz-Carlton Hotel. You may earn up to two free night certificates during the promotion.

• Register for promotion by March 1.
• You must have been a member of Ritz-Carlton Rewards as of January 13, 2012 or a new member who has not been a member of Marriott Rewards to be eligible for this offer.
• Free night reward certificate is earned 3-5 days after second qualifying stay and is valid for one year from date of issuance.
• Free night certificate is not transferable and may not be gifted.

Read More…

Ritz-Carlton Rewards members have an exclusive summer promotion that apparently does not apply for Marriott Rewards members even though the promotion page allows Marriott Rewards members to register. Earn 30,000 bonus Ritz-Carlton Rewards points with a stay of 4 nights or more at a participating Ritz-Carlton hotel between July 18 and September 9, 2011. This bonus may be earned only one time per member for stays during the promotion period.

Promotion registration is required by August 15, 2011.

Ritz-Carlton Rewards 30,000 Points Promotion press release.
Ritz-Carlton Rewards promotion FAQ.

• Must have been a Ritz-Carlton Rewards member as of June 30, 2011.
• New members may register for Ritz-Carlton Rewards and register for this promotion through August 15, 2011 if previously not a member of Marriott Rewards.
• A check-in date before July 18 or checkout date after September 9 is eligible for this promotion if at least one night of your stay falls within the promotion period of July 18-September 9.
• An eligible stay prior to registration counts for this bonus as long as Ritz-Carlton Rewards member registers for promotion by August 15.

Nonparticipating Properties:

• The Ritz-Carlton Millennia, Singapore,
• Phulay Bay, Thailand Ritz-Carlton Reserve
• The Ritz-Carlton Destination Club®,
• The Ritz-Carlton Residences and Partner Hotels

Loyalty Traveler analysis:

This bonus is basically a Ritz-Carlton Tier 1 free hotel night at 30,000 points after a paid 4-night stay. That is a good value rebate for Ritz-Carlton Rewards members.

Ritz-Carlton Rewards 30,000 bonus points with 4-night stay July 18-Sep 9, 2011.

Loyalty Traveler analysis of Ritz-Carlton Rewards Card benefits.

Ritz-Carlton Rewards launched its JP Morgan Chase Bank Visa credit card this week with a 50,000 points bonus after first-use by its founding members. This is sufficient for one free night at a Tier 3 Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

RitzCarltonRewardsCard.com

Benefits of Ritz-Carlton Credit Card include:

• 5 points per $1 for Ritz-Carlton brand hotel stays. Stays at other Marriott brand hotels do not earn the 5 points rate.
• 2 points per $1 for airlines, car rentals and dining.
• 1 points per $1 for other purchases.
• Confirmed upgrade to Club Level at Ritz-Carlton Hotels at time of booking three times per card membership account year for paid stays up to 7 nights.
• Automatic Ritz-Carlton Rewards Gold elite status for first year of card membership.
• Maintain Ritz-Carlton Gold elite with $10,000 in annual card spend.
• Priority Pass Select membership for complimentary airport lounge access.
• $200 annual airline incidentals credit provides reimbursement for items like checked baggage fees and in-flight meals charged to Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card.
• JP Morgan Premier Concierge service 24/7.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• $100 hotel credit on minimum 2-night stays for dining, spa and other activities. This credit is not valid for room rate.
• Insurance coverage for trip cancellation/delay, emergency medical coverage, 24 hour travel and emergency assistance services and lost baggage reimbursement. 

Annual cardmember fee $395 per year.

Interest Rate: 15.24% on June 13, 2011.

Chasing Whales with Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card  

A recently published Cornell Hospitality Report analyzed and categorized customer segments among hotel loyalty program members. One of their findings was the high-value customers they categorize as “whales”. This customer segment includes loyalty members who stay relatively infrequently, but have exceptionally high average spend during hotel stays for rooms, food and beverage, and other revenue. The Cornell report concludes loyalty programs should chase whales with benefits rather than room rate discounts. The Ritz-Carlton Rewards Card appears to follow that advice. 

Bloomberg reports the JP Morgan Premier Concierge service offered as a Ritz-Carlton Rewards Card benefit is a feature previously only available to its wealthiest customers in the New York based bank. The affluent customer market is dominated by American Express whose members spend three to four times the spend of Visa and MasterCard members. 

Herve Humler, President and COO of Ritz-Carlton, said about 100,000 members are being offered the card. Chase Bank is targeting prime and super-prime customers with high credit ratings. Mr. Humler even has a YouTube 46-second promo spot with little informative substance for the new credit card. The video does provide a close-up look of the card. 

Ritz-Carlton Rewards Gold Elite with $10,000 in card spend

The Ritz-Carlton Rewards Gold elite factor is a competitive edge for Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card members. Mid-level gold elite at $10,000 compares to HHonors Surpass American Express card with a $20,000 spend level to maintain HHonors Gold. The advantage of HHonors AmEx Surpass is the ability to reach Diamond elite at $40,000 in annual spend, although there is considerable debate in the HHonors community on FlyerTalk as to whether HHonors Diamond elite has significantly more value than HHonors Gold elite these days. 

Ritz-Carlton Gold elite benefits include:

• 25% bonus points
• Complimentary room upgrade
• Complimentary internet
• Late checkout

$200 airline incidentals credit

The airline incidentals credit is a reimbursement program for charges incurred like baggage fees, change fees, in-flight meals, and even airport club membership. Non-ticket purchases classified as airline category by Visa can be submitted for reimbursement within four billing cycles of purchase date.

The terms state the $200 reimbursement is per calendar year. Is there a leverage opportunity here for a person with a July to June cardmember year to get $200 reimbursed by December 31 and another $200 in 2012 during first year of card? This would effectively make the card free for the first year of membership through the airline fees reimbursement feature by itself.

Confirmed Upgrade to Club Level

Confirmed upgrade to Club Level at time of booking for up to 7 nights per stay and up to three stays per card membership year is a high value benefit.

