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21 Luxury Properties (and Counting) Have Left Marriott Since the Merger

JT Genter
JT Genter
Contributor
JT is a location-independent digital nomad traveling 250,000+ miles each year with his wife Katie.
Jan. 20, 2019
•
6 min read
Le Meredian Tahiti
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To say that the merger between Marriott and Starwood hasn't gone well would be a bit of an understatement. Not only were IT issues abundant a month into the merger, but significant IT issues continue to this day — more than five months after the merger. Marriott and Starwood have become incredibly hard to reach through social media or phone lines. At the end of 2018, Marriott finally caught and disclosed one of the largest data breaches ever with information for around 500 million guests compromised since the hack began in 2014.

Rather than focusing all of its energy on fixing these myriad issues, Marriott invested at least some time and effort into the introduction of its new loyalty name "Bonvoy," loyalty tier names and new logo — which I hope they didn't spend too much time on:

All of this has added up to quite a few formerly-loyal Marriott and SPG members swearing off the combined hotel brand. Not helping the case: the number of luxury hotels that have left the Marriott Rewards program since the merger.

With over 7,300 hotels worldwide, there's going to be plenty of hotels that come and go. Indeed, hotel "deflagging" or "reflagging" -- or changing to another hotel program -- is a constant in the hotel industry. However, there's been a noticeable amount of luxury Marriott properties that have left since the merger was completed.

Although a particular Four Points leaving the Marriott program might be disappointing to its loyal guests, that's not going to have a notable impact on the program. Instead, let's focus on which of the approximately 700 properties in Marriott's luxury brands of Design Hotels, Le Meridien, Luxury Collection, St. Regis, Westin and W Hotels have left the program since the merger:

Design Hotels

  • AthensWas Hotel, a Member of Design Hotels confirmed to TPG that it exited the Marriott/Starwood loyalty program in July 2018.
  • Les Bains, Paris, a Member of Design Hotels also confirmed to TPG that it left the Marriott program effective September 2018.
  • Nira Alpina, Silvaplana, a Member of Design Hotels was another property that confirmed to TPG that it left the Marriott program as of October 2018.
  • Hotel Bachmair Weissach, a Member of Design Hotels bailed on Marriott effective November 2018 according to the hotel
  • The Principal Madrid, a Member of Design Hotels, still has a Marriott landing page, but you're not able to book hotels with cash or points. Instead, it's bookable through the Small Luxury Hotels of the World, which is part of Hyatt. This switch reportedly happened on Nov. 14, 2018.
  • Anemi Hotel, Folegandros Island, a Member of Design Hotels confirmed to TPG that it left the Marriott program in late 2018.
  • Sir Joan Hotel, Ibiza City, a Member of Design Hotels also confirmed to TPG that it left the Marriott program in late 2018.
  • Hotel Americano, New York, a Member of Design Hotels confirmed to TPG that it "broke ties" with Marriott on January 1, 2019.
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Le Méridien

  • Le Méridien Tahiti is one of the most notable losses to the combined program. The property made our list of bucket list trips in August for its convenience when arriving in or departing from Tahiti. The hotel announced suddenly mid-October that it was rebranding as the Tahiti Ia Ora Beach Resort, managed by Sofitel, effective October 15, 2018. I had booked a stay in January 2019 for a review and it took two hours on the phone to be able to cancel the reservation and get my points re-deposited.
  • Le Méridien Re-Ndama dropped the Le Méridien brand name and disappeared from Marriott bookings in November 2018.

The Luxury Collection

St. Regis

W Hotels

  • W Dubai Al Habtoor City is one of three Dubai-based Starwood properties that left the combined company as of July 31, 2018
  • W Las Vegas, located inside the SLS Las Vegas since December 2016, closed in August 2018 to be reabsorbed into SLS, which also ended its partnership with Marriott
  • W Beijing Chang'an impressed The Points Guy just after it opened in 2014, but it looks like its run as a W Hotel might be coming to an end. As caught by Loyalty Lobby, the hotel is no longer accepting points or cash reservations as of Feb. 1, 2019

Westin

This is going to be an updated list of the notable Marriott properties that have left the combined program. Check back for updates and feel free to share any notable exits that haven't yet been included on the list.

Update 1/21/19: The list was updated to include Anemi Hotel, Folegandros Island, a Member of Design Hotels and Hotel Fuerstenhof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Leipzig -- both of which have confirmed to TPG that they've left the Marriott program.

Update 1/23/19: Four Design Hotels have confirmed directly with TPG that they're no longer part of the Marriott program: AthensWas Hotel, Les Bains Paris, Nira Alpina Silvaplana, Sir Joan Hotel Ibiza City and Hotel Bachmair Weissach.

Update 2/22/19: Hotel Americano, New York, a Member of Design Hotels confirmed that it left the Marriott Rewards program effective January 1, 2019.

For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter here: https://thepointsguy.com/mailing-list//

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    Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

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Why We Chose It

There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits.

Pros

  • 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
  • 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
  • Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
  • Solid welcome bonus

Cons

  • Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
  • Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
  • You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
  • $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
  • $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
  • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
  • $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
  • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
  • Annual Fee is $325.
  • Terms Apply.