Friday newsletters always feature airline and hotel offers, luxury travel contests, travel tips, travel series, or luxury travel news.
Today (September 12, 2014): Travel Series: Starwood Hotels’ loyalty program (SPG) explained.
Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) is the complimentary loyalty program of the Starwood Hotels group. Members earn Starpoints and exchange them for valuable rewards when they stay at one of the 1100 hotels & resorts, across Starwood’s 9 brands in more than 100 countries: Le Meridien, Aloft, Four Points, Westin, the Luxury Collection, W hotels, Sheraton, Element, and St Regis.
In this overview, we explain the SPG loyalty program:
Membership tiers & earning points
Redeeming awards & travel for free
Pros & things we like about SPG
Cons & things we don’t like about SPG
Key points
SPG EXPLAINED: MEMBERSHIP TIERS & EARNING POINTS
SPG is a top class awards structure offering a three-tier system of awards points. Preferred level is the first level. Gold is the second level and Platinum is the top-level. Each level has benefits and as the member moves from Preferred to Gold then Platinum, they become more valuable.
Preferred Guest is the base level and will earn you 2 Starpoints for every eligible U.S. dollar spent at Starwood’s hotels & resorts.
Gold Preferred Guest is reached after completing 10 eligible stays or 25 eligiblenights in a calendar year. Eligible paid stays (or nights) and Award redemption stays (or nights) count toward elite status earning. As a Gold member, you’ll receive much more than a Preferred Guest:
3 Starpoints for every eligible U.S. dollar spent – a 50% bonus over base-level membership.
4 p.m. late checkout, so you can sleep in, relax by the pool or see more of the local area you’re visiting.
An enhanced room at check-in, when available.
Special elite customer service telephone line (available in most countries).
Choice of a welcome gift with each stay: Starpoints, complimentary in-room Internet access or a complimentary beverage.
Platinum Preferred Guest, SPG’s highest level, is reached after completing 25 eligible stays or 50 eligible nights in a calendar year. Eligible paid stays (or nights) and Award redemption stays (or nights count) toward elite status earning. As a Platinum member, you’ll receive more benefits compared to SPG’s lower tiers:
3 Starpoints per eligible US dollar spent, a 50% bonus over the Preferred level.
Upgrades to best available room at check-in, including Standard Suites.
Your choice of a welcome gift with each stay: bonus Starpoints, continental breakfast, or local amenities.
Club- and Executive-level privileges where available.
Complimentary in-room Internet access.
4 p.m. late checkout, so you can sleep in, relax by the pool or see more of the local area you’re visiting.
Access to Hotel’s Health Club / Gym where available.
Guaranteed room availability when your room is booked by 3 p.m., 72+ hours prior to arrival.
SPG signature Platinum Concierge service (call 888-625-4991 to help you arrange just about anything regarding your visit.
After 50 nights per calendar year, you will receive 10 Suite Night Awards which can be redeemed for upgrades to suites and select premium rooms. Confirmed starting 5 days prior to arrival and subject to availability.
After 75 nights per calendar year, you will earn 4 Starpoints for every eligible US dollar spent – a 100% bonus over the Preferred level, and the richest earning bonus in the hotel industry. In addition, you will have the flexibility of choosing your check-in: for example, check in at 9 p.m. and check out 9 p.m. day of departure.
After 100 nights per calendar year, personalized service – a so-called SPG ambassador – is provided. They handle everything from room preferences to restaurant reservations to special occasions. Just tell them what you need, and they’ll work to make it happen any day of the year.
SPG EXPLAINED: REDEEMING AWARDS & TRAVEL FOR FREE
You canredeem Starpoints for free or discounted hotel nightsat Starwood’s portfolio of hotel. The numberof Starpoints needed for a free or discounted night will depend upon the SPG category of the hotel (SPG hotels come in 7 categories). It typically takes just 3 stays to earn a free night award.
You can redeem free nights without black dates, starting at just 3000 Starpoints for a night at a category 1 hotel to a minimum of 30 000 Starpoints at a category 7 hotel.
You can stretch your Starpoints with Cash&Points, and book a seriously discounted hotel room using a combination of Starpoint and cash. Cash&Points nights start at just 1200 Starpoints + $25 for a night at a category 1 hotel to a minimum of 15 000 + 275 US$ at a category 7 hotel.