The Ritz-Carlton Club Lounge access rate is typically a $50 to $100 per night surcharge at most hotels. Club Lounge normally provides breakfast, mid-day snacks, afternoon tea, hors d’oeuvres, dessert and complimentary cocktails seven days a week. This can be a significant rebate value on the annual card membership fee even for card members who spend only a few nights a year at Ritz-Carlton Hotels.

$100 Hotel Stay credit on 2-night or longer stays

This credit is valid for dining, spa and hotel incidentals, and not room rate. The credit is not valid when staying on promotional or discount rates.  

Priority Pass Select membership

Priority Pass Select membership offers complimentary airport lounge access to over 600 airport lounges. Note that beginning October 1 there will no longer be access to United Red Carpet Club and Continental Presidents Club lounges. Here is a link to FAQ for Priority Pass Select with the UA/CO update and here is a FlyerTalk thread about Priority Pass Select.

Loyalty Traveler Conclusion

The Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card has a relatively low earn rate at 1 or 2 points per $1 for spend outside of Ritz-Carlton hotels. The lack of 5 points per $1 for all Marriott brand hotels, in my opinion, is a deficiency in earning rate for the card. HHonors Surpass American Express and SPG AmEx offer more points value for non-hotel purchases.

Gold elite status in the Ritz-Carlton Rewards program offers cardmembers added benefits for all Marriott brand hotel stays at the relatively low qualification level of $10,000 per year card spend. Spending $10,000 on the Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card is a far easier route to Gold elite status than staying 50 nights at Marriott brand hotels in a calendar year.

The benefits offered with the card including the airline incidentals $200 rebate per calendar year and the complimentary confirmed Club Level room for up to three stays per card membership year essentially provides a full rebate for the $395 annual card fee for any Ritz-Carlton Rewards member spending 4 nights or more per year at Ritz-Carlton hotels.

Ritz-Carlton Rewards members earn a US$100 Ritz-Carlton gift card after 5 nights or a US$250 Ritz-Carlton gift card after 10 nights at Ritz-Carlton Hotels worldwide during the promotion period between March 15 and June 30, 2011.  Nights are cumulative and do not need to be consecutive nights in a single stay.

Ritz-Carlton Rewards gift card promotion link. No promotion registration is required. You still earn points or miles for Ritz-Carlton stays in addition to the gift card offer.

This offer is only for Ritz-Carlton Rewards members and does not apply to Marriott Rewards members. This is the first Ritz-Carlton Rewards loyalty promotion I recall since the program launched in September 2010.

The following Ritz-Carlton properties are not participating in this global gift card promotion.       

• The Ritz-Carlton Millenia, Singapore,
• Phulay Bay Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Krabi, Thailand
• The Ritz-Carlton Destination Club (time-share program)
• The Ritz-Carlton Residences and Partner Hotels.

This seems like an odd term in the fine print: Offer requires member to be an existing or new member of Ritz-Carlton Rewards as of March 14, 2011.  This reads to me like you must already be a member to be eligible for the gift card, yet the promotion page states, “Not a member? We invite you to enroll now.”

Terms state the gift card will be mailed 4 to 6 weeks after the conclusion of the promotion, so likely late July or August before gift card is received by member. Gift cards are valid at all Ritz-Carlton Hotels worldwide.

Current Hotel Loyalty Promotions and News – updated September 19, 2010

The frequent guest has the choice of many hotel loyalty promotions with little guidance to their relative value. Here is Loyalty Traveler’s summary of current hotel loyalty promotions and limited time rate offers for the frequent guest. Newly added offers since the last September 8 update are marked with an asterisk (*).

The September 15 launch of Ritz-Carlton Rewards hotel loyalty program is a major development from this week. Marriott Rewards members can now earn points and receive elite stay credit and benefits for Ritz-Carlton hotel stays. The cost for single night reward stays has dropped by as much as 33%. The downside is the change in rewards to a 5^th night free program and new reward categories were expanded from two tiers to five tiers. The cost for some 7-night rewards has increased by 20% to 68%. For 20 hotels in Tier 1 the cost of reward nights has decreased.

Hilton HHonors, Goldpoints Plus and Wyndham Rewards are still the only major hotel loyalty programs that have not announced a primary Fall 2010 promotion at this time. Priority Club and Hyatt Gold Passport have the best deals so far for fall hotel stays in my opinion.

Loyalty Traveler ranks the consumer value of hotel loyalty promotions on a Five Key Scale.

Five Keys = one of the best hotel loyalty promotions of the year.

Four Keys = high value rebate on the cost of hotel stays.

Three Keys = good value hotel loyalty promotion or rate offer

Two Keys = a bonus value if you play, but not necessarily worth going out of your way.

One Key = There is limited or no value. You are likely paying more than the bonus value.

Rate discounts and loyalty program bonuses are two types of hotel chain incentives to consider when booking travel. 

Rankings are subjective and subject to change. Your specific travel pattern may result in some promotions ranking more favorably for you. When assigning a key rank I take into consideration the following factors and probably more: 

• The opportunity for significantly high-value return on hotel spend in terms of a future hotel rebate in free nights and discounted hotel nights. 
• Current loyalty program promotions and offers from other hotel chains.
• Past loyalty program offers and rates for the specific hotel chain and loyalty program.
• Current economic conditions in the hotel location and travel industry.

Accor A-Club

*Sweepstakes: A-Club 2^nd Birthday – Enter by September 19 and select the prizes you would like to win. New members to A-Club will receive 1,000 bonus points after first hotel stay by Dec. 19, 2010. 365 prizes including free upper-upscale Sofitel Hotel weekend hotel stays, up to 100,000 points, and $600 in A-Club vouchers are birthday gifts. Drawing is October 22, 1010.

Limited Time Offer: Motel 6 is accepting A-Club $60 vouchers at over 1,000 North America hotels for stays from June 1-October 31.

