I was talking with John the other day when we compared pricing for a few hotels in Thailand where we had ample redemption opportunity in the past, but now it simply doesn’t make sense anymore to use points or certificates.
For example, in Bangkok, where the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit and St. Regis were always a great option to burn a certificate worth 35,000 points – not anymore!
The prices have now gone up to 59,000 points for the St. Regis or 50,000 for the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit.
Hong Kong is another example where I liked to burn my 35k certs at the Renaissance or Sheraton Hotels & Towers, but that has also become a nightmare as far as pricing is concerned:
This is really a huge concern because not only have prices gone up to the point where it makes almost no sense to use points anymore if you compare the revenue price vs the points booking rate, but it also makes it almost impossible to use these free night certificates for an appropriate hotel. Sure, there is the option of supplementing up to 15,000 points per certificate, but is it really worth it? The only worthwhile certificate is now the 85k one from the Bonvoy Brilliant card. Those SPG veterans of us can still remember the often very attractive rates the program offered for award stays. Of course, that’s a long-gone era, but I can’t help but be reminiscent of the past sometimes.
Marriott Rewards has increased the points requirements for awards so much in the last 18 months that it’s almost suicidal for a member to use points for hotel rooms at desirable hotels. It is very rarely a good deal to be found these days, though I was lucky to use 128k in September for five nights at the RYSE in Seoul. Most of the time, I now pay more my Marriott points to an airline program of my choice (especially ANA) and book award flights as I feel the value is still there for some (not all) mileage conversions. It the property level, I’m still being treated quite well as Titanium, but it gets harder and harder to see real value in the program. This should be a concern to both customers but also Marriott itself.
Conclusion
It has been very difficult in the year and a half to find Marriott properties of desirable status that haven’t been increased massively in points requirement. Major cities have gone up in price, and my two examples of Hong Kong and Bangkok are just minor scratches on the surface. I find that especially alarming as it largely devalues the free night certificates of both 35k and 40k value that members oftentimes have on hand, either through credit cards or requalification selections. Have you had any decent and worthwhile redemptions for nice hotels recently?
