Tag Archives: Marriott Hotels

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10 Day Asia Trip Report Summary (China, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan & Nepal)

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Good morning everyone, I hope your week is going well.  By the time you read this post, I will be flying Cathay Pacific business class back to San Francisco.  At the beginning of the trip, I flew Air China business class from San Francisco to Beijing.  For the last 10 days, I have been hopping around Asia and I visited these cities:

  • Beijing, China (1 night)
  • Yangon, Myanmar (3 nights)
  • Dhaka, Bangladesh (1 night)
  • Paro & Thimphu, Bhutan (2 nights)
  • Kathmandu, Nepal (2 nights)
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Great Circle Mapper: http://www.gcmap.com/mapui?P=PEK-RGN-DAC-PBH-KTM

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Keep, Cancel or Convert? Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card ($95 Annual Fee)

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Good morning everyone, happy Friday!  As part of my “Keep, Cancel or Convert?” series, I like to evaluate and reevaluate credit cards to make sure they still deserve a spot in my wallet (or credit card drawer). For today’s post, I was reviewing my Chase credit cards and noticed that the $95 annual fee posted to my Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card.  I have had this credit card in various forms over the last few years, starting with the $395 JPMorgan Chase Ritz Carlton Visa Infinite Credit Card, then to the $85 Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card, then to the $95 Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card, and now the $95 Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card.  Hopefully that all made sense to you.

Even though I do not love Marriott Bonvoy (even more so after the upcoming Peak and Off-Peak pricing goes into effect), I have continued to keep this credit card for the free night certificate.  I can usually get $150-$200 of value from the Marriott Bonvoy 35K Free Night Certificate.  I always call when an annual fee posts and ask the credit card company to waive the annual fee (a really long shot), provide a partial statement credit (occasionally), or provide a targeted retention offer (sometimes).  If you do not ask, you have a 0% chance of success – the worst they can say is no.  So, what did I get offered and what I learn from the call?

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Hotel Hack: Book Award Night When Only Cash Rates Available (YMMV)

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Good morning everyone.  This is a hotel hack that I have used a few times to various degrees of success.  It is definitely in the “gray area” of travel hacking (read Frequent Miler’s Blogging the Line post), but all’s fair in love, war, and award redemptions, right?  I don’t want to state any specific hotel chains or specific hotels that have worked for me, but this should technically be possible everywhere, but your mileage may vary (YMMV).  For this hotel hack, let me paint you a picture…

You are in the middle of planning your trip, the award flights are booked, the discounted rental car is booked, your activities are all planned out, but the hotel you have your eye on is not available on points.  Bummer!  Not to worry, there may be a way to book the hotel on points for the night you want.

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Image source: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0795957/mediaviewer/rm3400816384

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Track Hotel Free Night Certificates & Credit Card Annual Fees with my Spreadsheet

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Good afternoon everyone.  Last month, I was reading an article by Nick at Frequent Miler called Almost #Bonvoyed: a cautionary tale on free night certs.  In that post, Nick shared that after cancelling a Marriott stay booked with a free night certificate, the free night certificate did not automatically redeposit into his Marriott account.  He had to track down the cancelled reservation and call Marriott to get the free night certificate redeposited into his Marriott account.  Bonvoy!  Toward the end of the article, Nick stated, “You shouldn’t need a spreadsheet to track the history of your Marriott free night certs — but the reality is that you do need to stay organized with them.”

That’s when the idea hit me, I should create a spreadsheet to track my Marriott category 1-5 free night certificates… as well as my Hilton free weekend night certificates, Hyatt category 1-4 free night certificates, IHG 40k free night certificates, and Radisson Rewards anniversary points.  Here is my Hotel Free Night Certificate Tracker, maybe it will help you stay organized too.

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Hotel Review: Sheraton Grand Sydney Hyde Park

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Sheraton, the SPG-turned-Marriott hospitality brand, definitely isn’t the crown jewel of the Marriott fleet — especially in the U.S. In fact, most travelers would say that it doesn’t even come close to the likes of JW Marriott or even a W or a Westin. That may be the case, but there are a few Sheraton properties that definitely deserve a shoutout and one of them is located right in the heart of Sydney.  While the Sheraton Grand Sydney Hyde Park isn’t the world’s most impressive property, it just might be one of the most impressive Sheraton properties out there. Here’s my experience with this property, and why you should probably give it a chance next time you’re in Sydney.

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