Best Western Rewards 

3-key promotion – 2,000 bonus points per night at 315 hotels in Southeast U.S. from August 24 – September 26, 2010. This may be earned for up to four nights for 8,000 bonus points. Registration is required.

3-key promotion – 1,250 miles with American Airlines or Air Canada Aeroplan after two stays Sep 12-Nov 21. Earn 750 bonus miles every second stay. There is no cap on the number of times this bonus may be earned, unlike the concurrent promotion for triple points. Registration is required and you need to set your BW account earning preference to miles to see these promotion offers.  LT promotion post (Aug 22)

2-key Promotion – Double or Triple Points, Sep 12 through Nov 21, 2010. Earn triple points (30 points/$1) on your second stay booked through Bestwestern.com. Earn double points if reservation not booked online. This bonus is earned only one time, except elite members also earn triple points on 4^th stay. Promotion code is FALL10 or for AAA BestWestern Preferred members AAAFALL10. Promotion registration required. LT promotion post (Aug 22)

Best Western Rewards Elite Status Match Offer (February 19, 2010)

Program Change for Elites: Elite members earn 250 bonus points for stays in US/Canada or a welcome snack. (Aug 3, 2010)

Carlson Hotels – Goldpoints Plus

* 1,000 bonus American Airlines AAdvantage miles per Radisson Hotel stay between September 15 and November 15, 2010.

Goldpoints Plus program change – elite members earn 2,000 points for online booking. This change doubles the regular 1,000 online booking bonus for goldpoints elite members. (LT post July 18)

Choice Hotels – Choice Privileges

3-key promotion (4-key for platinum and diamond elite members) – Earn 8,000 points for every two stays between August 26 and November 3, 2010 at Choice Hotel brands of Ascend Collection, Cambria Suites, Clarion, Comfort Inn and Comfort Suites, Quality Inn and Sleep Inn.  Promotion may be earned four times for 32,000 points. Choice Privileges Platinum and Diamond Elite members may earn 8,000 points every two stays unlimited times.

Platinum and Diamond elites have the choice of a triple points alternate offer for every stay beginning with second stay.

3-key promotion – Choice Privileges hotel brands of EconoLodge, MainStay Suites, Rodeway Inn and Suburban Extended Stay have a double points promotion for every stay during the same period of August 26-November 3, 2010. These brands normally earn 5 points/$1 so double points = 10 points/$1.

*Nordic Choice Club hotel loyalty program covers 140 Choice hotels in Scandinavia and Baltic regions of Europe. Choice Privileges members currently do not earn points for hotel stays in Scandinavia, although hotel stays are available for points. Nordic Choice Club offers points and benefits for hotels in this region. Choice Privileges members planning frequent travel in Scandinavia may want to compare the benefits of Nordic Choice Club to Choice Privileges.    (LT post Sep 9)

Four Seasons Hotels

* $100 dining/spa credit at six participating California hotels for using Gowalla. Visit three location recommendations from Four Seasons concierge through Gowalla location-based social media site during a stay of two or more nights through November 19 to earn a $100 credit.

Hilton HHonors 

*HHonors Point Stretcher Rewards posted for hotels through December 2010. Point Stretchers require 40% fewer points than standard HHonors rewards. Use the drop-down menu to see participating hotels in different Hilton brands. This is the largest set of hotels I recall in several years offering Point Stretcher discount reward dates. (LT post Sep 9)

*HHonors Comprehensive Reward Charts – Members have difficulty locating the various reward charts on the Hilton HHonors sites, particularly VIP Rewards and Waldorf-Astoria rates. This Loyalty Traveler post puts all the HHonors reward charts in one place.

* Cheaper Hilton Reward nights using Priority Club points – this Loyalty Traveler analysis developed from the Priority Club Anywhere Challenge. Hotels Anywhere allows Priority Club members to spend points for hotels in other chains. My study shows there are numerous Hilton Hotels requiring fewer Priority Club points than Hilton HHonors charges its members in HHonors points for the same reward. (LT post Sep 17)

4-key promotion – up to 10,000 Delta Skymiles Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQM) for stays of two or more nights between September 1 and December 10, 2010.

HHonors Program change: Gold and Diamond members receive complimentary internet at all Hilton Worldwide hotels beginning September 1, 2010. (Hilton – Aug 2 press release)

3-Key promotion Double Points or Double Miles July 7-September 30, 2010. This is the standard promotion for HHonors. There are some good miles opportunities. You must remain with your choice for the duration of the promotion once you select double points or double miles. (July 6)

Hyatt Gold Passport

4-key promotion – ‘Great 10K’ Fall 2010 offer awards 10,000 Gold Passport points for every 5 nights September 15 – December 15, 2010. Nights do not need to be consecutive nights. Stay every night in a Hyatt Hotel and you can earn 180,000 bonus points. Register online beginning September 15 at goldpassport.com/welcome10k. LT post Aug 25. This promotion may be combined with the 3,000 AA miles per stay offer below (60,000 AAdvantage miles).

4-key Promotion – 1,000 bonus miles per night for up to 30,000 bonus miles through September 30, 2010 with a choice of nine airlines. Amtrak, ANA, Japan Airlines, Jet Airways, Lufthansa Miles & More, Southwest, Thai, United, US Airways. Southwest Airlines earns 1 bonus Rapid Rewards credit per night. Bonus miles are in addition to regular 500 miles per hotel stay (or 0.5 Southwest credit). Member must choose miles as earning preference which excludes earning most G bonuses or hotel specific points bonuses.

4-key promotion = 60,000 AAdvantage miles. 2,500 bonus miles per stay with American Airlines AAdvantage through October 15, 2010. This offer may be repeated for up to 20 stays. Bonus miles are in addition to regular 500 miles per stay. 60,000 AAdvantage miles registration link. Loyalty Traveler post July 16.

