I cannot even begin to effectively express my disappointment in Marriott’s recent decision to no longer issue points and stay credit for the TVL rate. I have been a loyal Marriott member since my first corporate job and have never strayed in 20 years. Even when my employer’s preferred corporate hotel is another major chain, as is currently the case, I still go out of the way for exception permission and stay with Marriott even at the higher cost the TVL rate often results in. In the past year four of my work colleagues who were highest tier at that competitor’s chain were willing to join me for a few stays and transitioned to eventually become Marriott Platinum after seeing what a great product Marriott has to offer. They all came over full board to include signing up for Marriott Signature Credit Cards as well. They have now since left Marriott as of this year with the policy change and returned to their former loyalty program where they feel more appreciated. Seems like a great opportunity lost by Marriott and is embarrassing to be the one who suggested they follow to have such an ending.
The TVL rate is often higher than many corporate rates and is quite limited based on hotel occupancy which appears to benefit Marriott in its application. For so many travel industry members who rave about the variety of Marriott properties around the world, the great rewards promotions, and exceptional service received this recent policy change is a slap in the face to all we have done to promote Marriott’s product. When I called MR just after this change took place I was informed and spoken to regarding this update in a demeaning fashion and made to feel quite the opposite of a loyal elite member for so many years. One would hope that my experience with that MR CS agent was a one-off related to the stress they must be enduring having to inform so many Platinum, Premier Platinum, and lifetime status members who inquire on this subject that Marriott has seemingly turned their back on so many years of loyalty. Is the cost of losing so many travel industry experts who positively advertise a great product and their experiences worth it? In a crowd of business executives who does one listen to in a conversation on a topic such as this? The occasional traveler or the experienced SME(subject matter expert) in the field? I sincerely hope that Marriott takes into account all who have expressed their disappointment with this policy change and reverses their position on this subject.