Clark Howard hates Bonvoy

[Dean]

I guess hidden in my reply is that for many people I think "brand standard" is worth a slight premium, or else chain restaurants wouldn't do so well. When you're somewhere you don't know, you (well, at least used to be pre COVID, this may be recovering or this wisdom may be changing depending on the brand) pretty much know what you're getting at a Johnny Rockets or Applebees. It's a narrower band than "random local joint found on google" where the highs can be amazing but the lows can be downright disgusting.

I think the key word here is slight premium. I can't speak for CH but I think he'd agree with you with the caveat of very slight.

IDK, in central NY, it's always a layover and an extra $200-$400 per ticket to fly vs Newark or JFK. That generally exceeds 5 hour drive in cost and frustration and time.

I think the issue is to check around in different ways than most people do. For example, it might be cheaper to do 2 separate flights out of ATL to get to Australia or the far East rather than just booking on Delta. Or to Fly on something other than Delta in ALT (as an example) because they consider it a captive audience.

This is indeed one thing that tends to tick me off - people who know "the cost of everything but the value of nothing". Sometimes getting something cheap isn'\t worth the money at all. I'm often more interested in most bang for your buck - but that takes research and effort.

I think there's a balance though it might vary significantly from one situation to another just like the best timeshare situation which we discuss here all the time. Everyone has to decide what's important to them and what time and convenience is worth. CH definitely is willing to go overboard in this area. For example, he avoids toll roads completely. It seems he can be frugal to a fault but he gives a LOT of valuable info that can be very helpful to most anyone.

 

[jp10558]

For example, he avoids toll roads completely.

I think this is somewhere that the GPSs and apps (that I'm familiar with anyway) are missing a trick. I can turn on or turn off Toll roads, but in reality what I would like is a way to say, if I'll save 20 minutes (or really a configurable number of minutes) I'll pay tolls, otherwise avoid them. TBH the Penn Turnpike tolls have gotten out of control, and to get from Clarks Summit to Quakerstown I'm starting to wonder if the ease is worth the $30 in tolls round trip it seems to be getting to.

 

[Dean]

I think this is somewhere that the GPSs and apps (that I'm familiar with anyway) are missing a trick. I can turn on or turn off Toll roads, but in reality what I would like is a way to say, if I'll save 20 minutes (or really a configurable number of minutes) I'll pay tolls, otherwise avoid them. TBH the Penn Turnpike tolls have gotten out of control, and to get from Clarks Summit to Quakerstown I'm starting to wonder if the ease is worth the $30 in tolls round trip it seems to be getting to.

I doubt they will ever have settings that will allow us to input time and distance savings for tolls and the like but it'd be nice. On a side note I just order two Sunpass pro transponders this weekend.

 

[dioxide45]

I doubt they will ever have settings that will allow us to input time and distance savings for tolls and the like but it'd be nice. On a side note I just order two Sunpass pro transponders this weekend.

In our GPS, I can easily see the time saved. I set it to not avoid tolls and calculate the route. Then set it to avoid tolls and see the new amount of time it would take. Sometimes it is only a few minutes.

 

[Dean]

In our GPS, I can easily see the time saved. I set it to not avoid tolls and calculate the route. Then set it to avoid tolls and see the new amount of time it would take. Sometimes it is only a few minutes.

Yes you can back into the info but you can't input settings that save you X number of minutes or redirect your route based on variables. It's all or none at the moment you're looking at it.

 

[DRH90277]

To heck with Bonvoy. We're keeping our Marriott Bonvoy card, but we use it almost entirely for Marriott expenditures now - mostly maintenance fees. To us, this is the best use. We've already taken the devaluation hit for our 2+ million Bonvoy points and are gradually drawing our points down or transferring to the kids.

Fidelity's 2% cash rebate Visa is our preference now and anything material goes on that card.

I think Clark Howard is right about the Bonvoy program.

