“All about” posts take an in-depth look into various topics. See all of them here. Have a topic you want to read more about? Sound off in the comments!
Related Marriott Travel Packages posts:
- All About Marriott’s Lucrative Miles+Nights Travel Packages; The Best Way To Spend Your Starpoints.
- Guesstimating Where Marriott Travel Packages Will Work In August; Take Advantage Of Marriott’s Lucrative Miles+Nights Packages Now!
- Marriott Will Massively Devalue New Miles+Nights Travel Packages In August; Comparing The Value Of The Current Packages To The New Packages
This is a highly technical, advanced level post, but in it I will show you how it’s possible to get crazy value out of Marriott’s current travel packages. Be sure to first read this all about post about how to redeem points for these travel packages. Then try reading through this post a few times and finally, ask questions in the comments and I’ll try to answer them.
In August, Marriott will massively devalue their lucrative miles+nights travel packages. That was one of the predictions I made in April, but it still stings bigly.
Currently the 7 night hotel certificates expire after a year, but Marriott is happy to extend them for another year just for the asking. That means you don’t need to have current travel plans to book these packages as you can always book the hotel later on.
Clearly it’s worth taking advantage of the current packages now, but which one should you buy?
Marriott still hasn’t announced what will happen to people who have 7 night certificates from the existing packages that are still for sale. Perhaps they don’t want to announce something and either have lots of angry customers or have lots of people rushing to redeem for an overly lucrative award. Marriott’s stated objective with this merger is to keep customers whole and do right by them, so I don’t think they’re just going to toss 45K points to everyone with an unused certificate and say too bad.
I took a stab at figuring out what would happen with them back in April based on the old certificates being valid for specific categories.
But now I’m inclined to change my guess based on this post by Starwood’s official representative to Flyertalk:
A Chase Marriott category 1-5 certificate is currently valid at properties that cost up to 25K Marriott points. Under the new award chart, properties in category 4 will cost 25K points. So the category will change, but the actual points value will not.
Here is a comparison chart that I put together. All prices here are in Marriott points as I have tripled the prices in the Starwood award chart to help make things a little easier to compare.
| Previous Starwood Chart | Previous Previous Marriott Chart | August 2018 Combined Chart | February 2019 Combined Chart | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category 1 | 6,000 (Weekends) 9,000 (Weekdays) | 7,500 | 7,500 | 5,000 off-peak 7,500 standard 10,000 peak |
| Category 2 | 9,000 (Weekends) 12,000 (Weekdays) | 10,000 | 12,500 | 10,000 off-peak 12,500 standard 15,000 peak |
| Category 3 | 21,000 | 15,000 | 17,500 | 15,000 off-peak 17,500 standard 20,000 peak |
| Category 4 | 30,000 | 20,000 | 25,000 | 20,000 off-peak 25,000 standard 30,000 peak |
| Category 5 | 36,000 off-peak 48,000 peak | 25,000 | 35,000 | 30,000 off-peak 35,000 standard 40,000 peak |
| Category 6 | 60,000 off-peak 75,000 peak | 30,000 | 50,000 | 40,000 off-peak 50,000 standard 60,000 peak |
| Category 7 | 90,000 off-peak 105,000 peak | 35,000 | 60,000 | 50,000 off-peak 60,000 standard 70,000 peak |
| Category 8 | - | 40,000 | - | 70,000 off-peak 85,000 standard 100,000 peak |
| Category 9 | - | 45,000 | - | - |
| Ritz Tier 1 | - | 30,000 | - | - |
| Ritz Tier 2 | - | 40,000 | - | - |
| Ritz Tier 3 | - | 50,000 | - | - |
| Ritz Tier 4 | - | 60,000 | - | - |
| Ritz Tier 5 | - | 70,000 | - | - |
Here are Marriott’s top miles+nights travel packages for 7 nights in a hotel and United miles. With these you can get up to 132K miles and it’s always worth getting the 132K miles package if you can afford it. Prices are in Marriott points (divide by 3 for the price in Starpoints):
Previously, I tried to figure out which new category each old category would map to.
But there are lots of other possibilities. Marriott may simply refund a certain amount of points for outstanding certificates that aren’t attached to a reservation.
