Wyndham Rewards' Revolutionary Program Changes: Good Or Bad?

"Earn at least 10,000 points per stay"

I think that's one too many zeros 😉

Like Carlson is so aspirational?

It's a needle in a haystack, but there are a few top-end properties in Wyndham's collection, like the Mills House in Charleston, S.C.

That's about it.

But again, all the serious Carlson fandom among the miles & points crowd makes me laugh. Carlson is basically a quarter-step above the Wyndham chain, if that, and only if you travel to Europe.

Here is what I wonder about. How does "no blackout" vs "capacity control" differ.

Let's take my favorite Wyndham property. Koloa Landing in Kauai. Was 30K a night. Local management felt that wasn't enough compensation. They have million dollar condos that can go for $500 and up a night. So Wyndam created a new tier just for them of 50K per night.(no notice)

No way will this property be ok with 15,000 a night! But let's just say that they are forced to offer this with no blackout dates. Could they load one room every night for a year and meet Wyndham's requirements?

If I were to stay at a better propety it would be SPG or Hyatt. I would not even consider Wyndham.

Now on occasion, I've HAD to stay at Wyndham because I had no other option for that particular area. The points for those properties were lower than 15K. So I don't like the change! I don't like Wyndham! And I don't forget about that massive devaluation - when it came without warning!

Sorry Wyndham but you are at the bottom of my list!

@Nick -- For some of us, "aspirational" travel is to go and actually..you know...get to know a destination and not sit in a hotel. No matter how flashy it is.

I've stayed at numerous mid-range Wyndham hotels and they're perfect for that. Have exactly what you need like comfortable beds, showers and towels, and no useless bells and whistles to appear high-end.

I hope this change works out, because then I can MS my way to $60 nights and Wyndham has a larger footprint then Radisson, which is the only reason I don't utilize their hotels as much as I'd like to. (although EVERY Radisson Blu I've stayed at has been on the par with most Hiltons, Hyatts and IHG hotels.)

This may be "revolutionary" in the sense that no other program has done it before, but it doesn't mean it's a clever, well-thought change. I surmise we'll see more lack of availability at their high-end properties and excess supply at their lower end properties. In a nutshell, it prevents the points and redemption market from clearing effectively.

I do welcome the change though since I have a few Wyndham points I'd like to get rid off. Now I just need to be one of the few lucky ones to book the properties in Hawaii first.

I'm sure it's true that most of their US hotels are shit although the last Wyndham I stayed in the US was El Paso airport - it was as decent as any of the other hotels in the area.

I have stayed at several nice Ramada and Wyndham hotels in Korea, Thailand and Hong Kong as well.

@atxtravel -- Hey, not really disagreeing with you on the value of non-"aspirational" travel redemptions, more just pointing out that Ben's disappointment with the Wyndham portfolio, and therefore the Wyndham Rewards program, is kinda skewed since everyone (including Ben) seems to LOVE the Carlson loyalty program even though the Carlton portfolio is hardly "aspirational" (and definitely not aspirational within North America).

atxtravel — not sure about the manufactured spend angle. You'd have to spend $7,500 to get a free night. That same spend on a 2% CB card would get you $150. How many Wyndhams go for more than $150?

Answer — is anyone looking at the Manhattan angle? For someone who stays there regularly, consistent $150 nights are a bit of a godsend. (Though Club Carlson is still the winner in this regard... but many fewer properties in NYC and only on 2-night stays...)

I don't want to thread-jack, but can someone explain, from the hotelier's perspective, how the rewards points work? Most hotels are franchised/licensed and not corporately-owned. When points are given to a member, do those come out of the hotel's franchise fees or are they additional? If a member gets extra bonus points due to status, do those come out of the hotel's pocket? And for redemptions, how does the hotel handle that?

Well I wouldn't be MSing for cheap rooms but in very expensive cities it comes in handy. Just depends on where my travels take me.

Also who says it's either or for MS? I can do the 2% card and a hotel card. At least my MS capacity is 20-30k a week.

Funny, my aspirational use of my Wyndham points will be at the State College, PA Days Inn. It's a pretty good Days Inn .... As far as Days Inn's go. Roughly $100/night normally, the rate skyrockets to about $500/night on Penn State Football weekends. However, currently 20,000 points/night (but I don't collect Wyndham Points) but with it presumably heading to 15,000 points/night, I'm going to start collecting. I'm surprised to see that football weekends aren't blacked out - so maybe a no black-out policy.

Too bad the Parc 55 in San Francisco left Wyndham. This is going to hurt the low end hotels where people will stop redeeming. And the high end ones won't list rooms for rewards. Lose, Lose.

@ David W -- Whoops, fixed.

I'm guessing that Wyndham is going to make very few reward nights available at their top-tier properties.

It's like the flat income tax. The simplification sounds nice in theory, but it would actually hurt most of us.

Wyndham just screwed their customer base with this change. It was not a good idea for the consumer but a great idea for Wyndham.