Marriott’s Truly Uninspiring 2016 Global Promotion

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Marriott has launched what it’s calling its “2016 Global Promotion” and if the hotel group was trying to see just how poor a promotion they could offer then they’ve succeeded. As promotions go I’m not sure if I can remember any that were as uninviting, uninspiring and as unlikely to get me to participate as this one.

To put it in context, back in October Starwood ran a Tribute Portfolio promotion which only covered 2 to 3 hotels (Is This The Most Limited Promotion Ever?) and even that was more tempting that this effort from Marriott.

So, now that I’ve got some of the complaining out of the way, what delights are Marriott offering up?

The Promotion

Marriott tends to tailor promotions to the type of guest it considers you to be so this is what I’ve been given (clearly I’ve upset Marriott somewhere down the line!):

“Earn up to 12,000 bonus points — and get a chance to win our summer sweepstakes.”

Details:

• Register by September 5, 2016
• Stay at participating properties between May 24 and September 5, 2016
• Earn 2,000 bonus points on every paid stay*, starting with your second stay, up to 10,000 bonus points
• Receive 2,000 points(a 20% bonus) after your 6th stay, exclusively for you as a valued Marriott Rewards credit cardmember
• Enter our sweeps when you register, and again with every night you stay: 100 members will win 100,000 points – for a total of 10 million points.

* A “stay” is defined as consecutive nights spent at the same hotel, regardless of check-in/checkout activity. See Terms & Conditions for more details.

To find out if you got this or any other targeted offer you ned to log into your Marriott Reward account and click on the “promotions” link at the top of your main account page:

Once you click on the link disappointment will almost certainly be waiting for you in the top left corner of the page that opens up:

What This Actually Means

• I get nothing for my first stay at a Marriott property during the promotion period
• I can earn a maximum of 12,000 bonus Marriott Rewards points for staying a minimum of 6 nights at Marriott properties.
• I get some entries into a sweepstake that I have little to no chance of winning…and if I do I’ll probably get taxed on it!

12,000 Marriott Rewards points aren’t even enough for a one night stay at a Category 4 property so, with this promotion, I couldn’t even earn enough for a free night at most basic airport Marriott hotels let alone a night anywhere I may actually want to stay.

Compare that to the recent IHG Rewards Accelerate promotion and the two a polar opposites!

Bottom Line

There isn’t a single redeeming feature about this promotion and I can’t honestly see why Marriott have bothered bringing it out. I guess there’s a chance that other Marriott Rewards members have been given better, more lucrative, offers but that isn’t the case with any of the people I’ve spoken to today so I have my doubts.

Congratulations Marriott, you’ve had some poor and boring promotions in the past but you’ve hit rock bottom this time. Way to show the incoming SPG elites what they’ve got to look forward to!