Award stays do count toward elite status qualification.
When you redeem 4 nights at select hotels and resorts, then your 5th consecutive night is free.
You can also use your Starpoints to upgrade to a higher room category, where available, for as few as 1,000 Starpoints or to a Suite for as few as 3,000 Starpoints.
The SPG airline transfer program allows you to convert Starpoints to frequent-flyer miles on over 30 major airline partners (mostly on a 1:1 basis), where you can redeem them for free plane tickets or upgrades. With most airlines, you get 25000 miles for every 20000 Starpoints converted, including a 5000 conversion bonus.
With SPG flights, you can redeem Starpoint to fly on more than 150 airlines, with no blackout dates. You will need more Starpoints to book a flight as compared to transferring them to an airlines’ frequent flyer program and book a flight from there, but you will not face the standard restrictions that limit most frequent-flyer awards. Plus, you can search for airline tickets whenever you choose, even during peak periods such as holidays.
You can use your Starpoints to bid on money-can’t-buy experiences and events with SPG’s member exclusive online auction site.
SPG members can now alsoredeemStarpoints for stays at Caesars Entertainment casinos and resorts. This includes destinations such as Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Lake Tahoe and more, with hotels like Planet Hollywood, Caesars Palace, Paris, Harrah’s, Rio and others. In addition:
Registered SPG members earn 2 Starpoints for every eligible $1 charged to their hotel folio at Caesars Entertainment hotels (in addition to Reward Credits earned through Total Rewards, Caesars Entertainment’s award-winning loyalty program).
Registered SPG members earn credit toward SPG elite qualification for redeemed and paid Caesars Entertainment stays, up to 10 nights per calendar year
You can redeem Starpoints with SPG’s merchandise partners for products and gift certificates/cards (amongst others: Avis, Sixth, Amazon Starbuck, and Banana Republic).
You can donate your Starpoints to one of SPG’s charity partners.
You can turn your Starpoints into free travel with Amtrak Guest Rewards.
You can redeem your Starpoints for in-hotel indulgences (at selected Starwood hotels) from a massage to dinner and more. Simply ask which Instant Awards are available when you check in, as Instant Awards vary by hotel.
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PROS & THINGS WE LIKE ABOUT THE SPG PROGRAM:
The Starwood Hotels’s portfolio is very impressive, with an unrivalled collection of luxury properties. St. Regis is one of the most exclusive ultra-luxury hotel brands in the world, followed by W hotels and the Luxury Collection in the more modest luxury segment, Westin/Sheraton/Le Meridien in the middle, and Aloft/Element/Four Points on the lower end. Discerning travelers will love SPG, but in fact, there is something for everyone.
SPG has one of the best run Best Rate Guarantee programs, which means you will always get the best available rate at Starwood Hotels when you book on an official Starwood sites. If you find a lower rate prior to, or within 24 hours of, booking your hotel room, simply submit a Best Rate Guarantee claim to SPG to honor that lower rate, with a choice between an additional 10% discount or 2,000 Starpoints. Finding a better rate is not difficult at all, as you can read in our tips how to book a luxury hotel at the cheapest price, and you can earn tons of free Starwood points this way (2000 per stay).
If you share an address, you can share Starpoints! Members of the same household can move Starpoints between accounts, so you can collect Starpoints faster to a redemption of your choice.
Starpoints won’t expire as long as you show account activity once per year.
The list of SPG’s airline partners is unrivalled, as is the 1 : 1 transfer rate. In addition, you receive a 5000 Starpoint bonus when you convert 20,000 Starpoints. As a consequence, one of the single best value of Starpoints is to transfer them to an airline partner to book free award tickets or upgrades.
Unlike most loyalty hotel programs (Hyatt, IHG Rewards Club or Marriott Rewards), you do receive stay (or night) credit for award stays (or nights) and these will count towards your SPG elite qualification. And Starwood has made it even better as you can get stay/night credit for up to 3 rooms at a time as long as they are under your SPG account number.
SPG often launches promos that allow you to earn double or triple Starpoints on your stays, so that you can reach your preferred redemption faster (make sure to read the newsletters when you subscribe to them).
There are no award blackout dates. As long as there is standard room available for sale, you can book it using your Starpoints.
