The Starwood and Marriott merger is now a done deal (China’s Ministry of Commerce approved Marriott’s acquisition of Starwood), and today Marriott has launched a page explaining how the three loyalty programs (SPG, Marriott Rewards, and Ritz-Carlton Rewards) will be combined. Click here: members.marriott.com to access it.
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Summary
Let’s quickly go over the changes first. You can click this link to link your SPG, Marriott Rewards, and Ritz-Carlton Rewards accounts. After doing so, you can:
- Transfer Marriott Rewards or Ritz-Carlton Rewards points to SPG points at a 3:1 ratio, with no limits on number of transfers or total amount.
- Elite members can be matched, so elite status on one side can be automatically extended to the other program.
Elite status
The mapping of elite status across the three programs is shown in the chart below. SPG "Preferred Guest Plus" is an elite tier granted to SPG cardholders or by certain organizations, such as AAA and AARP.
After linking accounts on the site, since I am an SPG Gold elite member (earned through the AMEX Platinum card), I was automatically given Marriott Gold status, which also includes free breakfast. In addition, after getting Marriott Gold, it may be possible to start working toward Marriott Platinum; I haven’t tried yet, so I don’t know whether it’s attainable.
RewardsPlus
If you are SPG Platinum (Platinum), once you have Marriott Platinum you can also use RewardsPlus (sign up here) to further receive United Premier Silver. Don’t forget to enroll.Point transfers
The transfer ratio between Marriott and Starwood matches what most members expected—3:1 is a fairly fair ratio for both sides. Even Marriott’s top Category 9 hotels only require 15,000 Starpoints per night to redeem. The redemption chart for Marriott and Ritz-Carlton can be found here, and the SPG redemption chart is here.
Transfer Marriott points to SPG airline partners
You can transfer Marriott points to SPG, then onward to many SPG airline partners. This effectively works out to a 3:1.25 ratio for converting Marriott points into airline miles (except for United UA).
Transfer SPG points to United (United)
If you want UA miles, Marriott can transfer to United MileagePlus at a ratio as high as 2.24:1. If you use SPG points, that is effectively 0.747:1 from SPG to UA miles, but UA miles must be in increments of 25,000 miles. Useful if you need this.Final: Marriott more package
The Marriott More package (Hotel+Air Package) is a very cost-effective choice for people who need to stay several consecutive nights (5 or 7). With SPG points added in, more people can now accumulate enough points for this package. Consider redeeming one package to increase the value of both your SPG and Marriott points. If you are a Marriott or Starwood elite member, quickly sign up for all the benefits you should have!