Marriott Bonvoy & Postcard Cabins: Partnership Coming?

For now we’ll have to mark this as “developing,” but it sure seems like Marriott may soon gain yet another brand, in the form of a glamping-esque experience. Thanks to reader Steve for bringing this to my attention.

Getaway changes name to Postcard Cabins

A few days ago, a company formerly known as Getaway put out a press release, stating that it has rebranded as Postcard Cabins. For some background, this is a company in the nature accommodation space, with 29 locations situated within two hours of major US cities (find all the locations here). The idea is to offer unique, tiny cabins that are nature focused, allowing guests to disconnect from daily life.

Here’s how the press release describes the rebranding:

Since the company’s inception in 2015, it has focused on creating more free time through experiences in nature that feel picture-perfect, like a postcard capturing a special moment in time. The new name will build on that foundation and better position the company to scale and offer more opportunities to deliver those experiences that create meaningful moments of connection, relaxation and reflection in nature. 

Okay, to be honest, I hadn’t heard of this company, prior to a reader bringing this to my attention, given the interestingly angle related to a major hotel group. One thing is for sure — nature-focused tourism is on the rise, and it’s clearly something the major hotel groups are also trying to capitalize on.

For example, in recent months we’ve seen Hilton Honors partner with Autocamp, and we’ve seen World of Hyatt partner with Under Canvas.

Postcard Cabins owned by Marriott?!?

If you look up Postcard Cabins with the US Patent and Trademark Office, you might be a bit surprised to see who the owner of the brand is — it’s Marriott. An application was filed on September 30, 2024, so this is a pretty recent development.

So maybe I’m missing something obvious, but it seems that Marriott has quietly acquired Postcard Cabins. The rebranding from Getaway to Postcard Cabins also makes sense in the context of the brand potentially joining Marriott Bonvoy.

Marriott has long marketed vacation “getaways,” so probably doesn’t want that as the name of a brand, from the perspective of SEO and not causing confusion among consumers, if nothing else.

I have to imagine that an announcement is imminent about Marriott’s acquisition of Postcard Cabins, and that this brand will be integrated into Marriott Bonvoy. I guess the decision was made to first put out a press release about the rebranding, and then at some point the Marriott integration will be announced as well.

It almost seems like the press release from a few days ago is dropping hints about this, stating that the new name will “better position the company to scale and offer more opportunities to deliver those experiences.” Nothing helps with scaling quite like joining the world’s largest hotel group!

Again, this is all just speculation, and it’s possible that I’m missing something obvious, but… I doubt it.

Bottom line

Lodging company Getaway has rebranded as Postcard Cabins, and offers cute nature-focused cabins in dozens of locations across the United States. Interestingly, Postcard Cabins appears to be owned by Marriott, so I have to imagine that some sort of an announcement is imminent, and that this relates to the rebranding.

What do you make of the prospect of Postcard Cabins joining Marriott Bonvoy?