 

[dioxide45]

Clark Howard on his 9/18/24 podcast discussed devalued hotel points/ loyalty programs. He thinks marriott is the worst. And he further goes into the best and fees.
We always use our free nights, which to me balances out the fee, but it got me thinking. We have 1.5 million points. Should we use the and switch to a better card? Loyalty seems to be one way.

Points are always being devalued. If you aren't using the points, you probably shouldn't really be trying to accumulate more. You should be churning through points regularly or it simply isn't the best way to earn rewards. We usually have about a half million points in our account but are regularly earning and burning.

 

[Big Matt]

Just a couple of points to consider (no pun intended). Covid19 wrecked the travel industry for the most part and the long lasting effect is the significant drop off in business travel. I'm in an industry where it was common practice to fly to a client on Monday morning and come home Thursday afternoon. That doesn't happen any longer. With a higher percentage of leisure travelers, I'm not so sure that loyalty is as important.

 

[jp10558]

Just a couple of points to consider (no pun intended). Covid19 wrecked the travel industry for the most part and the long lasting effect is the significant drop off in business travel. I'm in an industry where it was common practice to fly to a client on Monday morning and come home Thursday afternoon. That doesn't happen any longer. With a higher percentage of leisure travelers, I'm not so sure that loyalty is as important.

Interesting - I didn't think of business travel as I've basically never done any. The relatives I knew who get sent places for work usually aren't the ones selecting the hotel or car rental etc - there's an internal selection process. I guess they may be able to make the case they should stay somewhere else, but if I was sent to a conference at a Marriott, it'd be pretty hard to argue to stay at the Hilton 3 blocks away. Also, usually the business makes deals that they strongly prefer you use for travel, and again, the loyalty programs probably won't affect that much. Maybe this is a very small section of the business travel.

I actually think leisure travel could be more affected by loyalty because it's all the individual making the bookings. It always seemed more like the fast food / fast casual points programs to me. People (if treated well) can get set in their ways - you want to give them a reason to search in your app rather than booking's app - and loyalty bennies seem like one reason to do so.

 

[dioxide45]

Interesting - I didn't think of business travel as I've basically never done any. The relatives I knew who get sent places for work usually aren't the ones selecting the hotel or car rental etc - there's an internal selection process. I guess they may be able to make the case they should stay somewhere else, but if I was sent to a conference at a Marriott, it'd be pretty hard to argue to stay at the Hilton 3 blocks away. Also, usually the business makes deals that they strongly prefer you use for travel, and again, the loyalty programs probably won't affect that much. Maybe this is a very small section of the business travel.

It depends on the company policy and type of travel. I've traveled a few times for work. We have a website where we go and book travel. We can select the property and even airline for travel. It isn't just for conferences. Sometimes it is for training, meetings, meeting with clients, etc.

 

[jmhpsu93]

It depends on the company policy and type of travel. I've traveled a few times for work. We have a website where we go and book travel. We can select the property and even airline for travel. It isn't just for conferences. Sometimes it is for training, meetings, meeting with clients, etc.

This is how our company works as well, except we have preferred airlines and hotels that have pre-negotiated rates so we're directed to those to be "in policy", but we still have choices across brands. For example, I could choose Southwest, American, or United to fly non-stop to Chicago, then choose from an assortment of Marriott, Sonesta, and some independent hotels. My problem (as noted above by Dean) is that I'm in a captive hub (BWI for Southwest) unless I'm flying into another airline hub or drive 90 minutes to Dulles or Philly.

 

[dioxide45]

This is how our company works as well, except we have preferred airlines and hotels that have pre-negotiated rates so we're directed to those to be "in policy", but we still have choices across brands. For example, I could choose Southwest, American, or United to fly non-stop to Chicago, then choose from an assortment of Marriott, Sonesta, and some independent hotels. My problem (as noted above by Dean) is that I'm in a captive hub (BWI for Southwest) unless I'm flying into another airline hub or drive 90 minutes to Dulles or Philly.