Program change: Hyatt Gold Passport hotel award categories increased for 25% of hotels as of June 4, 2010. Loyalty traveler post.

InterContinental Hotels Group – Priority Club

5-key promotion – Sweet Dilemma – Free night after two stays or double points/miles for stays between September 20 and December 31, 2010. Registration is required and member must choose to earn free nights or double points/miles. There is a limit of five free nights after ten stays. Free nights stays must be used between December 1, 2010 and May 31, 2011. Asia-Pacific region IHG hotels are not participating in free nights portion of this promotion. A big drawback to the free nights offer is members will not earn any base or elite points for the remainder of 2010, even if the free night offer is maxed out after ten stays. IHG loyalists may prefer double points or miles.

* Contest – Priority Club Anywhere Challenge –  Correctly identify a place from photo and written clues to win 500 to 2,000 Priority Club points each week through October 29. Answer correctly on Tuesday and win 2,000 points, Wednesday 1,500 points; Thursday 1,000 points and Friday 500 points. Answers post on Monday for the previous week’s challenge.

* Cheaper Hilton Reward nights using Priority Club points – this Loyalty Traveler analysis developed from the Anywhere Challenge. Hotels Anywhere allows Priority Club members to spend points for hotels in other chains. My study shows there are numerous Hilton Hotels requiring fewer Priority Club points than Hilton HHonors charges its members in HHonors points. (LT post Sep 17)

5-key offer Priority Club “Crack the Case” individually targeted promotion terms. My Crack the Case offer is a 5-key promotion, however, the best offers appear to be for Priority Club members who did not stay too frequently over the past year. Members who received this promotion have until May 31, 2011 to fulfill the tasks for bonus points. You need to already be a Priority Club member and check your email offer for your own Crack the Case promotion terms.

My offer was 162,000 points for five tasks and a 91,000 points bonus for completing four of the challenges: PC credit card enrollment 60,000 points; stay two Saturdays; stay in two brands, complete a hotel stay profile survey; stay 10 room nights. I can potentially receive 157,000 Priority Club points for just two Saturday hotel nights in two different brands over the next nine months.

5-key offer Priority Club PointBreaks 5,000 points per night awards to October 30 (Aug 2, 2010)

3-key promotion – Sep 1-Dec 30 – Stay two consecutive weekend nights (Fri, Sat or Sun) at an IHG brand hotel in conjunction with a flight and get reimbursed for one roundtrip checked baggage fee up to $50. (Aug 17)

Europe IHG Rate Discount: 2 nights for the price of 1 for hotel stays through September 27, 2010. The InterContinental Budapest was available for $83 per night when I first posted this offer. These rates are prepaid and nonrefundable, but there are some fantastic savings if you want to prepay your hotel stay. (May 25)

3-key promotion 1,000 Points for Android Application Bookings to September 30.                  (LT post July 17)

2-key promotion: Ambassador members receive 25,000 points for a two-night stay at participating InterContinental Hotels (June 1-September 30). Unfortunately most hotels are asking a significantly higher rate ($50 to $100 per night over lowest available) for this offer. Bonus may be earned three times for 75,000 points.  (May 11)

IHG Friend & Family Hotel Rates (through Dec 26, 2009)

Program Change: Ambassador Annual Membership Fee Increased from $150 to $200 as of July 1, 2010. You can also buy Ambassador membership for 32,000 Priority Club Rewards points (formerly 24,000).

Joie de Vivre Hotels – Joy of Life Club

3-key promotion - Earn both Virgin America Elevate points and Joy of Life points for the remainder of 2010. LT post July 22.

Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) – Leaders Club Rewards 

3-key promotion – Earn 1 free night after every 5 hotel stays in 2010. Must stay in at least two different hotels. Bellagio in Las Vegas is LHW member. (April 13, 2010)

Marriott Rewards

*Program change – Free internet worldwide for Gold and Platinum Marriott Rewards members beginning January 2011. This expands the complimentary internet benefit offered to elites for hotel stays in the Americas since May 2010.

3-key promotion – Marriott Triple Airline Miles October 1-December 31, 2010. You need to set your Marriott Rewards earning preference to miles to register for this promotion. Marriott Rewards has 30 airline partners and miles are earned at the rate of 2 miles/$1 for full-service Marriott brands (3x miles = 6 miles/$1) and 1 mile per $1 for other Marriott brands (3x miles = 3 miles/$1). The Triple Miles promotion has just five participating airlines: Air Canada, Continental, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Jet Airways. Loyalty Traveler post Aug 26.

Marriott Sweepstakes – Win 7 nights at JW Marriott and a 7-night Caribbean cruise. Online entry required at CrusiesOnly.com between September 1 and October 31, 2010. The hotel stay and cruise may be done in separate trips. The cruise is a balcony stateroom on Norwegian Epic. Prizes expire Nov 30, 2011 if not used by then. (Sep 2)

4-key promotion – Marriott MegaBonus (Sep 15-Jan 15, 2011) various targeted offers with the basic offer being one free night after two stays paid with Visa. Limit of two free nights during promotion. Free night valid only for Category 1 to category 4 hotels.

Active Marriott Rewards members may receive bonus points offers based on total nights stayed or 5,000 points for every two stays. There are several variations mentioned for 25,000 to 50,000 bonus points. 

