Starwood’s Preferred Guest program has topped a list of the ‘best value’ reward programs from US website NextAdvisor.
Preferred Guest, a loyalty program which rewards hotel guests for their stays in Starwood-operated brands such as W Hotels, Sheraton, Westin, Le Meridien and St Regis, offered a worth of $0.021 per point when redeemed for a hotel stay.
It isvconsiderably higher than competing programs such as Marriott Rewards and Hilton HHonors, whose points were worth $0.008 and $0.005 respectively.
Marriott has won two major awards at the Frequent Traveler Awards, held April 28 in New York.
The chain’s Marriott Rewards scheme picked up the award for Hotel Program of the Year in both the Americas and Europe and Africa, although Priority Club by rival chain InterContinental took the Program of the Year in Middle East and Asia/Oceania.
Air Canada’s Aeroplan, Lufthansa’s Miles & More and Emirates’ Skywards were the big winners in the airline Program of the Year category, taking the Americas, Europe and Africa and Middle East and Asia/Oceania respectively.
International hotel chain Carlson is to relaunch its loyalty club with new rewards and perks for guests.
The firm announced February 14 that Club Carlson will replace its old Goldpoints Plus program from March 31 as it aims to compete with similar programs such as InterContinental’s Priority Club and Hilton’s HHonors.
Members will be able to redeem their points at an expanded number of Carlson properties, which includes Radisson, Country Inns & Suites and Park Inn hotels, as well as 80 Club Med resorts for members that join in the US and Canada and Carlson Wagonlit vacations for US members.
Independent hotel loyalty program Voilà announced that it has landed in the US January 11, setting the scene for increased competition in a new market that allows guests to earn points for staying in non-chain hotels.
Voilà, which allows consumers to earn loyalty points at some 250 independent four and five star hotels in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, debuted its program at two hotels in New York, The Court and The Tuscany.
Guests staying at either of the mid-market hotels, which do not belong to any of the major chains, will be able to earn points to redeem at one of Voilà’s other hotels worldwide, in much the same way that guests can earn free nights using programs such as Hilton HHonors or InterContinental’s Priority Club.
Luxury hotel chain Ritz-Carlton introduced its new loyalty program September 15, revealing some of the high-end names it has partnered with.
Ritz-Carlton Rewards goes “far beyond providing complimentary stays and airline flights,” offering a broad selection of unique travel experiences.
Fashion names already confirmed for the program include clothing brand Vera Wang and retailer Neiman Marcus.