Or they may assign a points value for each certificate. If you purchase a 7 night category 1-5 package for 270K Marriott points (90K Starpoints) now you can redeem for 7 nights in Marriott hotels that cost up to 25K points per night. Thanks to the 5th night being free, the total value of that certificate is 150K points (instead of 175K points) and you also get 132K United miles or 120K miles with Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, British Airways, Copa Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, GOL/Varig, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia Airlines, Southwest, or Virgin Atlantic.
If you use 270K Marriott points for the travel package and value the 7 nights at the full 150,000 Marriott rate that it would cost to book them, that means you are using 120K additional Marriott points for 132K United miles, so you are getting 1.1 United miles per Marriott point redeemed. That’s equal to receiving 3.3 United miles per Starpoint redeemed. Those are a great value.
If you just transfer points to United without a travel package you’ll need 56,000 Marriott points to get 25,000 United miles. That’s just 0.45 United miles per Marriott points redeemed. In August it may require 60,000 Marriott points to get 25,000 United miles, or 0.42 United miles per Marriott points redeemed.
Under the new travel packages, the maximum value will be 0.61 United miles per Marriott point redeemed.
But depending on what Marriott decides to do with 7 night certificates from the current travel packages, the value can be significantly greater.
Let’s assume that rather than assigning a valid category in August (as I did in April), that Marriott will assign a max points value per night. I think that it’s likely for many categories, the current certificates will be worth the same number of points per night in August as they are today. A category 1-5 certificate will be valid for hotels that cost up to 25K points per night, just as they are today. As the 5th night of an award is free, that means the total value would remain 150K points.
In the chart below I’ll plot out scenarios for what each level of current certificates could be worth in August, should Marriott assign a points value to each certificate. See the commentary below the chart for more explanation about what is going on here.
| Current Travel Package Certificate and cost | (Scenario 1) Current hotel value per night and guesstimated worst case in new program | Comparable level in new program | (Scenario 2) Potential better case in new program | Comparable level in new program | (Scenario 3) Potential best case in new program | Comparable level in new program | Value of nights based on the 3 scenarios | Points used for 132K United miles and United miles received per point. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cat 1-5 Certificate: 270K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 25k points | Category 4 standard (25K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 30k points | Category 4 peak (30K) Category 5 off-peak (30K) | Same as Scenario 2. | Same as Scenario 2. | 150K 180K 180K | 120K (1.1) 90K (1.47) 90K (1.47) |
| Category 6 Certificate: 300K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 30k points | Category 4 peak (30K) Category 5 off-peak (30K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 35k points | Category 5 standard (35K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 40k points | Category 5 peak (40K) Category 6 off-peak (40K) | 180K 210K 240K | 120K (1.1) 90K (1.47) 60K (2.2) |
| Category 7 Certificate: 330K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 35k points | Category 5 standard (35K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 40k points | Category 5 peak (40K) Category 6 off-peak (40K) | Same as Scenario 2. | Same as Scenario 2. | 210K 240K 240K | 120K (1.1) 90K (1.47) 90K (1.47) |
| Category 8 Certificate: 360K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 40k points | Category 5 peak (40K) Category 6 off-peak (40K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 45k points | Category 5 peak (40K) Category 6 off-peak (40K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 50k points | Category 6 standard (50K) Category 7 off-peak (50K) | 240K 270K 300K | 120K (1.1) 90K (1.47) 60K (2.2) |
| Category 9 Certificate: 390K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 45k points | Category 5 peak (40K) Category 6 off-peak (40K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 50k points | Category 6 standard (50K) Category 7 off-peak (50K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 60k points | Category 6 peak (60K) Category 7 standard (60K) | 270K 300K 360K | 120K (1.1) 90K (1.47) 30K (4.4) |
| Tier 1-3 Certificate: 420K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 50k points | Category 6 standard (50K) Category 7 off-peak (50K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 60k points | Category 6 peak (60K) Category 7 standard (60K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 70k points | Category 7 peak (70K) Category 8 off-peak (70K) | 300K 360K 420K | 120K (1.1) 60K (2.2) 0K (Zero cost United miles) |
| Tier 4-5 Certificate: 540K | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 70k points | Category 7 peak (70K) Category 8 off-peak (70K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 85k points | Category 8 standard (85K) | Good for 7 nights at hotels up to 100k points | Category 8 peak (100K) | 420K 510K 600K | 120K (1.1) 30K (4.4) 0K (Zero cost United miles) |
Chart explanation:
- The first column in the chart above includes all of the certificates that are for sale today, along with the cost in Marriott points to buy them. Divide that cost by 3 to calculate the cost in Starpoints.
