Marriott quietly made a change that’s likely to have a big impact on frequent travelers. Loyalty program members will no longer have elite benefits on stays booked through online travel agencies (OTAs). Will all Marriott properties be enforcing this rule, or will it be selectively enforced? Are you willing to risk it?
Sites like Expedia and Orbitz make it so easy to search for travel, don’t they? But, they’re not a replacement for a real travel agent. Nor are they a replacement for common sense. A recent situation yields some tips for how to protect yourself from issues booking with an online travel agency.
After testing out a members only rate in a few markets last year, Hyatt has rolled out a bigger commitment. Find out the details on this plus a cool new tech feature they plan to roll out shortly!
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,…
The Marriott partnership with TripAdvisor is an interesting one. Marriott is the only major top-tier chain to negotiate a direct booking deal with TripAdvisor (Best Western has one as well). What does this mean for the accuracy of TripAdvisor’s rankings? How about the future of companies like Expedia and Orbitz?
TripAdvisor has been shifting from a company that just provides objective 3rd party reviews to one that can book your next vacation for you. Now that Marriott and TripAdvisor have a deal for direct bookings, have TripAdvisor’s motives changed? Read more…
I’ve been testing a new hotel booking engine that I really like and I wanted to share it with you. There’s a lot to cover, including how it works, a first-time booking discount and a pretty cool giveaway. Full disclosure, I don’t make a…
Heard of Travelocity? Expedia? Orbitz? Of course you have. You’ve likely used one or more to book a trip. But, if you have a lot of hotel points, you needed to search multiple websites to find award inventory while you were balancing airline ticket prices….