Same here. I suspect many companies use the same travel vendor though each company can negotiate preferred vendors. We tend to have multiple preferred hotels in each area and they tend to be with different brands. So picking a brand you have more loyalty to isn't that hard.

 

[1Kflyerguy]

I used to travel a lot for work, and had a lot of flexibility on hotels and flights. There are some price guidelines but otherwise pretty open. We did have preferred hotels if I was traveling to a city with a large office. That usually had the best price, but if I wasn't visiting the office it was easy to justify staying elsewhere.

 

[jp10558]

Same here. I suspect many companies use the same travel vendor though each company can negotiate preferred vendors. We tend to have multiple preferred hotels in each area and they tend to be with different brands. So picking a brand you have more loyalty to isn't that hard.

Learn something new every day. I wonder how much the various co-branded cards do for the hotels? I know I probably wouldn't keep the Amex if it lost the Hilton benefits as there's still too many places that are just confused by Amex (I "bought in" when it was a Citi Visa Signature). Simply because Mastercard/Visa is more widely accepted.

 

[frank808]

I doubt they will ever have settings that will allow us to input time and distance savings for tolls and the like but it'd be nice. On a side note I just order two Sunpass pro transponders this weekend.

Going to visit Florida more now? If the Sunpass Pro is the one with suction cups it has worked great for the past decade.

Only had two problems many years ago. For some reason surpass was charging me tolls even though I was out of state and my end time for license plate was when I turned car in. I got charges $250 in tolls automatically (I had sunpass on auto reload). Informed Sunpass and 7 months later I had a credit of balance of that $250 on my account. It took me quiet a few years before I finally used up all that credit. Another time Hertz billed me for using a plate toll while I had transponder. I had to login to sunpass website and take a pic that toll was paid with my transponder. Sent that in and never heard a word again from Hertz.

Just don't forget to take out transponder from rental car.

Sent from my SM-S928U using Tapatalk

 

[Dean]

Going to visit Florida more now? If the Sunpass Pro is the one with suction cups it has worked great for the past decade.

Only had two problems many years ago. For some reason surpass was charging me tolls even though I was out of state and my end time for license plate was when I turned car in. I got charges $250 in tolls automatically (I had sunpass on auto reload). Informed Sunpass and 7 months later I had a credit of balance of that $250 on my account. It took me quiet a few years before I finally used up all that credit. Another time Hertz billed me for using a plate toll while I had transponder. I had to login to sunpass website and take a pic that toll was paid with my transponder. Sent that in and never heard a word again from Hertz.

Just don't forget to take out transponder from rental car.

Sent from my SM-S928U using Tapatalk

We live in FL. I have a Sunpass account and we (family) use it regularly. I currently have 3 transponders but the ones I have only work in FL, GA and NC I believe. The Sunpass Pro works in 19 now states I believe. I've also used toll by plate quite a bit, mostly when we have family visiting because there's a single short (and weird) toll that's the best way in and it's automated. What I do when I can anticipate it is get their license plate and add it to my account. Never had an issue with start or end timing except the one time I didn't get it set correctly. That was an interesting experience. I put the info in but the toll didn't show up. When I checked my account I'd started it too late. Interesting thing is I was able to change the starting day retroactively and capture the toll saving them the admin charge and aggravation. So lesson learned and now if I am not able to add a plate ahead of time I know I can add it later and still capture the toll.

 

[Mlvnsmly]

We live in FL. I have a Sunpass account and we (family) use it regularly. I currently have 3 transponders but the ones I have only work in FL, GA and NC I believe. The Sunpass Pro works in 19 now states I believe. I've also used toll by plate quite a bit, mostly when we have family visiting because there's a single short (and weird) toll that's the best way in and it's automated. What I do when I can anticipate it is get their license plate and add it to my account. Never had an issue with start or end timing except the one time I didn't get it set correctly. That was an interesting experience. I put the info in but the toll didn't show up. When I checked my account I'd started it too late. Interesting thing is I was able to change the starting day retroactively and capture the toll saving them the admin charge and aggravation. So lesson learned and now if I am not able to add a plate ahead of time I know I can add it later and still capture the toll.