- For Scenario 1, I assume that Marriott will assign the exact points value that the certificates have today for the future program. There are a few problems with this assumption. Current category 6 doesn’t clear the threshold to book future category 5, except on off-peak dates. Current categories 8 and 9 don’t clear the threshold to book future category 6, except on off-peak dates. In fact current category 9 has no advantage over 8 as there is no 45K level redemption on the new Marriott award chart. Current tier 5 doesn’t clear the threshold to book future category 8, except on off-peak dates.
- Off the top of my head, some of these scenarios are quite plausible for Marriott to keep the exact same value of the certificate. Nobody would complain if the current category 5 certificates remained valid for hotels that cost up to 25K points per night. However, many of the categories would need to have added value per night in order for Marriott to keep customers whole.
- Due to the above problems, let’s make a scenario 2 where Marriott rounds things up to make them more fair. Perhaps they would allow the current category 5 certificate to book category 4 on peak dates by bumping their value from 25K to 30K per night. They could then allow current category 6 certificates to redeem for future category 5 on standard dates by bumping their value up from 30K to 35K. Bumping category 9 from 40K to 50K would allow it to be used at the more comparable future category 6 during standard dates. Bumping tier 3 from 50K to 60K would allow it to be used at the more comparable future category 7 during standard dates. Bumping tier 5 from 70K to 85K would allow it to be used at the more comparable future category 8 during standard dates.
- Off the top of my head, some of these make the plausible sense for Marriott. This scenario keeps the value for the current category 9, tier 3, and tier 5 certificates valid at comparable hotels for example.
- In scenario 3 I don’t think category 5 can get any more generous than scenario 2, but perhaps Marriott would allow current category 6 certificates to be used on peak dates for future category 5. I don’t see category 7 getting more generous than scenario 2, but perhaps current category 8 certificates could be used for future category 6 standard awards. Marriott could allow current category 9 to be used on peak dates for future category 6 awards, allow tier 3 certificates to be used on peak dates for future category 7 awards, and allow tier 5 certificates to be used on peak dates for future category 8 awards.
Value of the points:
Based on each of those scenarios, we can now calculate how much those nights will be worth in the new program. For scenario 1 the points are exactly the same as they are now, so the portion of the package used for the airline miles will always be 120K. You can get 132K United miles with those packages, which is 1.1 miles per Marriott point used for the cost of the package, less than value of the nights. For example in category 5 that’s 132K/120K (270K Marriott points used-150K Marriott points value of the nights) = 1.1 miles per point. If you think in terms of miles per Starpoint you’ll multiply by 3 for the ratio, so you’re receiving 3.3 miles per Starpoint, for example in category 5 that’s 132K/40K (90K Starpoints used-50K Starpoints value of the nights).
In scenario 2, the tier 1-3 and tier 4-5 certificates start to perform better. The value of those nights goes up and therefore the portion of the package for airline miles goes down. That increases the miles received per point to 2.2 for tier 1-3 for example, 132K/60K (420K points used-360K value of the nights)=2.2 miles per Marriott point. If you think in terms of miles per Starpoint you’ll multiply by 3 for the ratio, so you’re receiving 6.6 miles per Starpoint, for example in tier 1-3 that’s 132K/20K (140K Starpoints used-120K Starpoints value of the nights).
In scenario 3, the category 9 and tier 1-3 perform best. The value of those nights goes up and therefore the portion of the package for airline miles goes down. That increases that miles received per point to 4.4 for category 9 for example, 132K/30K (390K Marriott points used-360K value of the nights)=4.4 miles per Marriott point. If you think in terms of miles per Starpoint you’ll multiply by 3 for the ratio, so you’re receiving 13.2 miles per Starpoint, for example in category 9 that’s 132K/10K (130K Starpoints used-120K Starpoint value of the nights). Or for tier 1-3 the nights would be worth the full value paid, so the 132K miles have no assignable cost in this scenario, making them essentially free.
If Marriott decides to go the route of assigning a points value rather than a category value, I’d assume there will be a mix of scenarios 1 and 2, though some cases from scenario 3 might come into play as well.
If I had to guess which scenario is most likely for each category:
- Category 1-5 certificates will probably fall under scenario 1, with a small chance of falling under scenario 2.
- Category 6 certificates will probably fall under scenario 2.
