Marriott Bonvoy Now Awards Half Elite Nights: Good Change To A Bad Policy

I still don’t understand why Protea Hotels are classified as a ‘limited service’ brand. I’ve stayed at several Protea properties around South Africa - Protea JNB airport, Johannesburg (Protea Fire & ICE Melrose Arch), Knysna Protea Waterfront, Protea Franschoek and the Protea Cape Town Sea Point. All of them had a full service restaurant onsite, room service and the Franschoek location even has a popular steakhouse on property (Hussar Grill). These are services Courtyard’s, SpringHill Suites, Four Points, Residence Inn’s, etc. don’t even offer yet they get full elite credit per night. Why is Protea considered limited service?? Make it make sense Marriott…

This is an amazing development! As someone who has many 1-night stays at Protea Hotels and consequently winds up barely qualifying for Silver despite 50+ nights at times, this is much appreciated.

Indeed, I have paid $300+/night at Proteas and come away with zero stay credits for a 1-night stay at times. Complete lack of logic.

Agreed. All Protea Hotels I stayed in (about 10 of them) were full service hotels with restaurants, some of them rather upmarket, and room service.

You forgot StudioRes, which earns zero elite night credit.

I agree, I just stayed at Protea Sandton Joburg, and it felt like full service to me. It was my first time at a Protea and I thoroughly enjoyed my stay. I didn't realize it was no considered full service hotel

All for the sake of elite status at 100 nights and a 8 dollar breakfast credit with a 44 dollar destination fee? Hard pass

I believe that Four Points Flex by Sheraton also earned 1 point per 2 day stay.

Will never understand the logic behind this in the first place. I get reduced points earnings on certain budget and extended stay properties, but 1 night stay should equal 1 elite night credit, no if and or buts about it.

If elite levels meant anything with Bonvoy this would be relevant. The reality is that they could offer two elite nights for one and it would still result in, "As Ambassador we upgraded you to a room with a partial view."

I think they should just provide 1 night for 1 night at all properties. I can imagine people not checking the details beforehand and getting annoyed and Marriott receiving complaints over it. It does not cost them much to give people the extra credits and be consistent.

We just stayed at two Protea properties in South Africa and Zambia last week so just missed this change by a few days. But I agree with all the other comments with my confusion why Proteas are not considered full service hotels. Both properties were on par with your mid range Marriotts that earn you the full credit.

Agreed! I live in Zambia and often need a one-night stay in a city, and the old policy was a strong disincentive to stay with Protea. Glad that will be changing now.

This is dumb. What cost does a night have? I recognize awarding points has a cost since owners pay for the points. But we've never been told before that there was an actual cost to awarding nights. They hand out full nights as credit card bonuses and then regularly do double-night promos. It makes no sense whatsoever to not reward guests for actually staying in a hotel.

@Ben, do you know if this is live? I just had a one-night stay at a Four Points Flex and that didn't seem to award the half night (unless it's awarded in their system but the display is rounded down to the previous integer?)

A night is a fraction of an elite status, so yes it does have some kind of a cost when you factor in the status benefits. I don't think it's very high, but the problem they're trying to solve is to avoid people qualifying with $50 stays (which is by the way possible with Hilton and IHG).

But to Sean M.'s point, sometimes these hotels are priced at $300 a night, in which case it's frustrating. Maybe the right middle-point would be to award full elite nights at those properties assuming a certain spend per night.