Adding the plate later is good info as I always struggle with cell service in the garage at MCO. (Actually last year I had no issues so maybe the signal issue has been rectified.)

 

[TolmiePeak]

Adding the plate later is good info as I always struggle with cell service in the garage at MCO. (Actually last year I had no issues so maybe the signal issue has been rectified.)

I didn't get cell service in the parking garage last year. I had to pull over just outside of the parking garage to add my license plate.

 

[Mlvnsmly]

I didn't get cell service in the parking garage last year. I had to pull over just outside of the parking garage to add my license plate.

I may have just repressed the memory haha.

 

[dioxide45]

Adding the plate later is good info as I always struggle with cell service in the garage at MCO. (Actually last year I had no issues so maybe the signal issue has been rectified.)

I believe you have up to three days to add the rental car information to a Sunpass account. Just be sure to input your actual start and end dates and it should capture any tolls that happened before you added the vehicle.

 

[jp10558]

We live in FL. I have a Sunpass account and we (family) use it regularly. I currently have 3 transponders but the ones I have only work in FL, GA and NC I believe. The Sunpass Pro works in 19 now states I believe. I've also used toll by plate quite a bit, mostly when we have family visiting because there's a single short (and weird) toll that's the best way in and it's automated. What I do when I can anticipate it is get their license plate and add it to my account. Never had an issue with start or end timing except the one time I didn't get it set correctly. That was an interesting experience. I put the info in but the toll didn't show up. When I checked my account I'd started it too late. Interesting thing is I was able to change the starting day retroactively and capture the toll saving them the admin charge and aggravation. So lesson learned and now if I am not able to add a plate ahead of time I know I can add it later and still capture the toll.

I am kind of bummed that I don't think EZPass works past... maybe VA? So I'll have to avoid tolls I think down in FL in December if I can.

 

[Dean]

I am kind of bummed that I don't think EZPass works past... maybe VA? So I'll have to avoid tolls I think down in FL in December if I can.

It actually says 22 states now, last I'd looked at it Sunpass Pro was for 19). Here's the list:

SunPass PRO™ works on all toll roads and most bridges in Florida plus, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, parts of Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Couldn't you get a Uni transponder which would work for most those locations as well? I'm thinking that's where I got the 19 states. I'd assumed the Sunpass Pro and Uni worked at the same locations but looking today it appears that SunPass pro has slightly more than Uni.

 

[Superchief]

In my experience, I think a lot of the inconsistency in status recognition is the high turnover of staff. I also don't think that management places high priority on training the front desk staff regarding treatment of higher status and repeat customers. I stay at the Marriott airport hotels at CVG and GSP a few times per year, but this year was the first time that I didn't receive upgrades or any 'welcome back' at each location. In the past, I usually recognized staff members from previous stays, but everyone at the front desk and the GM's were new. This is also becoming a greater problem at MVC resorts, especially with GM turnover.

 

[jp10558]

It actually says 22 states now, last I'd looked at it Sunpass Pro was for 19). Here's the list:

Couldn't you get a Uni transponder which would work for most those locations as well? I'm thinking that's where I got the 19 states. I'd assumed the Sunpass Pro and Uni worked at the same locations but looking today it appears that SunPass pro has slightly more than Uni.

Given I have an EZPass and live in NY, I wonder if I can just use it in Florida now: https://www.cfxway.com/e-zpass/ makes it sound like that's likely to work.

 

[Dean]

Given I have an EZPass and live in NY, I wonder if I can just use it in Florida now: https://www.cfxway.com/e-zpass/ makes it sound like that's likely to work.

I'd send them an email to confirm your options, you might need a new transponder.