- Category 7 certificates are probably a toss up between scenario 1 and 2.
- Category 8 certificates are a real toss-up, this is probably the most likely to swing to scenario 3.
- Category 9 certificates will probably fall under scenario 2.
- Tier 1-3 certificates will probably fall under scenario 2.
- Tier 4-5 certificates will probably fall under scenario 2.
Now that we know which hotels fall into into which future category, you can try to guess which current certificates will allow you to redeem for that category based on the chart and guesses above. It’s a tricky game, but could be quite lucrative.
However, if I had to pick the winning category here, I’d say it’s the current tier 1-3 or the tier 4-5 certificates. Those have the highest value if scenarios 2 or 3 pan out.
Bear in mind that all category 8 hotels will be priced as category 7 hotels from August-February and that peak and off-peak pricing will only go into effect in February.
That means that if scenario 2 of the Tier 1-3 certificates pans out, you can use 420K Marriott points (140K Starpoints) for 132K United miles and 7 nights in a $3,500/night villa at the S. Regis Maldives if you book between August 2018-February 2019 before that turns into a future category 8 property, which would likely require the Tier 4-5 certificates.
If you can’t book before February 2019 then you’ll probably want to buy the tier 4-5 certificate.
Then again it’s possible there will be so much competition at the former Starwood all-suite hotels that booking an award night there will become very difficult, so don’t do this if you’re locked into just one hotel use.
Want to redeem for a travel package? Read this post for everything you need to know about how to do that.
Again, this post contains a lot of conjecture and guesswork, but I do think these are likely scenarios given the information that we know. I don’t assume any responsibility in case things don’t end up as I’m guessing, but these are all educated guesses on where things will end up. Feel free to disagree in the comments 😀
Will you be buying a travel package before they’re devalued?
Short on Marriott/Starpoints?
- Until 7/20 only, you can still buy Starpoints on sale for 35% off for the final time. This will be an absolute BARGAIN for these packages.
- Earn Marriott/Starpoints on the new Chase Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card with a 75,000 Marriott point signup bonus. Click Here to get more details on this card and compare to other hotel cards!
Related Marriott-SPG merger posts:
- AMAZING! Marriott’s New Award Chart Is A Dream Come True For Aspirational Hotels; Roundup Of The Hotel Category Changes
- Breaking Down The New Marriott/Starwood Combined Cash+Points And PointSavers Award Charts
- Marriott Will Massively Devalue New Miles+Nights Travel Packages In August; Comparing The Value Of The Current Packages To The New Packages
- Final Opportunity: Get 35% Off The Purchase Of Starwood Starpoints; Buy The Points You Need To Take Advantage Of These 7 Awesome Redemptions!
- Get A 75,000 Point Signup Bonus On The Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card!
- Live Blog: Follow The Marriott-Starwood Program Merger Announcement!
- 3 Starwood AMEX Cards In The New Marriott Program: A Comparison Chart Of The Good, The Bad, And The Horrific
- Comparison Chart: How Marriott’s August 2018 And February 2019 Award Chart Compares With The Current SPG And Marriott Award Charts
- Marriott Got Almost Everything Perfect, But The Starwood AMEX Cuts Are Just Too Painful
- Rack Up The Starpoints While You Still Can: There Will Be 6 Months Of Amazing Starwood Hotel Bargains!
- No Marriott, The Starwood AMEX Card Will Not Be Richer Than Ever. You Are Just Changing What I’ll Use It For
- Starwood-Marriott Merger FAQs: Answers To Your Questions About Anniversary Nights, Status From Existing Cards, And More
- The Starwood Consumer AMEX And Multiple Chase Marriott Cards Are Being Discontinued! Here’s What You Need To Know About 9 Starwood And Marriott Cards
- Will The Starwood Cards Disappear Or Lose Their Starpoints Signup Bonuses Today? Now Is The Time To Signup If You Don’t Have These Cards Yet!
- AMEX: 3 Starwood Cards Will Be Available For New Applications After The SPG-Marriott Program Merger In August
- Guesstimating Where Marriott Travel Packages Will Work In August; Take Advantage Of Marriott’s Lucrative Miles+Nights Packages Now!
- A Week Later, But No Solid Answers To 3 Contradictory Marriott-Starwood Merger Details That Everyone Wants To Know
- Marriott Clarifies Contradictory SPG Gold Information
- Roundup Of The SPG/Marriott Lifetime Status Rules; Will You Be Able To Hit Lifetime Status This Year Before The Lifetime Program Is Devalued?