You can earn Starpoints for wining and dining at Starwood hotels, even when you are not staying at them. In addition, most restaurants offer (up to 30%) discounts for SPG members. All you have to do is give the waiter your SPG account number. Keep the receipt as a proof in case your Starpoints do not post properly to your account.
SPG customer service is excellent (IMHO, the best of all big hotel chains) and available 24 hours a day 365 days per year. They response rate to inquiries is remarkable fast. SPG can be reached by phone, email, online chat, and social media.
The program has remained relatively constant for many years, giving guests the certainty that the reward they are after will not be pulled away from under them. You will never see SPG making unannounced changes overnight or adding 75% to its top redemption rates as Hilton did in 2013.
Every Wednesday, SPG publishes its SPG hot escapes, featuring great discounts and savings at selected hotels and resorts around the world (for stays over the next 6 weeks). In addition, registered SPG members will receive an extra 5% discount.
SPG and the frequent flyer program of Delta, SkyMiles, share crossover rewards:
SPG Platinum member will earn 1 Starpoint for every dollar spent on eligible Delta flights, plus receive additional flight benefits (priority Check-in, priority boarding, unlimited complimentary upgrades, and first checked bag free).
Delta SkyMiles Medallion members will earn 1 mile for every dollar spent on eligible room rates at Starwood hotels and resorts.
SPG introduced lifetime Gold and Platinum statuses in 2012. You need to have had Gold or Platinum elite status for certain number of years and meet the number ofnights requirement as well:
Lifetime Platinum membership requires 500 eligible nights total and any 10 years of Platinum SPG status.
Lifetime Gold membership level requires 250 eligible nights total and any 5 years of elite SPG status.
The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express is one of the fastest ways to earn Starpoints (only available in USA, UK, Canada and Japan)
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CONS & THINGS WE DON’T LIKE ABOUT THE SPG PROGRAM:
SPG is our preferred hotel loyalty program, because of the customer service and the reasons mentioned above. Nevertheless, there are some things we don’t like that much:
The major downside is the extremely expensive redemption pricing for its high-end hotels. A free stay at a Category 7 hotels needs a minimum of 30 000 Starpoints per night for a standard room (and villas at the W Maldives or St Regis can go as high as 90 000 Starpoints per night). Burning your Starpoints at high-end hotels is definitely not be the most economical way to spend them.
Apart from promos, the number of points that you will earn from stays is rather modest, especially in comparison to other hotel loyalty programs (such as Hyatt’s Gold Passport, where you will earn at least 5 points for every eligible dollar spent) and considering the number of points required for Starwood’s most luxurious properties.
Starwood Hotels are omnipresent in the USA market (good news for USA citizens), but its presence outside the USA is less impressive (although lots of non-American Starwood properties have opened in recent year).
While Starwood has about double the number of properties compared to Hyatt, its other competitors Hilton, InterContinental and Marriott each have 3 to 4 the number of properties compared to Starwood.
If you choose complimentary breakfast as a SPG platinum amenity, you will receive a continental breakfast, which is kind of odd when you stay at a resort or hotel where a full breakfast buffet is displayed for other guests.
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KEY POINTS:
SPG is one the best regarded loyalty programs in the world, so be sure to subscribe to it when you stay at a Starwood Hotel.
Always make a booking using a Best Rate Guarantee to collect tons of free Starpoints or throw in an additional discount.
Always subscribe to SPG’s promotions to speed up your earning rate of Starpoints.
The best way to spend your Starpoints is to transfer them to airline miles, followed by Cash& Points redemptions at more modest Starwood properties.
The worst way to spend your Starpoints is to use them for free stays at Starwood’s high-end properties.
Click to read our reviews of the Starwood Hotels around the globe:
Hotel review: St Regis Resort Mauritius
Hotel review: Mystique (Santorini, Greece)
Hotel review: W Barcelona (Spain)
Hotel review: Gritti Palace (Venice, Italy)
Hotel review: St Regis San Francisco (California, USA)
Hotel review: Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa, Dubai (UAE)
Travel Series: Starwood Hotels’ loyalty program (SPG) explained
Friday newsletters always feature airline and hotel offers, luxury travel contests, travel tips, travel series, or luxury travel…