1-Key offer – Marriott Rewards Instant Redemption Awards (March 24, 2010)

Ritz-Carlton Rewards

* 5-key promotion – New members to Ritz-Carlton Rewards earn one free night for two stays through December 31, 2010. Limit of two free nights after four stays. You are not eligible for this offer if you are a current or past member of Marriott Rewards. I provided a guide to how new members can get $2,500 in Ritz-Carlton Hotel rooms for under $1,000. (LT post Sep 18)

* Ritz-Carlton Rewards loyalty program launching Sep 15 (LT post Sep 14)

* Reward Changes in new Ritz-Carlton Reward Tiers (LT post Sep 15)

* Ritz-Carlton rewards Hotel + Air Packages Analysis (LT post Sep 16)

Starwood Preferred Guest

* Sweepstakes – Westin Hotels “Travel and Be Well” sweepstakes. Enter between September 15-October 15 with a pledge to take a vacation. 200 prizes of 48,000 points, enough for a five night Category 5 Westin Hotel reward will be chosen October 18. (LT post Sep 15)

* SPG Platinum members only – register for an extra Starpoint during stays from October 1-December 31. Platinum members will receive two elite bonus points for every $1 in hotel spend for stays completed after requalification for 2011 Platinum status (25 stays or 50 nights in 2010). (LT post Sep 16)

2-key promotion – Every Night Counts Double/Triple Points for stays from Sep 8-Dec 15, 2010. Earn double points beginning with your first night and triple points (applied retroactively) after10 nights during the promotion period. Registration is required by October 31, 2010. The FAQ state this promotion is combinable with other SPG promotions.

There are over 150 hotels globally not participating in this promotion, so check the list carefully. The list of non-participating Starwood properties are posted on FlyerTalk.

Every Night Counts does not thrill me as the primary Fall 2010 SPG promotional offer.  Spend $2,000 on 10 or more nights during the promotion and you will only earn 8,000 bonus points with triple points. That is nothing to get too excited about.

4-key promotion – Earn 10,000 bonus points at Starwood Resorts for a stay of four or more nights between Sep 1 and Dec 19, 2010 at any of 131 participating resorts globally. This bonus may be earned multiple times. Only stays after promotion registration are eligible for bonus. Register by Sep 30. 

SPG Blackberry app Sweepstakes – Win 100,000 points by downloading SPG Blackberry app between August 1-September 30, 2010. Two winners will be chosen from entries October 15.

Limited Time Rate offer – 20% Discount with MasterCard payment at over 60 Starwood Hotels in Latin America. Reservations must be made by September 30, 2010 for hotel stays through December 15, 2010. This rate plan also includes a welcome amenity and a kids eat free offer. This may be the lowest rate at some hotels, however, check other rate plans for better deals. Loyalty Traveler rate analysis (August 31).

Starwood Preferred Guest – American Express credit card changes effective October 14, 2010. The annual fee is increasing to $65 from $45 for renewals beginning Oct 14. Benefit changes include 5 elite nights credit each year. This will have no effect for members who qualify on stays. The SPG50 certificate will be discontinued in favor of a 3^rd night free offer at Sheraton Hotels. Loyalty traveler post (August 24)

4-Key Promotion – (through Sep 30) Earn a free night at any Aloft or Element Hotel after three stays at an Aloft or Element brand hotel by September 30, 2010. (Aug 10, 2010)

4-Key Promotion – (through Dec 30) 3,000 Bonus Points for Sunday night stay at 11 NYC area Starwood Hotels through December 30. (Aug 13, 2010)

3-Key Promotion – (through Dec 31) 3^rd Night Free or Two Free nights on six-night stay in Europe, Africa, and Middle East when paying with MasterCard

SPG program change: Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards is new airline partner. Exchange rate for points-to-miles transfer is 1,500 Starpoints = 1 Rapid Rewards credit. Free roundtrip flight requires 16 credits. SPG members may also earn 0.5 credits per stay through SPG Airline Direct Deposit. (August 19, 2010)

SPG Southwest Airlines Bonus – Four Points hotel stays earn double Southwest Rapid Rewards credit through September 30 (1 credit per stay instead of regular 0.5 credit).

Starwood and Harrah’s Total Rewards double dip opportunity:  For the remainder of 2010 members of Harrah’s Total Points may earn both Harrah’s points and Starpoints for Starwood Hotel stays. (Aug 6, 2010)

4-Key Promotion – SPG Rewarding Returns offers members a choice after 5 stays by December 31, 2010. Promotion choices are 25% off an award up to five nights at any category 1 to 5 hotel for redemption by July 31, 2011. Discount may be combined with “5th night free award”. Other choices are $50 hotel credit certificate or 4,000 Starpoints. Loyalty Traveler post July 14.

There are variations of this offer including only requiring one stay by August 31 for targeted members. Points offer ranges from 2,000 to 8,000 points, and some members may have a free night choice. Offers are targeted.

Promotion registration is required at https://www.spgpromos.com/rewardingreturns/index.cfm.

3-key promotion SPG link: Pay Your Birthyear Rate (This promotion can be an incredible savings or no savings depending on the hotel and your birthyear.) LT post 4/28/2009

3-key discount rates Starwood Hotel Rate Discount Codes for Multiple Night Stays

These offers are for rate discounts on stays of 2 to 6 nights. Third night free tends to be one of the best discount rates. Important to check other rates (AAA, Senior, Special Offers) as these discounts are generally based on the Best Available Rate (BAR) and may not be the lowest overall rate for some hotels. 

Starpoints Airline Direct Deposit is Better for United, Continental, and Singapore miles (March 25, 2010)

Wyndham Rewards

4-Key promotion: Earn up to 25,000 American AAdvantage miles after 9 stays from April 30 to September 30, 2010. Wyndham, Wingate, and Hawthorn Suites brands only. Earn 3,000 bonus miles after 3 stays. Earn 7,500 miles bonus after 6 stays. Earn 10,000 bonus miles after 9 stays. Combined with the normal 500 miles per stay, you can earn 25,000 AAdvantage miles after 9 stays. (June 15, 2010)

Airline-Hotel Partner Bonuses:

American Airlines 

Earn up to 10,000 AAdvantage bonus miles for ten hotel stays between September 1 and November 15, 2010. Earn 3,000 AAdvantage miles after three hotel stays and 1,000 bonus miles for each additional stay up to ten stays during promotion period. This offer is combinable with Hyatt 60K offer (ends 10/15/10), Wyndham 25K offer (ends 9/30/10), and Fairmont double miles offer (ends 11/15/10).

