There were a lot of competing forces at the table as Marriott worked to fold Starwood Preferred Guest into a consolidated program with Marriott and Ritz-Carlton. This article takes an in-depth look at how they threaded that needle.
Merger
Alaska Airlines-Virgin America Merger Approved. What It Means For Frequent Travelers
Alaska Airlines and DOJ have come to an agreement that should clear the way for the merger between Alaska Airlines and Virgin America. How does this affect customers?
How To Transfer Points From Starwood Preferred Guest To Marriott Rewards
There’s been a lot going on with Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest since the merger between the two hotel companies was finalized. It’s only been about a month since the merger was finally approved. Immediately thereafter, Marriott and Starwood Preferred Guest had great news for us about using our points at both chains. They provided an immediate path to link your Marriott Rewards (or Ritz-Carlton Rewards) account with your Starwood Preferred Guest account. In case you haven’t linked your accounts yet, follow these steps and do it now. A couple of weeks […]
Cheap Flights To Europe, Healthy Food That Tastes Good And The TSA Still Stinks
The Best of the Rest is my effort to summarize all the travel/miles & points stories that interested me on a daily basis but didn’t have time to write about in length. Culled from over 100 blogs/authors I follow, some are passed along without comment, while I add my analysis to others. This is your shortcut to find out what’s going on in the travel world without having to read dozens of travel blogs to get all the best info.
A Surprising Tidbit On Anbang’s Failed Offer For Starwood
You don’t hear about large Chinese companies acquiring US companies often. There are plenty of folks in the know that say the Chinese haven’t really had the experience on big stages for mergers & acquisitions. Is that what was at play in the failed attempt to acquire Starwood?
Anbang Withdraws Without Explanation, Leaves Marriott As The Victor In The Starwood Soap Opera
In the almost daily soap opera that was the struggle for control of Starwood Hotels, Anbuang has walked away from the bidding process as the highest bidder. It’s a bit surprising to see Anbang pull out this quickly after making their most recent offer. We now have more clarity around the future of Starwood Preferred Guest.
Starwood Soap Opera Continues. Chinese Insurer Submits Likely Superior Bid (Again)
Does Marriott have any more ammunition left for another offer on Starwood Hotels? Anbang has moved into a superior position again in the quest for Starwood less than 10 days from a shareholder vote on the Marriott offer.
Marriott Increases Their Bid To Buy Starwood. The Game Is Still On!
It seems like every day we’re either talking about Marriott and SPG or travel to Cuba. The big story this morning is Marriott increasing their offer to buy Starwood Hotels.
New Planes And Low Fuel Continue To Headline American Airlines Earnings
Lots of bits and pieces to digest from this morning’s 2015 4th quarter earnings conference call for American Airlines. New airplanes and low fuel continue to be headlines. In no specific order: American Airlines plans to pay $1.20-$1.25/gallon for fuel in 2016 which would yield $2B in fuel savings in 2016. That’s massive. And yet, Scott Kirby and Doug Parker continue to emphasize that they believe they can be more profitable when fuel prices go up. Despite record results, AA is getting killed in Latin America. PRASM (Passenger Revenue per Available Seat […]
Pizza In The News: Talking American Airlines Changes
There have been plenty of big changes in the travel world over the past few weeks. We had changes from American Airlines that we expected, but didn’t expect until next year (maybe that’s hope?). To follow that up, we had Marriott surprise everyone by swooping in to snatch up Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Pizza in the News is back to discuss it. These changes are sure to cause a lot of confusion and disappointment amongst travelers. The folks at Fox News’ Happening Now had me back on today to discuss […]
