Loyalty programs use the carrot/stick method to get members to do what they want. And what hotels want most is for members to book directly with the hotel and not use a third party, such as an Online Travel Agency (Expedia, Hotels.com) or a Credit Card Portal (Capital One, Citi, Chase, AMEX).
Hotels will provide extra benefits, like free internet, for booking direct. In case this was not enough incentive, they’ll also punish their members who don’t book directly by not providing any status benefits or points for stays booked through third parties.
Depending on the hotel and the savings, booking through a third party can still make sense. For example, if you want to use your Citi Prestige fourth-night free benefit, you must book and pay through the Citi ThankYou travel portal. This is what I did when booking a Courtyard by Marriott property.
Here’s Marriott Bonvoy’s rule about which rates do not qualify for credit.
Non-Qualifying Rates. A “Non-Qualifying Rate” is a rate a Member pays for a Stay in a guest room at a Participating Property which does not qualify to earn Points or Miles, as well as membership tier benefits. Non-Qualifying Rates are those booked using the following methods:
i. The guest room was booked through a tour operator, online travel channel or other third-party channel including, without limitation, expedia.com, hotwire.com, priceline.com, orbitz.com, booking.com, travelocity.com.
It was a calculated move since I didn’t need the night credits for status and there are no benefits at the property for people with status. In fact, I received a better room than when I booked the same property through Marriott as a Platinum Elite member.
During our stay, I asked the front desk staff if I could add my Marriott Bonvoy number to the reservation. She said I wouldn’t receive any points or night credits because I booked through a third party, but adding the number to the reservation “couldn’t hurt.”
When the stay was posted to our Marriott Bonvoy account, we did earn points for the stay.
As it turns out, the following room charges are eligible for points earned in the Marriott Bonvoy program even if the room is booked through a third party.
i. Charges incurred during a stay in a guest room at a Participating Property by a Member on his/her folio and up to two (2) additional guest rooms, including, without limitation, charges for:
A. Qualifying Rates for Stays;
B. Food and beverages (excluding alcoholic beverages where prohibited by law) and may exclude charges incurred at outlets that are not managed or operated by the Participating Property;
C. Direct-dialed in-room telephone and direct-dialed in-room fax;
D. In-room movies and video games;
provided the Member provides his/her Membership Number at the time of reservation or at check-in, stays in one of the reserved guest rooms, and pays for the charges.
I earned 10 points per dollar for food/beverages purchases plus a 50% bonus for being a Platinum Elite.
So as the front desk staff said, it can never hurt to add your loyalty number to a reservation, even if you know that you’re not going to earn any points for your room rate booked through a third party.
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