Chase Marriott Rewards VISA Fail

I mentioned in Part 2 of the annual Points and Miles update that Marriott Rewards was a program I hadn't paid much attention to in the past. But about six weeks ago, I received an offer in the mail of a free night and 15K points if I signed up for the $75 annual fee Chase Marriott Rewards VISA card. Since Marriott was also running a "stay twice; earn a free night" promotion, I was planning to direct my hotel stays this fall toward Marriott, even though they are usually more expensive than most of their competitors.

Well, not everything has gone according to plan.

I completed the application form and mailed it away back in early August and waited. It's always been my experience in applying for credit cards in the past to receive the card in 2-3 weeks, sometimes in as little as 10 days.

After about a month, in early September, I received a phone message from Chase. I followed the instructions to return the call, only to be misdirected several times through their automated system. I finally just pressed "0" and spoke to a customer service representative to explain that I had been asked to contact them about my credit card application.

The CSR said she needed to know my date of birth. I'm pretty sure it was on the original application, but whatever. I provided it and was told to expect my card in 5-7 business days.

Two weeks later, I received a letter in the mail stating that if I wished to complete my application for its credit card, I should call Chase at the number provided. I decided I wouldn't.

Now, it's not just a matter of pique. Or that I didn't want to waste time wading through an automatic phone system and waiting on hold. There's a larger motive at play.

All of us, in our role as customers, are forced to interact with large and distant corporations – cable, cell, and internet companies, airlines, insurers, and banks – electronically, through call centres and/or the internet. And when we have a question, concern, or problem, the experience is always time-consuming, usually frustrating, and often unfair.

Thus, I've come to appreciate the companies that get it right: that never or seldom make errors, whose customer service is easily accessible, and whose CSR's are trained and empowered to resolve issues quickly to my satisfaction. In my experience, American Express is a good example.

So when even the mere application process with Chase was problematic, even if those problems were minor, I asked myself: "What is my experience likely to be if I have a disputed charge on my card?" And I wasn't reassured by the answer.

So that's the reason I'm giving up on the Chase Marriott Rewards VISA card. Sometimes the points just aren't worth the aggravation.

You can now follow me on Twitter: @AeneasLane

Points and Miles: Annual Update, Part 2

Last fall, in Points 4: Double-dipping, I described how you can often earn points in at least two different programs for any transaction (My personal record is a quintuple dip). The principles I outlined still apply, but as I mentioned in Part 1, the specific example I gave of converting points earned with the Club Sobeys MasterCard to Aeroplan miles is no longer valid.

The reasons for joining multiple airline and hotel rewards programs that I explained in Points 5: U.S. Airline Frequent Flier Programs still pertain. So does my opinion about the value of Points.com. Personally, I don't use Points.com to track the balances in my programs any more. I've found another free site, AwardWallet, which is easier to use, works faster, and is more accurate. It will even keep track of flight, hotel, and car rental reservations for me, which I've found very useful. It doesn't allow me to swap points the way Points.com does, so I still use the latter occasionally.

I don't have the Amex Starwood Preferred Guest card anymore, so I'm not earning SPG Starpoints the way I described in Points 6: Starwood Preferred Guest Program. But, if I want to, I can convert Amex Membership Rewards to Starpoints. All the virtues of the SPG program remain. Ben Schlappig, who writes the One Mile at a Time blog, recently explained the best ways to realize the value of Starpoints in this piece on travelsort.

Since the beginning of the year, I've also collected a fair number of Club Carlson (formerly goldpoints plus) points. You can read about that and my legendary quintuple dip in this post from back in May. I'm hoping to pull off something similar this fall. I'll let you know if it works out.

Marriott Rewards was a program I hadn't paid much attention to in the past. There hadn't been many Marriott properties in Canada, and I generally find Marriott's rates higher, both for paid stays and points redemptions. But recently a number of reasonably-priced Fairfield Inns have opened in Canada that compete with Hilton and Intercontinental in the Hampton Inn and Holiday Inn Express space. Currently, there's also a stay twice, earn a free night offer and a 15K sign-up bonus for a $75 annual fee Chase VISA card that have me planning some Marriott stays this fall. And speaking of Hilton, a double points offer this summer meant our week in D.C. earned a nice bunch of points in a program that also had not been a focus for me in the past.

