Back in October, several entities wrote that Marriott International had acquired the City Express brand portfolio. Founded in 2002, the brand, which is focused on the Caribbean and Latin America, claims to be, “…the biggest growth hotel chain in its category – lowcost travelers segments.” That acquisition is now complete, and Marriott International will soon be launching its 31st brand, City Express by Marriott.
Meanwhile, other entities recently wrote that Hyatt is acquiring UK boutique hotel booking site, Mr. and Mrs Smith. Founded 20 years ago, the online specialist offers direct booking to 1,500 hand-picked boutique and luxury properties.
I’m sure that in the frequent traveler world, the acquisition of a booking site that specializes in boutique and luxury properties is much more exciting than a hotel chain that caters to low-cost travelers. Just the same as news about Emirates’ first- and business-class seats spark more interest in frequent flyers than when Spirit announces a new segment.
Personally, I couldn’t care less about the Mr. & Mrs. Smith thing.
Don’t get me wrong; I mean, good for them. But getting 1,500 boutique hotels is just going to be another place for people with lots of Hyatt points to spend their points. So, yay for them, but really, in the big scope of things, big, fat hairy deal; it’s just more spoils for those who can afford to stay at places like that (no offense intended; sometimes we are those people).
That City Express thing, though? That’s a big deal to a whole lot more people.
“We are thrilled to expand our portfolio into the fast-growing affordable midscale segment,” said Leeny Oberg, Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Development, Marriott International. “Our goal is to be everywhere our guests want us to be, with the right property in the right location at the right price point.”
Hear me out. Not everyone has a bajillion points to throw at fancy schmancy places. Hotel companies know that. Know how many St. Regis hotels there are? (I fully realize that if you’re reading this, you might) About 60. There are 108 Ritz-Carltons. Courtyard by Marriott properties? Over 1,200. Best Westerns? About 4,500. That’s because more people are willing and able to stay at 2-to-3-to-4-star hotels than fancy schmancy 5-star places.
City Express has over 150 properties in Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia and Chile. It includes 17,356 rooms across more than 75 cities. Never mind the domestic travelers from those respective countries who can now get a taste of Marriott Bonvoy (hopefully without being #Bonvoyed). This allows another mid-range option for people who’ve wanted to travel to those countries – who (who knows?) might be Marriott loyalists – to have somewhere affordable for them to stay. Or to stay for a longer period of time because it costs fewer points (or money) per night. That gives THEM the ability to travel internationally, possibly for the first time.
So as far as I’m concerned, nearly 17,500 low-to-mid-range rooms are going to positively affect the masses more than Hyatt gaining even more 5-star boutique hotels, luxury villas and one-off experiences.
If you’re a Hyatt Globalist or anyone else with a bajillion points, you probably disagree with the importance of this. That’s OK though – that’s why we call our blog Your Mileage May Vary. 😉
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