@Loquat wrote:
Just to chime in for those saying that hotels are empty I would say I disagree slightly. Are they at full capacity, no, not at all...but as one who travels 100+ nights a year and I'm actually on the go now and at a Marriott property...these places are far from empty in my experience.
If you look at the TSA website for daily statistics for air travel you will see that we're getting close to a million passengers a day in some instances. I personally think this number is suppressed because there is still a lot of international travel that can't happen due to restrictions.
So yes, no at capacity for sure but to say that these hotels are empty is not even close to accurate.
We do have some stats up thread. ^^ 
~50% isn't empty, my anecdotal data from stories is that aspirational properties in the US are making some bank because if you're rich, you can't leave the country, and you want a vacation, you're hitting a uberswanky place. I would imagine hotels near national parks are fine. Vegas on weekends is getting a lot of tourists (which probably isn't helping their COVID).
But the hotels in downtown districts or near conference centers? Deadsville. Near airports? Deadsville. My Fortune 500 company (and most others) is cancelling conferences left and right (and they are conferences that Fortune 500 companies send people to) and company travel is very much on an absolute "you really REALLY need to do this and a videoconference won't work" basis. We're not going back into our offices anytime soon. Company profits are doing WELL (in no small part because a bunch of expenses don't really exist any more).
I've definitely had a few stays this year in properties that were far from empty. The issue I have with the status falls to numbers; typically when hotels are booked to capacity it's mostly non-elites and lower level elites making up those numbers. Platinum has purposely been a more difficult status to achieve because one actually gets things for achieving that level. Now if there are suddenly a lot of higher level elites making up even a limited number of guests, there are only so many suites available for upgrade and while most lounges are currently closed, they won't stay that way until January 2022 when these statuses expire. For properties that don't have a lounge where a food and beverage credit is given instead, that means less capacity in the on-site restaurants or longer lines to grab takeout.
Extending status and gifting status are two entirely different things. For those of us who earned airline or hotel status for 2020, most of us have had little to no opportunity to make use of the benefits in 2020 due to travel restrictions, so it's quite fair to extend those. We're not really being given anything free, we worked hard to obtain those statuses last year by being loyal to those brands. Whoever ultimately paid for the travel shouldn't matter, either. While I earned upper level statuses with Marriott and Delta exclusively through leisure travel, those who are being paid to do so by their employer also put in the nights and flights to earn the status.
@Anonymous wrote:So I opened the SPG Business card awhile back before the conversion to Bonvoy in February 2019. They re-issued me the Bonvoy Business card.
Does this mean I am ineligible for the Bonvoy Business sign up bonus? Are they considered the "same card" for the once in a lifetime rule?
They are essentially the same card with a different name, similar to how anyone who had a PRG should be ineligible for the welcome offer on Gold or anyone who took an upgrade offer to SPG Luxury and closed their card prior to it being renamed the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant would be ineligible for the welcome offer on Brilliant even though they never had a card with that name.
@Loquat wrote:
@CBartowski wrote:So Platinum status aside, what is everyone's opinion of this card anyway? With 300$ in credit that can be used for the room itself combined with a free night at a cat 6 (Ritz and JW come to mind) this card seems to pay for itself with just those 2 perks. Am I off base?
Yes we are still traveling and have been quite a bit, pandemic won't keep us down
Hope everyone is well!
If you're asking about the Bonvoy Brilliant and the Ritz Card then I would say they are both well worth their weight in my opinion. My wife and I have 6 Marriott cards between the both of us and I would have 6 more if that were possible. I believe each of Marriott's high AF cards are more than worth it if you're traveling and will be staying at Marriott properties anyway.
+1. The $300 credit applies to any charges made directly to the room itself including the nightly rate. Both years that mine renewed, I actually had the statement credit appear on the same statement as the annual fee! The 50k certificate can easily be used for a $500-1000 per night property. Anyone staying at higher end Marriott properties at least 2 nights a year would make out well with it, and even if your speed is more Springhill Suites, Four Points, and Courtyard, 3-4 nights a year easily covers the fee.
@K-in-Boston wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:So I opened the SPG Business card awhile back before the conversion to Bonvoy in February 2019. They re-issued me the Bonvoy Business card.
Does this mean I am ineligible for the Bonvoy Business sign up bonus? Are they considered the "same card" for the once in a lifetime rule?
They are essentially the same card with a different name, similar to how anyone who had a PRG should be ineligible for the welcome offer on Gold or anyone who took an upgrade offer to SPG Luxury and closed their card prior to it being renamed the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant would be ineligible for the welcome offer on Brilliant even though they never had a card with that name.
IME, having the PRG didn't invalidate my signup bonus for the Gold. Similar experience to earning the new business Gold SUB when I had had the old BGR before as well.
@notmyrealname23 wrote:And oh yeah... I have enough spend in Q1 2021 between taxes and some college tuition for my kid that going for a YUUUUGE SUB on a very travel card makes sense. Chase hates my LOL/24 ways so it's likely AMEX.
So if you were picking between AMEX Platinum or AMEX Bonvoy Brilliant, which would you pick? I don't plan to organically keep Platinum status (so relax, you won't be competing with me for upgrades for very long). Lounges are "meh" for me as a benefit. The AMEX Platinum card is very much a "I might not keep this" card (it would be hard for getting 5x flights spend = $400 over an Amex Green at 3x, I might well be buying AMEX at well over 2 cents per mile), and to be honest, I may eventually angle to end up with the AMEX $95 Bonvoy as a downgrade from Brilliant as the "keeper" card (I am not sure the 50k night certificate is worth $55 over a 35k night certificate- but $300+50k certificate might be worth $450 if I can get 3 nights out of it).
Apples and bowling balls comparing Platinum and Brilliant. While there is some slight overlap in benefits, they are quite different products and not mutually exclusive. If you're more of a road-tripper than flyer, Platinum may make little sense.
The 50k certificate can be worth hundreds of dollars more than the 35k certificate. Last year I used mine to cover one of the nights in a $800/night Ritz-Carlton.
With Platinum status, you're looking at a minimum of 21x points for stays when paying with the Marriott card, plus welcome gift of 1000 points (500 at a couple of the cheap brands) and points from frequent Marriott promos. Definitely works out to at least a free night at comparable properties for every 3-4 nights paid.