Starwood Hotels selling to Hyatt

[x3 skier]

Looks like a merger or sale is close.

http://americasmarkets.usatoday.com/2015/10/28/starwood-shares-jump-amid-reports-of-sale-to-hyatt/

Cheers

 

[raygo123]

It is happening faster than I thought. TOTAL consultation as a big 3 or 4 emerge. Hotel customers are demanding more space. Qick fix are timeshares?

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[JudyS]

At first I thought this thread was about the Starwood timeshares, which have actually been sold to Interval, which already owns the Hyatt timeshares.

Then I realized it was about Starwood hotels. Maybe the title could be changed to clarify this, or perhaps the thread should be moved to Travel or Tug Lounge? I think many people will overlook this thread because they think it is about the sale of Starwood timeshares, which already has a large thread.

I'm already wondering how the sale of Starwood timeshares will affect me as a Starwood owners. Now, I'm wondering what the sale of Starwood hotels will do to my Starpoints.

I am sitting on a big pile of Starpoints right now. (Like, over 150,000.) I wanted to use them for an international trip, but haven't been well enough to travel internationally. I still hope to do a big overseas trip in a year or two.

What do people think -- hold on to my Starpoints or burn them, even if I have to use them for domestic travel? If Starpoints get converted to Hyatt's reward system, will they lose value? (I have heard that Hyatt's points have good value, but don't know if they are as good as Starpoints.)

 

[LisaRex]

IMO, Hyatt and Marriott were the 2 best alternatives in terms of hotel loyalty programs. Although I like Hilton hotels, and especially like their presence in Hawaii, their redemption rates are too high for non-business travelers.

I judge this based on how many points it would take ME (100% leisure traveler) to earn a free night. Since we're empty nesters now, our biggest spending is restaurant and home improvement stores. Since the only way I earn points is via credit card spending, it's key that my hotel-branded credit card earns a nice redemption for those categories.

Here's a quick Hyatt v Marriott comparison:

Hyatt Gold Passport

Credit card spending Points Earned:

• 3 points per $1 spent at all Hyatt properties*
• 2 points per $1 spent at restaurants, on airline tickets
• purchased directly from the airline, and at car rental agencies*
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases made with your card

Plus, 1 free night every year after your cardmember anniversary at any Category 1-4 property

Redemption rates for Hyatt hotels:

Category # of points per night

Standard Room:
1 5,000
2 8,000
3 12,000
4 15,000
5 20,000
6 25,000
7 30,000
Regency/Grand Club:
1 7,000
2 12,000
3 17,000
4 21,000
5 27,000
6 33,000
7 39,000

HGCV properties:
Studio: 12,000
One Bedroom: 15,000
Two Bedroom: 23,000
Three Bedroom: 30,000

So immediately I notice that Category 7 rooms are quite expensive, but middle of the room rates are doable. And the HGCV properties aren't bad, either, comparatively speaking. Unlike Starwood or Marriott, there's no break for 5+ nights.

Compare this to Marriott:

Marriott Rewards Program

Credit card earning:

Earn unlimited Marriott Rewards® points and get free stays faster

• 5 points for every $1 spent at over 4,000 Marriott® locations, including our exclusive luxury hotel partner, The Ritz-Carlton®*
• 2 points for every $1 spent on airline tickets purchased directly with the airline, and at car rental agencies and restaurants*
• 1 point for every $1 spent on purchases anywhere else*

Plus 1 free night stay at a Category 1-5 hotel every year after your account anniversary*

Category MRs @ regular redemption
MRs @ Saver Rates

1 7,500
6,000
2 10,000
7,500
3 15,000
10,000
4 20,000
15,000
5 25,000
20,000
6 30,000
25,000
7 35,000
30,000
8 40,000
35,000
9 45,000
40,000

Redeem 4 Nights. Get the 5th Night FREE!
This was a great perk, but alas, Hyatt does not offer it.

 

[VacationForever]

I'm already wondering how the sale of Starwood timeshares will affect me as a Starwood owners. Now, I'm wondering what the sale of Starwood hotels will do to my Starpoints.

I am sitting on a big pile of Starpoints right now. (Like, over 150,000.) I wanted to use them for an international trip, but haven't been well enough to travel internationally. I still hope to do a big overseas trip in a year or two.

We currently sit on about 500k Starpoints and we are not too worried. If you are worried, you can transfer them to airline rewards. I transferred some to Hawaiian Airlines a couple of months ago to get 2 first class tickets for our upcoming trip.

We are keeping the Starpoints and another 600k or so Marriott reward points, for our planned Europe trip that is being pushed out due to work. We plan to use them for business class tickets and accomodation in Europe in 2017, hopefully.

 

[Henry M.]

Assuming categories are somewhat similar, SPG award stays sure are a good deal compared to Marriott and Hyatt!

CategoryStarpoints
1	3,000
2	4,000
3	7,000
4	10,000
5	12,000-16,000
6	20,000-25,000
7	30,000-35,000

I recently stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott in Maui (at the airport), and it cost something like 30,000 points vs. 12,000-16,000 to stay at the Westin or Sheraton hotels in Ka'anapali. The Courtyard is not even in the same category as the Starwood hotels, in terms of amenities and location.

Earning points for stays is also good:

Earn up to 5 Starpoints® for each dollar of eligible purchases at participating SPG hotels‡ - that's 2 Starpoints for which you may be eligible as a Card Member in addition to the 2 or 3 Starpoints for which you may be eligible as an SPG member ‡ Earn 1 Starpoint® for all other purchases.

 

[Ken555]

SPG SP purchasing power has been the single greatest reason I have been loyal to the brand. If it dilutes in future to be more similar to other brands (obviously very possible) then I will likely reevaluate my future loyalty. I'm sure the same is true with many frequent travelers.


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[Henry M.]

I agree. In fact, when I first bought a timeshare on Maui, part of the reason I went with Starwood was that the hotel redemption was so much better. I could stay at the Sheraton Maui (or similar property around the world) for a week, for example, vs only a couple of days at the Marriott. I knew Starpoints weren't the best use of the timeshare, but they were an alternative given my European travel. Marriott Rewards points weren't worth a second thought even back in the early 2000's.

 

[mayflower]

If Starwoods Hotel group is sold to someone like Hyatt, what happens with our point transfer perks? Does that just go away if SPG ceases to exist?


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