Loyalty Traveler Research Articles

Hotel Loyalty Credit Cards and the Value of Hotel Points

Hotel Rewards Credit Cards Comparison of Benefits (September 1) 

Hotel Credit Cards Comparison by Value of Points (September 2) 

Hotel Credit Card Comparison using NerdWallet.com Value of Points (Sep 5) 

Loyalty Traveler’s Three Rules for the Value of Hotel Points (Sep 7)

Hotel Points to Airline Miles Conversion Tables

Hotel Points-to-Miles Conversion Tables for 9 hotel programs and 7 U.S. airlines (March 30, 2010)

Hotel Market Segments and Hotel Brand Profiles based on JD Power 2010 North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study

Overview JD Power 2010 North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Study (Aug 10)

Loyalty Traveler comments on JD Power Luxury Segment and luxury hotel brands  (Aug 11, 2010)

Loyalty Traveler comments on JD Power Upscale Segment Hotel Brands (Aug 11)

Loyalty Traveler Comments on JD Power 2010 Midscale Full Service Brand Ratings (Aug 13, 2010)

Loyalty Traveler comments on JD Power 2010 Midscale Limited Service Brands (August 15, 2010)

Loyalty Traveler comments on JD Power 2010 Economy/Budget Hotel Brand Ratings (August 16, 2010)

Comments on JD Power 2010 Extended Stay Hotel Satisfaction Index (Aug 17)

Hotel Rates Survey for USA States, Cities, and Average Hotel Rates Worldwide

* Hotels.com 2010-Q2 – Global Hotel Price Index – This is a great resource for finding where hotel rates are high and low around the world. There are tables of USA average hotel rates by state and major cities. (Sep 14)

Ritz-Carlton Rewards loyalty program launch has a valuable offer through the end of 2010. New members to Ritz-Carlton Rewards will earn a free night after two Ritz-Carlton stays completed by December 31, 2010. There is a limit of two free nights after four stays. The free night certificate is valid for one year from issuance.

There are about 70 Ritz-Carlton hotels participating in the new Ritz-Carlton Rewards hotel loyalty program. New members to Ritz-Carlton Rewards will receive a free night at any Tier 1, Tier 2 or Tier 3 Ritz-Carlton hotel after two stays. You have one year from date of issuance to use your free night.

The primary impediment to this offer is you must never have been a Marriott Rewards member to qualify for the free nights offer (see item#3 in this Marriott Concierge Sep 17 FlyerTalk post). That knocks out about 33 million of us loyalty travelers. So while this is not an offer I can personally use, there are people close to me who have the opportunity for some luxury travel on the cheap.

My parents do not belong to Marriott Rewards. One of my sisters does not belong to Marriott Rewards. And I have a whole lot of readers who do not belong to Marriott Rewards.

Finding cheap Ritz-Carlton Hotel Rates

Not all of us can take advantage of flying to Asia for stays at the Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur where starting room rates are regularly under $150 per night.

Searching the Ritz-Carlton website for cheap dates can waste hours of your time.

Here is a step-by-step shortcut guide for finding low rate dates at Ritz-Carlton Hotels or other hotel brands using Travelocity.com/hotels flexible dates function.

• Open the webpage showing all Ritz-Carlton Hotels. Find the location of a hotel you want to rate check.
• Open a separate window for Travelocity.com/Hotels

Travelocity Hotels Flexible Date Search Tutorial-1

• Search the location of the selected Ritz-Carlton Hotel on Travelocity.com.
• For example, search Atlanta, Georgia, October 15, 2010.

Travelocity Hotel Flexible Dates Tutorial-2

• Travelocity.com will return a list of hotels in Atlanta, Georgia for your date.
• Sort the hotels by “Star Rating”. The default mode is “Travelocity Picks”. Use the drop-down menu to select Star Rating. Since Ritz-Carlton hotels are 5-star hotels the list will bring up Ritz-Carlton Hotels in the area.

Travelocity Hotel Flexible Dates tutorial-3

•  Click on the “Select Hotel” button on Travelocity.com under the rate for the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

Travelocity Hotel Flexible Dates tutorial-4

• Click the tab for “Flexible Dates” on the Travelocity.com hotel page.

Travelocity Hotel Flexible Dates tutorial-5

• Flexible dates shows rates on a 90-day calendar for the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The nice aspect of Hotel Best Rate Guarantees is the rate shown on Travelocity.com will indicate the low rate dates for the next three months. The rate shown on Travelocity.com should be the ceiling. The calendars indicate lowest rate dates and then you can narrow your searches on the Ritz-Carlton website to these dates and look for even lower rates or high value package deals during these low rate dates indicated by Travelocity Flexible Dates search results.

Low Rate Ritz-Carlton Hotels

In the Washington, D.C. area you can try the Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner where published rates are regularly $179 for weekends during this promotion period and drop to $159 in December.

Atlanta area travelers have a great opportunity for relatively cheap weekend rates and two Ritz-Carlton hotels. Ritz-Carlton Atlanta is $179 for Friday and Saturday weekend nights in October and November. Ritz-Carlton Buckhead Atlanta is regularly $219 on Fridays and Saturdays. And these are just the lowest published rates in default searches. AAA, senior, or special offer rates may even be lower.

Ritz-Carlton Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Georgia has cheaper rates on weekdays, dropping as low as $199 per night in October and November.

Ritz-Carlton Phoenix has $199 per night rates through Thanksgiving week and Ritz-Carlton Dove Mountain near Tucson drops to $259 per night during that week. Pick up some sunshine and late autumn warmth with a couple of stays and earn a free night certificate during the Thanksgiving holiday week.

