Improving Ambassador Status and Marriott Bonvoy Program (Long Overdue)

Loyalty is a two way street. In any relationship, and that includes a hotel loyalty program like Marriott Bonvoy , it is not enough if one person gives and gives and the other just takes and takes. What that implies is, it is certainly not fair for the customer to continue giving their hard earned money repeatedly and steadfastly to 万豪酒店 and in return, not get much in terms of benefit, especially the Ambassador elite members who have to in addition to 100 nights, spend $20,000 at Marriott Hotels to qualify for that status which is no loose change and quite the hefty amount. Having been an Ambassador elite member for two years now, staying 219 nights in 2021 and 360 days and counting in 2022, I can safely say that I am an expert in this regard and I feel without question that my loyalty is not being valued. Here are my following suggestions to improve both Ambassador status and the program based on my experiences.

Improving Ambassador status

1. This should have been obvious and should be rectified immediately. A silver elite gets 10% bonus on points, Gold elite gets 25% bonus on points, Platinum elite gets 50% bonus on points, Titanium elite gets 75% bonus on points, you would think seeing the trajectory, that Ambassador elite gets 100% bonus on points? Wrong. They only get 75%, same as the titanium and that is patently unfair and ridiculous. What is Marriott trying to imply here, that even after paying an extra $20,000, Ambassador elite is just on par with Titanium status? Every other status has a bonus differentiator except Ambassador? This is frankly insulting and should be done away with immediately. Ambassador elites should be given 100% bonus points.
2. One of my biggest gripes with the Marriott bonvoy program in general is that Platinum and above status do not get free breakfast at Ritz Carlton and Edition properties. Now that the Amex US bonvoy brilliant card automatically grants its cardholders Platinum status, which in effect devalues the status, not to mention overcrowding at lounges, it is imperative that Ambassador elites get differential treatment, and they way to start is by giving Ambassador members free breakfast at Ritz Carlton and Edition properties. Let me go one step ahead and also state that it is my strong belief that Ambassador members like myself, people who stay 200 to 300 nights plus in a year, even deserve free access to Ritz Carlton Club lounges.
3. It goes without saying, and these are universal truths like the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west, that World of Hyatt is the best hotel loyalty program out there and one of the reasons for that is its Milestone awards where they give benefits for touching 70, 80, 90 and 100 days. That is simply incredible and I would very much like Marriott bonvoy to replicate that. For starters, at the 50 day period, they can add a Free night award worth 40,000 points, at the 75 day milestone, a Free night worth 80,000 points and at the 100 day threshold, a free night worth 100,000 points. And for people like me, just to incentivize us to keep going, you could add more milestone awards of 20,000 points at 200, 250, 300 and 350 days.. Milestone awards are a must.
4. The Ritz-Carlton, Bangalore is an exception to the general rule and provides excellent Ambassador elite benefits. They give high - tea complimentary, a free 30 minute massage once during a stay and complimentary pressing of 2 garments. I would like this to be the standard across all Marriott properties for all Ambassador elites. In addition, I want to take it a step further where for Ambassador elites, there should be airport assistance on Arrival and departure from the hotel side as I experienced from The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands which was wonderful. And also for city hotels, especially those which are within a periphery of 10 to 15 miles from the airport, there should be complimentary two way transfer to the airport. After spending more than $20,000 and countless nights, that's the least Marriott Bonvoy can do to thank us and make us feel special.
5. Finally, just like the option to earn Lifetime Globalist status in the World of Hyatt program, I would very much like the option to earn Lifetime Ambassador elite status with the Marriott bonvoy program. Exceptional loyalty for decades must be suitably rewarded and this is the right way to go.

Improving Bonvoy Program

1. Dynamic pricing is here to stay, whether we like it or not. I really commend Hyatt hotels for still sticking with awards chart, but I have resigned to the fact that Marriott has introduced dynamic pricing and there is no going back. However, I hope in 2023 when the program fully goes to dynamic mode, (2022 was kind of a beta test), they put a cap on the highest point redemption and not make it outrageous. Hopefully that is the case. Ritz Carlton reserve being bought into the point redemption was a good step, I also want to see the ability to book Bvlgari hotels on points as well.

2. This one annoys me the most, but Marriott must waive resort fees on award stays and point redemptions. Not only Hyatt, but even Hilton honors waives resort fees on award stays. Anyone who has stayed in Las Vegas or resort properties in Disneyland and Disneyworld will be familiar with the atrocious resort fees that are charged.

3. One of things I want Marriott bonvoy to implement is something similar to ' Guest of Honor' option that World of Hyatt gives its globalist members. I want Marriott bonvoy to give this option to Platinum, Titanium and Ambassador status members which gives us the ability to book for our girlfriends/friends/cousins/relatives hotel stays on points and grants them the benefits our status befits us, like free breakfast, suite upgrade and late checkout.

4. Marriott Suite night awards are a joke and I would like them to be on par with the World of Hyatt where 1 suite night award can be used to book a stay of maximum 7 nights. That would make it more worthwhile. Also when it comes to the breakfast offering, and this is specially true for families, Marriott should offer free breakfast to 2 adults and 2 kids. If not platinum, at least Titanium and Ambassador members should have this benefit.

5. Finally, I want Marriott bonvoy to improve their point pooling/sharing options. I am allowed to transfer a maximum of 100,000 points to a particular person, and also only receive a maximum of 500,000 points in a single year. This is downright ridiculous. Why put a limit on such things? I wanted to transfer 600,000 points that I had to my friend and was denied as it violates both the above mentioned rules. Hilton and Hyatt have much better point pooling options.

Final thoughts

I remember the legacy SPG days and I pine for an era where Loyalty meant so much. Now it just not only feels transactional but also less personal, less humane as well. Everything is about bottom line, revenue or cash flow. How can we squeeze the maximum out of customers whilst doing the bare minimum to retain their loyalty. The thought process instead should be, how can we go above and beyond so that our guests have a wonderful time and keep coming back again and again. I understand that the pandemic changed a lot of things, but keep in mind, Loyalty never changes and we are back to normal times, no more using COVID-19 as an excuse to reduce standards and benefits. They talk about Golden age of travel, I yearn for the golden age of hospitality. Hope David Marriott , Anthony Capuano , Stephanie Linnartz , Erika Alexander and Craig S. Smith take note and do the needful. As they say, hope springs eternal.