Anytime, let me know.

I think Marriott is still in the “lets not pissoff too much the SPG members” phase and it is going to get much uglier in 2019.

Yeah, I know, AMEX is being taken to the cleaners again…something is wrong in management #rotten

I call this “A huge devaluation in disguise”. 33% on SPG points earned with CC, which is the main way how you gain these points. Higher categories Marriott hotels, currently 45000 MR points will not map to the same level of points, but one of the highest new levels (60000 points or higher). This is an educated guess. The combination of both devaluations is going to be a killer.
AMEX is a loser in this transaction. Business owners the put all the spent in the SPG business card will look for other cards. I don’t understand how after the Costco fiasco, AMEX let this happen.

I always felt Hilton hotels were happy to see me there and SPG/Marriotts always made me feel I should be happy I am privileged to stay in their properties. I don’t know what it is. I have good record in Hilton upgrades. But maybe my expectations are lower so when it happens it makes me feel really good. This game is really set about…expectations. Like my latest Kimpton stay…I expected the moon and got coal!

I am very interested how to move on from hotels with vacation rentals, etc. Maybe it is where the hotel loyalty game goes…Time always tells.

I agree with pretty much everything you wrote.

Expecting the worst and hoping for the best.

Looking at the guys running Marriott, I am sorry, I always expect the worst…

1. A press embargo is not a thing to mess with if you want to keep getting insider news invitations to events. I wasn’t wined and dined by Marriott because I’m not important (#sadface), but when it happens, I do comply with the requests.

2. Not sure when you say it’s easy to get upgrade to suites with Hilton. I was Diamond for a year and stayed at HH a few times — never an upgrade to a suite, unless I paid for it (in BKK). If anything, I did get a few suite upgrades as a Gold with Marriott, CC, and even SPG (in Lima).

3. I’ve found myself staying in Vacation Rentals more and more, but don’t just stick with Airbnb. Being a free agent means checking more options. I’ve found that the same exact properties can be cheaper at Airbnb, Homeaway, or Booking.com. The prices are all over the place, so do your research.

Another thing that everyone seems all optimistic about that I don’t see happening (or it will be very short lived):
Placement of Starwood properties in the lower categories. I think you have to add about one to the category of former Starwoods that all the bloggers are predicting.

All of a sudden everyone is all excited about the free Marriott night with the CC. While I agree there might be a couple new nice options with Starwoods, people seem to be forgetting how hard to get decent value out of those it had become with Marriott inflating the levels of hotels. Yeah, you can get your suburban/interstate Courtyard for the $89 fee instead of regular $135. Yawn. They inflated/devalued the really good places long ago. I’ve tried, but never could really justify keeping the Marriott cards more than a year and I don’t see that really changing much.

I have enjoyed the private room in hostels. I also thinking exposure and liability. If someone stays in an illegal Airbnb (like in one of my units) fall and get hurt. If they sue me, I don’t want to take the chance of not being covered due to it now being a commercial establishment not a private home. Like with the Game we play everyone has to decide their tolerance level.

Interesting on your Airbnb stance. My kid and his friends do not look at hotels at all these days, hostels and Airbnbs only!

I love feta cheese #fortherecord 🙂

It is shocking that Alaska has not followed the big boys in their big devaluation mode yet!

Amex card – lead baloon.

That’s exactly where I’m at. Even if Alaska devalues their award chart, I’m worried that Marriott will do more damage when they get rid of everything that credits 120k vs 85k in the packages.