Ritz-Carlton Westchester, New York drops to $259 per night during Thanksgiving week. Compare that to Ritz-Carlton New York Central Park where the lowest published rate is $995 per night during the holiday week. Ritz-Carlton New York Battery Park has a rate of $325 for tonight, September 18. Rates are as low as $345 on weekends and $395 per night during Thanksgiving week. The average weekday rate at Ritz-Carlton New York Battery Park is about $575 after tax. This hotel is a Tier 3 Ritz-Carlton reward and your free night certificate will have good redemption value at this particular hotel in 2011. New York Central Park is a Tier 5 hotel and is not eligible for the free night certificate which is restricted to Tier 3 or lower properties. New York hotel rates are the fastest rising in the U.S.

California has six Ritz-Carlton Hotels, but you will have a difficult time finding rates under $300 per night, unless you can frequent Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe in November before ski season begins and $199 nightly rates are common.

I have shown you some places where you can stay at a Ritz-Carlton Hotel for around $200 per night. Two one-night stays for under $500 will earn a free night certificate.

** The difference between a hotel stay and a hotel night.**

A hotel stay is one or more consecutive hotel nights at the same hotel, regardless if guest checks out and back in on different reservations. This promotion requires two stays.

In a place like Atlanta you could stay Friday night at the RC Atlanta and Saturday night at the RC Buckhead and that will earn one free night certificate. This type of hotel hop also works for Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner and Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City in the D.C. area where both these hotels have relatively low weekend rates for a Ritz-Carlton.

In Lake Tahoe you could stay Monday night at the Ritz-Carlton, go to the Hyatt Regency or some other hotel in the area on Tuesday and return to the Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe for Wednesday night. That would qualify for a free night certificate with two separate stays.

High-Priced Ritz-Carlton Hotels for free night redemption

I already mentioned Ritz-Carlton New York Battery Park as a place for a $575 free night opportunity.

Here are some other high-priced Ritz-Carlton Tier 3 hotels for your free night. Tier 3 hotels are normally 50,000 points per night so the promotional value of this new member enrollment is between 60,000 points and 100,000 points if you earn and redeem two free nights after four stays in 2010.

Ritz-Carlton Washington, D.C. in April 2011 during cherry blossom season is an example of a high-priced Tier 3 Ritz-Carlton reward redemption. Two free nights at this hotel prices out at $1,555.

Ritz-Carlton Washington DC rates

I have shown how you can stay 4 hotel nights at Ritz-Carlton for around $900 to $1,000 all in. Earn two free nights and you can potentially save over $1,500 on a future Ritz-Carlton stay in some place like Washington, D.C., New York City, Florida or California.

Ritz-Carlton has a 5-key loyalty traveler promotion with this offer.

The new Ritz-Carlton Rewards Travel Packages have some built-in convenience fees. The Hotel + Air Travel Package has several reward options, each for 7 hotel nights plus 35,000 to 120,000 airline miles, depending on airline and reward level. These Ritz-Carlton Travel Package rewards, often called one of the best value rewards in hotel programs for the similar Marriott Rewards Travel Package, are actually more expensive for hotel nights and miles at the lowest miles level than  redeeming points in separate transactions for a hotel stay and a points-to-miles exchange.

The problem with the Ritz-Carlton Travel Packages is Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 hotels are lumped together in the same reward price. Marriott Rewards does this for category 1-5 hotels, but maintains separate reward levels for category 6, 7, and 8 hotels.

A Tier 1 Ritz-Carlton hotel is only 30,000 points per night or 180,000 points for seven nights. A Tier 3 hotel is 50,000 points per night or 300,000 points for a 7 night reward stay. There is a 120,000 points difference in the cost of a seven night hotel stay at a Tier 1 versus a Tier 3 hotel, yet the 7-night package cost is the same for these two different tier hotels.

The way I view Marriott’s Travel Packages is the full cost of the hotel is charged for the reward, but the air miles are effectively 1 point = 1 mile. The best exchange rate available in a Marriott/Ritz-Carlton Rewards points-to-miles exchange is 2.5 points = 1 mile when redeeming 125,000 points for 50,000 miles.

• Ritz-Carlton Hotels in Tier 1 are 30,000 points per night with the option for a 5^th night free reward.
• 5 nights at a Tier 1 Ritz-Carlton cost 120,000 points. 7 nights are 180,000 points.
• Points-to-Miles Exchange for 50,000 United Airlines Mileage Plus miles = 125,000 points.

In separate transactions a seven night stay at a Tier 1 Ritz-Carlton Hotel and 50,000 United miles only cost 305,000 points, yet the Hotel + Air Travel package for 7 nights + 50,000 miles charges you 350,000 points. This is a 15% higher rate for the same items.

This Marriott deal reminds me of when I went to a bagel bakery and the sandwich on the menu was more expensive than buying the bagel and paying for each item separately as a bagel addition. When I pointed this out to the salesclerk, he said, “But the one on the menu is a sandwich.”

So, I guess Marriott Rewards and Ritz-Carlton Rewards feel there is something about the Travel Package menu that warrants a higher cost for a Tier 1 hotel stay + 50,000 miles.

My advice is just order these rewards separately unless going for a Tier 2 or higher hotel.

Points Saved with a Ritz-Carlton Hotel + Air Travel Package for 50,000 miles

Hotel + Air Travel Packages increase in value for rewards with more miles

There is no savings redeeming a Ritz-Carlton Hotel + Air Travel Package at a Tier 1 hotel for 50,000 miles. There is a slight savings of 15,000 points when redeeming a Ritz-Carlton Travel Package for 50,000 miles at a Tier 2 or Tier 4 hotel. The big savings occur when using the Travel Package at a Tier 3 or Tier 5 hotel.

Savings increase as you go to Travel Packages including more than 50,000 miles. Additional miles above 50,000 miles are given at the rate of 1 point = 1 mile, so the package with 120,000 miles is only 70,000 points more than the points needed for a 50,000 mile Hotel + Air Package.

Again, the best exchange rate available with Marriott/Ritz-Carlton Rewards points-to-miles exchange is 2.5 points = 1 mile when redeeming 125,000 points for 50,000 miles.

