The Power of Points. We’re Going To See Billy Joel And It Isn’t Costing Us A Penny!
I’ve been a Billy Joel fan since I was a kid. I grew up on Piano Man and Scenes From an Italian Restaurant. While I was in high school (college?) Storm Front came out and I listened to We Didn’t Start the Fire and I Go To Extremes a million times as young folks do.
Fast forward 20 years and it’s been over a decade since I went to my last concert (Aerosmith and Kiss, in case you were wondering). And, even though I saw plenty of concerts when I was younger, I never got to see Billy Joel play.
So, when an auction popped up on SPG Moments for two tickets to Billy Joel at Wrigley Field, I was in! It doesn’t hurt that my wife is a huge Billy Joel fan. The auction was for two tickets in a luxury box. I’ve never actually seen a concert from a luxury box, so I don’t know what to expect. I’m old enough that there won’t be any crowd surfing for me, and I doubt Billy Joel concerts have mosh pits.
If you’re not familiar with SPG Moments, it’s probably the biggest thing I’ll miss if Marriott kills the program once they complete the merger between the two companies. The last SPG Moment I won was the best use of points I’ve ever had. I bid on (and won) a tennis lesson with Andre Agassi at the US Open. I can still remember the look on my wife’s face when she found out that she (not me) was the one doing the lesson.
It was unbelievable. Andre was very welcoming and friendly. He was a great teacher. And, we even got some priceless video when he scorched one past Michelle near the end of her time on the court. After that, we relaxed in the SPG suite and watched some great tennis.
Fast forward to this year and a winning bid of just over 50,000 Starpoints. My wife and I are super stoked to be heading to a Billy Joel concert. If you valued the points according to “appropriate” reasonable metrics, they’re probably worth about $1,000. I wouldn’t pay $1,000 for two tickets to a Billy Joel concert. But I still consider the SPG Moments to be a pretty darn good use of points.
Some might argue it’s a bad deal, since tickets can be purchased from around $70 up to $400 a piece. I have no idea where the SPG box is, nor do I imagine we can eat a whole lot of food and drink during the concert. We’re lucky enough to have Starpoints for an experience like this, something we’re unlikely to spend our own money on.
The Final Two Pennies
There are a host of cool SPG Moments available right now. I missed out on the redemption awards for US Open tickets (they have both straight redemption and auction options). Given Roger Federer’s resurgence, I might be thinking about those auctions. You can also use Starpoints for a Yankees-Red Sox Game, Jimmy Kimmel tickets (and hanging out in the green room) or score VIP tickets for Lollapalooza.
We’re fortunate enough to earn plenty of points that we can redeem some for an experience like this. The concert is only a couple of weeks away. I’ll be sure to report back on how the experience was! For now, I’m pretty happy spending 50,000 Starpoints to take my wife to a Billy Joel concert.
The post The Power of Points. We’re Going To See Billy Joel And It Isn’t Costing Us A Penny! was published first on Pizza in Motion
So fun! If it’s anything like the SPG boxes at the O2 or Staples Center, the box will be in a great location, and there will be plenty of food before and during the concert. 🙂
Tiffany, I’m very curious what the O2 arena would be like for an SPG concert!!!
Heh, conveniently I can help with that! 😉
• http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/10/05/spg-suite-o2-arena/
• http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2016/03/17/adele-concert-o2-london/
I had a feeling….I’m pretty sure I remember that Adele post. Thanks for reminding me!
I live 3 blocks from Wrigley and saw Billy Joel and Elton John when they toured together a few years ago. Wrigley is an awesome place to see a concert! I personally like being on the field for concerts, but the skyboxes are great too. You’ll have a great time. The Wrigleyville bars will be hopping so get there early and check them out.
Shaun, I can imagine that’s a great place to watch a concert. Thanks for sharing your experience!
Spending 50K starpoints on two tickets to a Billy Joel concert is a bad “value”. You can get three nights at very expensive properties like the Westin Napa Verasa which would easily be worth $1,500. Or, convert 50K starpoints to Marriott points and get a buy 4 get the 5th night free at all their properties which could easily be worth $2,000. But,..to each his own.
Captain, I’m pretty deep on SPG points, which I think changes how I value them. That, and the uncertainty of what happens to SPG after 2018. But, I can’t dispute your logic.
We did Billy Joel and Coldplay in Houston for 100k in Hilton which was a steal for excellent seats. Tickets for that show were about $750 each for our seats. A few years back we also got to go see Aerosmith in Dallas for only 5k in SPG and we had seats reserved for the band. I find that the Hilton auctions have a really good value depending on the show. Plus the do some really cool private concerts at their properties which are very cheap.
Perry, 100K Hilton points is an absolute steal!! 5K SPG points is a screaming deal for Aerosmith as well (one of my favorite bands)!
My daughter and I will be there, flying in from Colorado. We do have outfield seats, row 10 and are really excited. I got in on an American Express presale and feel real fortunate to give her this experience for a 21st birthday present. Post a follow up from the box!
Jean, I hope we’re both in for a great show!
“We’re Going To See Billy Joel And It Isn’t Costing Us A Penny!” How did you acquire SPG points for free?
Dave, I earn quite a bit from both hotel stays and credit card spend. I guess you could argue that I could use a cash back credit card, but the hotel points are what they are.
I was lucky enough to see Billy Joel when I was a college freshman (1987). It’s one of my best college memories. I wasn’t a huge fan before the concert, but my friends wanted to go. This was in the days before the internet, Ticketmaster, and special presales. We got up at 4 am to go stand in line at the venue to try for good seats. We were disappointed to find a lot of other people got there first. Then it was announced that everyone would be given a number and a lottery would be held. When your number got called you could purchase seats. We figured we’d probably be doomed to nose-bleed seats even after getting up at an ungodly hour. Boy were we shocked when our number got called!!! We got the last floor seats and in the THIRD ROW!!!!
It was an AMAZING concert. He is a real showman. I’ve been a fan ever since. Have a great time!!
Cynthia, that’s a great story! I’m old enough to relate to those ticket stories. I can remember standing in line outside Tower Records to buy albums (yes, albums!) at midnight when the popular ones launched. Back before I was in bed every night well before midnight! Can’t wait for Billy Joel!
My wife and i saw Billy Joel at Madison Sq Garden this year. First time I saw him after listening to the music since the release of Piano Man and then found cold spring harbor on 8 track. The show was incredible, and he sounds fantastic, puts on a great show. I paid a lot for the tickets for preferential treatment, they placed us on the floor very close to the stage, after the first song everyone in front of us stood up which somewhat spoiled the overall experience. I would have preferred a box seat. I also saw the SPG moments posting if it had been for NY or Philadelphia I would have gone for it. You will love the show, and no one said anything about recording some of it on my iPhone.
I also used my points for Adele at the O2, I had planned to be in London around then. Unfortunately, I was still dealing with the side effects of radiation at the time. I gave the tickets to a friend SPG was very accommodating allowing me to make the change. My friend said the show was excellent as well as the seats. The following year I stayed at the brand new Intercontinental connected to the O2 Arena. Beautiful hotel not near very much, certainly worth staying at if you see a show there. Not too far away, yes I realize I am getting way off the topic, was my favorite attraction in Greenwich, the timer Meridian, was fascinating.