The Marriott-Starwood merger has been an epic diaster, spawning a new verb: Bonvoyed. I don’t think a day goes by when my Twitter feed isn’t littered with complaints about issues with reservations or point balances.
It’s really amazing that Marriott hasn’t addressed these widespread problems and has instead focused on lobbying for awards and tooting their own horn. Basically, Marriott is acting like a delusional Millenial.
So what recourse do Marriott members have under these circumstances? Here are four things to do if you’ve been Bonvoyed:
Share your experience with Marriott
Complaints to Marriott seem to be falling on deaf ears, but that doesn’t mean you should stop doing it. When there is enough negativity on social media, eventually Marriott will realize the need to get it together.
Just the other day, MommyPoints had an incident with a reservation that hit a dead-end after hours on the phone with Marriott. Eventually, @MBonvoyAsssist was able to resolve it:
Time to buy a lottery ticket. My Marriott points are back and rain might hold off for the kiddo’s unicorn birthday party. Full Marriott story coming but short version is @MBonvoyAssist is your best asset when the call center gets you nowhere. pic.twitter.com/lb5cCPpULh
— Mommy Points (@mommypoints) May 18, 2019
A few people commented on her tweet, saying BonvoyAssist was also able to help them after the call center failed. This is good to hear because for months now, I’ve seen people on Twitter complaining about the Marriott social media team’s inability to resolve their issues. So Marriott is improving in one area, at least.
Use the Bonvoyed hashtag
If you do complain to Marriott on Twitter, consider including #bonvoyed. Most companies are at least somewhat conscious of brand perception and nothing damages their brand more than being associated with a negative hashtag.
#bonvoyed has become a reprieve for Marriott members to air their grievances. Seeing the complaints stack up under this hashtag will hopefully be proof enough for Marriott’s executives that the merger has not been smooth and things need to change. Fast.
Share your experience with Bonvoyed.com
Bonvoyed.com was created by frustrated members who weren’t getting heard by Marriott. It’s essentially a database of complaints that will make your head spin. Some of the things happening to customers are so ridiculous that Marriott would almost have to put effort into getting it so wrong.
If your complaint is too long for a Tweet, consider submitting it to Bonvoyed instead. Maybe one day a bored Marriott executive will browse the site and be as appalled by the experience of their best customers as I was.
Switch your loyalty
If all else fails (and that seems to be the case for the majority of unhappy Marriott customers these days), switch your loyalty. There are lots of great hotel rewards programs out there to choose from.
My top pick is Hilton Honors, which has over 5,000 hotels worldwide to choose from. Hilton also has the most generous hotel rewards program and the easiest way to earn free nights via credit card spending. Plus, earning top-tier status is as easy as picking up a Hilton Honors credit card.
Hilton Honors elites get treated exceptionally well. Take it from me. I’ve been upgraded every single time (except for once) I checked into a Hilton hotel.
Hyatt is another great alternative to Marriott. Earning top-tier status isn’t as easy as it used to be, but maybe that’s a good thing. It means when you check-in as a Globalist member, you won’t deal with some of the nonsense that Marriott elite put up with.
Plus, Hyatt has expanded its portfolio substantially, partnering with MLife and Small Luxury Hotels of the World. That gives you significantly more opportunities to stay with the brand when you’re traveling within the U.S. or abroad.
Final thoughts
The Marriott-Starwood merger hasn’t been smooth and by the sound of it, you have to book a session with a therapist after getting on the phone to fix the inevitable booking issues you’re going to have. Who needs that stress in their lives? There are plenty of hotel loyalty programs out there that will treat you better. Make the move, voice your complaints with Marriott, and eventually, things will get better….I hope.
Have you been Bonvoyed by Marriott lately? How were you able to get your issues resolved?
I bailed out of SPG points back when Marriott’s purchase was announced. Transferred my points to airline programs (twice when there were bonus incentives) and stopped using AMEX SPG for everyday spend.
Hilton is a great alternative, as you say. Grabbed their card while the bonus offer was inflated and started using it as my everyday card. I already had Gold through Amex Plat. Maybe in the future I’ll consider getting the card that comes with Diamon status.