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62 Comments On "Another Guess At What Will Happen With Marriott’s Miles+Nights Travel Packages And Which You Should Buy Now Before It’s Too Late!"
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Great write up!
“That means that if scenario 2 of the Tier 1-3 certificates pans out, you can use 420K Marriott points (140K Starpoints) for 132K United miles and 7 nights in a $3,500/night villa at the S. Regis Maldives if you book between August 2018-February 2019 before that turns into a future category 8 property, which would likely require the Tier 4-5 certificates.”
INSANE, INSANE, INSANE
Totally insane.
So what to do with a 7 night certificate (cat 1-4) that expires between August and February?
Find a nice category 4 hotel to stay in? What’s the question?
Am I really supposed to read through this?
Hi Dan, great post! I just purchased a cat 6. Would you attempt to update a category 6 to a 7 to guarantee a Cat 5 on the new program? Or would you hang on to the 6.
I’d probably hang onto the 6.
Thanks
I don’t value 7 nights highly, it’s just too much for me. Most of my hotel stays are 2-3 nights, even on vacation. For 300000 you can do three 5-day vacations at 1-5 hotels as opposed to a one-week at cat 6 + United miles. Sure if you have millions of points it makes sense to burn some on these packages. However for those of us left with few points after buying the package we need to ask ourselves if it is worth it. I have and I think I’m going to pass. As for top-end hotels, others have pointed out that you will probably be assigned the worst rooms in the hotel. So no over-water bungalow for those 60000 marriott points but more like the bedroom facing the parking lot.
There is no parking lot view at a hotel like the W or S. Regis Maldives. It’s an all-villa hotel on a private island.
The point is you won’t get the best rooms for these hotels at the reduced-rate chart (e.g if you really care about the overwater bungalow you’re going to be disappointed). Parking lot view is a figure of speech.
Last I checked the overwater is the base room at the SR Maldives. Either way, there are no bad rooms there, period.
I have a massive headache
Not a good idea to read on a fast day
Maybe just clarify if people want to just get points back and not sleep in the hotel what’s the best option for that and how to go about doing it
Awesome post! Thanks Dan!
Just wondering for some of us who will likely not get to redeem 7 nights at those to tier hotels. The best option would be just to buy a bunch of 270k packages racking up ua points and hope Marriott just gives back 150k points?
That would work, though I’d be surprised if they just refund 150K points.
I have two certs. One Cat 5 & one cat 8. My original thought was to use another 90k to upgrade the Cat 5 to 8. Good idea?
Depends on what hotels you’re hoping for.
Hey Dan, I know its a *bit* off topic, but have you ever used “Turo” to rent a car on a vacation? The prices look very good but I read a lot of awful reviews online about them. Any personal experience?
Nope.
Great post.
Quick Q.
Is there potential for a 7 night 1-5 cert to be refunded 25k per night for a total of 175k? Or am I confusing this?
7 nights would equal 150K.
I doubt they will refund points, but anything is possible.
Do the 7 night certs expire? And u mentioned that award bookings might get crazy but I thought there’s no capacity control?
After a year, but Marriott extends them for another year if you ask.
There’s no capacity controls, but there are only so many standard rooms for sale.
Dan, Are you fasting today?
Yes, why?
Just wondering how can write this dizzying article while fasting
Lol, wrote it from 11pm-3am 😀
NODOZ?
When you’re counting diamonds or miles, you don’t get tired.
Also, I like eating and drinking before the fast begins.
If I don’t have any travel plans at the moment should I get the cat 1-5 as I can always upgrade to cat 6 later ?
Unclear if you’ll be able to upgrade after these are discontinued soon.
just to clarify you mean to say that after the old 7 night certificates are discontinued there is a possibility that you may not be able to upgrade categories by adding 30k to the reservation? and everything that you spoke about here in this post is referring to the single night certificates earned from ritz carlton nights as well?or only the 7?5 night certificates?thanks
I want to book a current category 8 Marriott hotel. Is the suggestion to get a category 7 certificate now and then book in August when category 8 moves to category 7? Is there a risk of not being able to do that and would I be better off getting a category 8 certificate and booking the nights now?
@dan I had the same question, for a current category 8 marriot, should I purchase the category 7 or 8 package?