As I described in Points 7: Priority Club, this is where my hobby/obsession began about seven years ago, and it remains a favourite program for its ease of earning points (lots of bonus opportunities) and plentiful locations. I mentioned that there wasn't a way Canadians could earn PCR points with a credit card, but that will change this November when Capital One will launch $120 annual fee and no-fee versions of a PCR MasterCard. You can be sure I'll be signing up and letting you know which is the better value, depending on your circumstances.

If you want to know more about points and miles collecting and how to get the most out of redemptions, check out the resources in Points 9: The End of the Trail.

And one final point: unless you're able to pay your credit card balances in full each month, the interest you pay will far exceed the value of any points or miles you earn.

You can now follow me on Twitter: @AeneasLane

Summer 2011 Travel and Points Deals

Summer's finally here and I thought I'd present a round-up of the best travel and points offers available for July and August.

Choice Hotels has numerous low-cost locations across Canada and the U.S., often in small centres where other chains have no presence. Until August 11, if you stay twice, you can earn enough points for a free night in many of their hotels. Here's where to register and get all the details.

Best Western is another chain with many small town locations across North America, making it another excellent road trip option. Through August 14, you'll earn a bonus of 750 Aeroplan miles (in addition to the usual 250) for every stay. You must register through this link prior to your first stay and have your earnings preference (in your profile) set to earn Aeroplan miles.

You can also register to earn 1,500 Aeroplan miles for every $100 Best Western travel card you purchase before August 31. Combine these two offers for a five-night road trip at $100 per night and you'll earn 12,500 Aeroplan miles, halfway to a flight anywhere in North America. If you make your purchase with a credit card that gives you Aeroplan miles, you'll earn a minimum of another 500 miles.

If you'd rather have US Airways Dividend miles, Best Western has a less lucrative offer of 500 miles for each $100 card purchase. Register and purchase here. Make sure your earnings preference is set to US Airways Dividend Miles.

If you're staying at a Marriott before August 31, you can earn quadruple US Airways miles with each stay, starting with the second. Registration and full T&C's are here.

And, until June 30, you'll receive a 100% bonus when you buy US Airways miles, effectively making them half-price. Usually buying miles is not a good idea, but if you've ever wanted to fly to Europe or Asia in First or Business class, this can be a bargain way of doing it.

Hertz is not always the cheapest option when you're looking to rent a car, but I have used them on several occasions and have found their service to be better than some other companies (which I won't name here). Here's an offer for a 40% discount and a big bunch of Delta SkyMiles. Check it out to see if it's worth it for you.

Here's a site that I'm in the process of test driving for an upcoming trip. Several travel bloggers whose advice I trust have recommended it: AutoSlash. Basically, you enter the location and dates you wish to rent a car and AutoSlash gives you a list of vehicles available from various companies. If you make a booking, AutoSlash will continue to monitor rates and if they drop will notify you. If you wish to take advantage of the lower rate, you tell them. They'll cancel the previous reservation and make you a new one. There's no obligation on your part: unlike a hotel reservation, you don't provide your credit card. Here's what The Points Guy had to say about his recent experience with AutoSlash.

And finally, Great Canadian Hotels is offering a coupon for a free night if you stay two nights before September 5. Plus, if you book by June 30, they'll give you a $25 hotel credit. All the details are here.

More Winter 2011 Points and Miles Offers

With Family Day long weekend and the March Break fast approaching, I thought I'd highlight some hotel and points offers that have come my way the last few weeks.

You can earn 250 American AAdvantage miles just for joining Best Western Rewards. The offer is valid until April 11, 2011.

Priority Club's (Holiday Inn, etc.) first promotion of 2011 lets you earn 3,000 bonus points for every three nights you stay, up to 30,000 bonus points for 30 nights. It's good for hotel stays from February 1 to April 30, 2011. You have to register via this link: Priority Club 2011-Q1 Bonus Points Promotion registration link.

Priority Club is also offering an easy 500 points for completing three simple surveys. Click this link to find the Flyertalk post with links to the surveys and anwers. Points post right away.