I don’t like to cut off any program just because I might need to stay at a Marriott some day. Hopefully it’s way in the future, when they’ve gotten their IT and customer service issues resolved. But I’m definitely staying loyal to Hilton when I can.
I convinced my wife to get the Diamond status card when we had already booked at a Hilton resort, with the $250 resort credit, if you can use the airlines ‘incidental’ credit, the card pays you to have it.
Absolutely – assuming you utilize the benefits, they far outweigh the annual fee.
Great information. Although I haven’t bumped into issues with Marriott since the merger (except for getting my SPG/Marriott accounts merged), it’s always good to know what to do if I do bump into issues in the future.
Keeping my fingers crossed for you, Joe!
Player 2 just got Bonvoyed last night
I’m sorry! It’s really disappointing that this has become the norm.
Couple of questions.
– Is Etihad still part of one world? Thought it was moving to Star alliance. This changes how I transfer marriott points to AA miles.
– Once in a while, there’s additional 5k miles added to AA making it 25% transfer. Saw that with SPG, but don’t see this promo anymore during summer with Marriott.
That’s been a rumor so far. I’d still redeem those miles whenever you can (devaluations can also happen at any moment).
A delusional millennial? Fuck you. Go fuck yourself. Keep perpetuating stereotypes you worthless pleb.
Big dumb troll who doesn’t understand humor. Or irony. #delusionalmillenial
Upgraded every time you stay at a Hilton? Not in Europe (Paris)! Unless you consider meeting Ratatouille (mouse) in your room an upgrade.
I did get upgraded at the Hilton Charles De Gaulle…
All programs have negative reviews in some way. While the merger may not have been perfectly smooth, my family and i have had great success with Marriott in the last 6 years. Personally, i think you are just writing this blog to promote Hilton rewards. But that’s just my opinio .
I write about Hilton maybe once every 10 posts. I think it’s the best rewards program out there. It’s pretty undeniable that Marriott has been screwing up and leaving people very frustrated. MP spent hours on the phone only to be told they can’t help her. I’m pretty sure it was her status as a blogger that eventually got them to resolve her issues. Is that the kind of customer service you’d like to see celebrated on a blog?
Even Terri Alter agrees with me. Maybe only 1 out of 10 times you post about Hilton, but alot of negativity towards Marriott. Again, it was my opinion. By your remark, it seems that you are defending your blog. And by the way, it’s rare that people post the good. For example, no one calls customer service to say they had a great experience. They only call to complain. And that I know from personal experience!
“One wrong man can always find a friend.” 😉 I write mostly about MS. When it comes to hotel rewards, I prefer Hilton for solid reasons (i.e. it’s the easiest program to earn free nights with, they treat elites well, you can earn top status easily). If Hilton was as dysfunctional as Marriott right now, I would absolutely be calling them out on it.
People are more apt to complain, but I actually make it a point to praise good customer service as well (via social media, blog posts, customer service surveys, etc.). Hence my praise of Hilton. Credit where it’s due!
I am reading this also and it does sound like you work for Hilton. Just sayin”.
Because I prefer them over Marriott? I could say the same about Marriott fans. Hilton is my preferred Hotel program (along with Hyatt). Don’t understand why that’s weird.
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So I hadn’t received my personal SPG amex (now Bonvoy amex) free night since my card’s anniversary date was in August. When a Bonvoy Supervisor was asked, they said they reached out to a new “Marriott Bonvoy Amex Liason”. They said that I didn’t receive my free night because the Amex Conversion took place in February of this year, which is incorrect. Turns out there was another reason (my annual fee doesn’t come due til June), but this seems to be the service norm now.
Not surprising.
When I look out my office window i see Marriott HQ and I know folks who created the Marriott program many years ago. When the merger was announced they recommended I use my points sooner than later. Very happy i took their advice. I have 30k points left at Marriott and 800k at Hilton (thats after booking 12 free nights for the summer in Europe.
I figured the transition would be a little bumpy, but nothing like what’s going on these days.