It looks to me that category 8 hotels are mainly converting to category 6. Those will require 50,000 points starting in August. From Dan’s post category 7 certificates may only be valid for hotels that require 40,000 – so I think it is risky to get a category 7 certificate now thinking it will get you a hotel in the new category 6 – you may only be able to get a category 6 off-peak and perhaps not at all in August.
Thank you @JB
thanks Dan for the great post. Not sure how realistic this is for me if I just opened a SPG card in April, and I have about 30,000 points. Looking to buy a property now so don’t have extra money to spend on buying points. But I thought I would let you know my review of this well thought-out post. also open to any “eye-opening” suggestions to take advantage of before August rolls around.
Are certs limited to name issued?
Dan what category certificate would work for the Sheraton in Tel Aviv on the new chart?
Dan, I would like to stay at the St. Regis Bal Harbour with the certificate. Would you recommend I get the tier 1-3 certificate and 132k United miles or should I not take the chance and get the tier 4-5?
In February 2019, I want to stay at the Westin in Singapore for 7 nights with the certificate that I will buy this week. In your opinion, what category cert should I buy?
Its gonna be a cat 6 in new program
Does the night/miles pay if you are traveling from Israel and not from the US?
I was just told you are grandfathered in til the end of the year. just got cat 6
Hi Dan- if you are sitting on a ton of starpoints then what would you do? Which package, if any would you purchase? Thanks
I have a certificate for Marriott cat 1-5. I already extended the expiration once. Can I do it a second time and do you think this cert will be devalued ? Also do you see southwest air offering the companion again as a package with Marriott points ?
Hey Dan I have a category 7, should I upgrade to a 8 or higher?
Hey Dan thank you so much!
I’m planning on being 7 nights in November in Maui BH. I have about 140k starpoints now I’m debating which hotel to go to?! Do you think if I buy the nights+miles for tier 1-3 now I would be able to stay at the Rits which is tier 4? And also what miles should I take if I don’t have any specific plans of travel in the near future?
Thanks a lot!
P.s. I see that you posted about the Sheraton and the westin hotels that they are 60k which is 20k starpoints and I just checked it and it was 10k for the Sheraton and 12k for the westin. If I got it right!
How does the calculation change if planning to redeem for a 5 night certificate?
hello Dan,
whats the deadline of upgrading the base 7 night certificate to a tier 1-3, or tier 4-5 category with the additional points?
Hi Dan, thank you for the post. Could you please advise the best way to use 130k SPG points.
Hi Dan, hope you are still reading this post!
Once the programs are merged, will it still be possible to upgrade these 7-night certificates? If so, I think that I should just buy a category 1-5 for now (as I’ve been doing) and then upgrade when needed. But if these will be frozen at their purchased category, then it makes the entire proposition more risky, because then you need to hope that the you will find a hotel in the right category when the time comes.
Thanks!
I wish I knew, sorry.
Don’t think scenario 3 can happen. If Marriott is willing to offer such a great conversion value, they can just do cat to cat mapping by roundup the non-perfect matched cat. It will save a lot of work by not creating new kind of certificate.
It’s unlikely, but there might be one or 2 levels that could fall into that scenario.
Can you use these certs for less than 7 nights? Just toss the unused days telling them you need less than 7 nights?
Of course.
Thanks! I know somebody with more than 5 million SPG points. Makes sense for him to take a shot here because no matter he ends up getting more air miles that he ever could on a number of the transfer partners.
Hey Dan. Just wondering if I should shell out the starpoints now to buy a miles+nights package even if I have no idea when/what I will do with it ATM. Do you think it would be worth it to buy something now and figure out what to do with it in the 2 years before it expires (I’ll find something I’m sure) or to hold off and wait until I know what I want to use it for (post devaluation)?
Dan, I am a Marriott Vacation Club owner so I am able to purchase 5 night certificates. I actually have 3 unused 5 night certificates for Category 7 hotels (current value). I really want to use them for specific SPG Category 7 properties under new chart and want to book as soon as the programs merge. Would you recommend upgrading the current certs and if so how high should I upgrade?
Letting my Cat 6 float. Lets see what happens. 10 Days to go!
Are these theories still valid or has new info come out that changes this? Curious because I have 3 Tier 1-3 certificates and it sounds like based on this I should hold on to them and book between Sept – Feb.
Still the case?