The real value behind redeeming points for a Hotel + Air Travel Package reward is the points-to-miles 1:1 exchange rate.

Redeeming points for anything other than a Tier 3 or Tier 5 hotel will give less than 1 point = 1 mile exchange rate in the Ritz-Carlton Travel Package. You might want to look at redeeming for a Marriott Category 7 or Category 8 Travel Package for a better deal.

The good news for Marriott Rewards members is the one-night rate has gone down for all but three Ritz-Carlton hotels. The bad news is the new Ritz-Carlton hotel reward tiers have increased the cost for the majority of hotel rewards on multiple night stays compared to the old Ritz-Carlton hotel partner rewards available through Marriott Rewards.

Ritz Carlton Hotel rewards changed to a five tier system of hotels today.

Yesterday, before the changes, the partner hotel rewards for Ritz-Carlton Hotels only used two tiers. Hotels formerly in Tier 1 are now in the new Tiers 1 and 2 with the exception of Ritz Carlton Sanya China, a beach resort and Abama Golf & Spa Resort in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain both going from Tier 1 in the old chart to Tier 3 in the new rewards chart. Seven night stays at these two hotels have increased by 71% in points cost.

Award cost changes for two hotels in Spain rising from old Tier 1 to new Tier 3.

The good news is the cost of hotels in the new Tier 1 have dropped for reward stays of one to six nights. The bad news is the hotels in the new Tier 2 have gone up in cost for any stay longer than one night.

Ritz-Carlton Hotels formerly in Tier 2 yesterday are now redistributed in the new Tiers 3, 4, and 5. The good news is hotels in the old Tier 2 Marriott Rewards now in the new Ritz-Carlton Rewards Tier 3 have only increased in cost for 7-night stays compared to the former reward cost.

There are also at least 5 hotels that were Tier 2 in the old rewards chart and are now in Tier 1 or Tier 2 in the new rewards. You will find much cheaper rewards now for Ritz Carlton Doha, Qatar and RC Shenzhen, China in the new Tier 1.

Ritz Carlton Bahrain, Ritz Carlton Istanbul and Ritz Carlton Osaka in the new Tier 2 were in the old tier 2.

The Tier 1 and Tier 3 hotels are the best points deals in this new system compared to the old rewards.

Here is the list of current tiers for Ritz-Carlton Hotels from the Marriott Rewards site. I added the former Tier 1 or Tier 2 designation in parentheses next to each hotel. Unfortunately I did not copy the old Ritz Carlton Hotels tier list yesterday, so I am working off a list from six months ago. If anyone has a recent copy of the Tier 1 and Tier 2 Ritz-Carlton hotels before the changes, please send me a copy. The old tiers information is now gone from the Marriott Rewards site.

Ritz Carlton Hotel Reward Tiers

Tier 1    30,000 points per night  (20 hotels)

• The Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead , Atlanta, Georgia (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Atlanta (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Beijing, Financial Street (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Beijing (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Guangzhou, China (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Cleveland (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Doha, Qatar (2)
• Sharq Village & Spa , Doha, Qatar (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, Pacific Place , Indonesia (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Jakarta, Indonesia(1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Kuala Lumpur , Malaysia(1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Phoenix (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Seoul (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt(1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Shenzhen, China (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City, Arlington, Virginia (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, Virginia (1)

Tier 2   40,000 points per night  (26 hotels)

• The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles (?)
• Hotel Villa Padierna, Marbella, Spain (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Lodge, Reynolds Plantation, Georgia (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Bahrain Hotel & Spa (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Berlin (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun, Mexico (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Denver (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Powerscourt, County Wicklow, Ireland (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Istanbul (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Marina Del Rey (1)
• Penha Longa Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort, Portugal (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort, Rose Hall Jamaica (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Coconut Grove, Miami (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, New Orleans  (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Westchester, New York (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Osaka (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Philadelphia (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, Florida (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Santiago, Chile (1)
• The Portman Ritz-Carlton, Shanghai, China (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota, Florida  (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona (?)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Wolfsburg, Germany (1)

Tier 3   50,000 points per night  (18 hotels)

• The Ritz-Carlton, Boston Common (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Key Biscayne (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Moscow (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton Highlands, Lake Tahoe (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Naples , Florida (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, San Juan , Puerto Rico(2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel , California(2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Sanya, China (1)
• Abama Golf & Spa Resort , Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain (1)
• The Ritz-Carlton Georgetown, Washington D.C.  (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Washington D.C.  (2)

Tier 4    60,000 points per night  (7 hotels)

• Hotel Arts Barcelona (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman (2)
• Phulay Bay, A Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Thailand (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach , Miami(2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo (2)
• The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch, Colorado (2)

Tier 5    70,000 points per night  (1 hotel)

• The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park (2) 

How long do you think the Ritz-Carlton New York Central Park will remain the lone hotel in Tier 5? 

Here is the complete list of Ritz-Carlton Hotels globally and organized by geographic region, including hotels that are not participating in Ritz Carlton Rewards.

Below are tables showing the impact of the new Ritz-Carlton Hotel reward tiers today compared to the former Marriott Rewards partner hotel rewards for Ritz-Carlton discontinued on September 14, 2010.

Points Effect for New Ritz Carlton Hotel Stay Rewards

Links: Ritz Carlton Rewards new tiers and points cost for reward stays.

PointSavers for Ritz-Carlton reward stays reduce the nightly cost by 10,000 points per night and are eligible for 5th night free reward stays.

Ritz-Carlton Hotels partner hotel rewards old chart (discontinued September 14, 2010) provided lower per night point rates for longer stays:

Loyalty Traveler related post: Ritz Carlton Rewards Loyalty Program Launching Sep 15 

Barbara De Lollis,  Hotel Check-In, USA Today Sep 13, 2010 Marriott Customers can now earn Ritz-Carlton points for free stays, experiences