Until April 13, 2011 Choice Privileges (the loyalty program of Comfort Inn, EconoLodge, Clarion, Quality, and several others) is awarding triple points after your second stay. If you're planning a road trip south and back in the next few months, this is potentially a very valuable offer as these are generally budget properties common at Interstate exits. You can join and register for the offer via this link.

Carlson Hotels' Radisson chain is offering 10,000 bonus Goldpoints through February 28, 2011 for booking the "Experience the World of Radisson" promotion. Here's the link.

Air Canada's Winter Extravelganza lets Aeroplan members earn double miles and other bonuses if they register and fly selected routes between now and April 30, 2011. Details are available here.

Marriott Hotels Weekend Bonus offers a $100 Bonus Bucks coupon good toward a future two-night weekend getaway as well as up to $100 off airfare. Just spend a Friday or Saturday night at participating JW Marriott or Marriott Hotels & Resorts. Book by February 11, 2011, and stay from February 10 through March 27, 2011. Details are here.

I haven't written about Wyndham Rewards before. It's the loyalty program of such well-known chains as Ramada, Super 8, Howard Johnson, Travelodge, and Days Inn. Until April 30, 2011, members earn double points with their second stay, triple points with their third, and quadruple points with their fourth. Like the Choice Hotels offer, this one also has great potential for Florida-bound snowbirds, as these hotels are also common along the Interstates. You can join the program and register for the promotion here.

And for the truly adventurous, Hyatt is offering 2,000 bonus Gold Passport points for a stay at the Grand Hyatt Cairo. The offer is good until April 15, 2011. Details are available via this link.

Safe travels.

Winter 2011 Points and Miles Offers

If you've been thinking about a weekend winter getaway, most of the hotel chains have recently announced their first quarter promotions.

Hilton HHonors is offering double the usual 10 points per $1 spent on a two-night stay, triple on a three-night, and quadruple for a four-night. The offer is good for stays up until March 31. Registration is required via this link.

Hilton HHonors is unique among hotel loyalty programs in that it features "double-dipping". With HHonors, you always earn both HHonors points as well as miles in the airline program of your choice. And Delta SkyMiles is simultaneously offering 1,000 SkyMiles for a one-night stay, 1,500 for a two-night, and 2,000 for a three-night. Separate registration is required for this offer via this link.

So for a two night stay at a Hilton property (Hilton, DoubleTree, Embassy Suites) costing $125 per night, you would earn 5,000 HHonors points and 1,500 Delta SkyMiles. Fewer points are offered for stays at Hampton Inn and Homewood Suites.

Membership in both the HHonors and SkyMiles programs are required, of course, but enrollment is fast and simple. You can join HHonors from either of the links above while registering for the offers. Here's a link to join SkyMiles.

Starwood Hotels (Sheraton, Westin, etc.) have an offer for Starwood Preferred Guest members. Until April 15, all stays earn double SPG points. That means 4 points per $1 spent. Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights earn an additional 500 bonus points per night.

A two weekend-night stay at $125 per night earns 1,000 base points plus 1,000 bonus points. Free nights at Starwood hotels begin at 2,000 points, though most are in the 4,000-10,000 points per night range. Join Starwood Preferred Guest via this link.

Country Inns and Suites by Carlson does not have a lot of properties in Canada but is more widespread in the U.S. and offers free breakfast and wireless internet. It caters mainly to business travelers and tends to have locations in suburban business parks near the Interstate. Its loyalty program is called goldpoints plus. Until February 17, it's offering 10,000 bonus points for a one-night stay during the "Country Means Business" promotion. Register (and enrol in goldpoints plus) via this link. Read the terms and conditions carefully.

Radisson Hotels are also part of the Carlson chain. Stays at Radisson earn 20 points per $1, at Country Inns and Suites, 15. Booking online earns 1,000 bonus points. Free stays start at 15,000 points. You can book stays with a combination of points and cash.

Marriott is one of the world's largest chains, but is underrepresented in Canada. And I find its properties to be generally more expensive than the competition. But between February 1 and April 30 Marriott is rolling out its Megabonus promotion. Stay twice and earn a free night. Register (and enrol, if you're not a member) via this link.

No word yet from Hyatt and IHG (Holiday Inn), but if they announce anything good, I'll let you know.