Marriott Bonvoy’s elite breakfast benefit is already complicated enough under normal circumstances. Now it’s getting even more inconsistent, with at least one St. Regis property no longer honoring one of the most valuable elite perks…
St. Regis hotel cuts free breakfast for Platinums and above
As of March 1, 2025, the St. Regis Macao will no longer offer Bonvoy Platinum, Titanium, and Ambassador members, complimentary breakfast. Specifically, complimentary breakfast is typically offered as part of the welcome amenity at St. Regis properties, with other choices being a modest number of points or a local gift.
At this property, members will soon just have the choice of points or a local gift, with no option for complimentary breakfast. However, members will reportedly be given a discount on breakfast.
Here’s how a note on the hotel’s website describes this:
Starting March 1, 2025, welcome gifts for Platinum, Titanium and Ambassador Marriott Bonvoy Elite Members have a choice of bonus points or a local amenity. Platinum and above Elite Members can also enjoy a discounted price for breakfast at the Manor.
The FlyerTalk member who noticed this change reports the following:
So I call the hotel and speak with the duty manager, he advised it will be a worldwide change, and St. Regis Macao is the first hotel to put it on trial. The new welcome gift will be 3000 points or local amenity, and also a 20% discount of breakfast. While asking if it will breach the elite benefits guarantee, he advised flexibility will be provided at the starting stage and breakfast will still be honoured if members insist.
Ordinarily the welcome amenity would be 1,000 points, so at least that’s being tripled to 3,000 points. Still, at a valuation of 0.7 cents per point, that’s like $21 worth of points, which is going to be a lot less than most people value breakfast for two people for the duration of the stay.
Unlike what the manager reportedly claimed, Marriott shares that this isn’t in fact a worldwide change, and this is something being done specifically by this hotel.
What should we make of this breakfast benefit change?
Let me once again emphasize that Marriott claims this change is specific to this one property as of now, so I have a couple of thoughts on that.
First of all, it’s interesting that Marriott is seemingly fine with individual properties setting their own rules around breakfast, and violating the brand standard. In the past, we’ve seen some newly opened St. Regis properties (like the St. Regis Chicago) try to not offer breakfast, arguing that the restaurant is run by a third party. But to see an existing hotel eliminate the benefit is something that I haven’t seen before.
I’m curious, what makes this property special, in that regard? Is there just such a high percentage of elite members, or why does Marriott think this is okay?
Along those lines, while this isn’t a brand-wide change as of now, I think many of us can’t help but wonder if that’s the direction in which things are headed:
- Among Marriott luxury brands, St. Regis offers free breakfast for elites, while Ritz-Carlton and EDITION don’t, and that comes down to precedent, as St. Regis is a legacy Starwood brand, and Ritz-Carlton and EDITION are legacy Marriott brands
- I can’t help but wonder if we’ll see owners of other St. Regis properties try to implement similar changes; after all, once Marriott is fine with one hotel doing this, what is there preventing other hotels from doing the same?
- I have to imagine that owners of many St. Regis properties are pushing for this change more broadly, pointing to the inconsistency between St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton, despite the brands being of a similar caliber
Bottom line
As of March 2025, the St. Regis Macao will no longer give Platinum members and above the option of selecting complimentary daily breakfast. While Marriott insists this isn’t part of a larger change at the brand, one wonders why this hotel received permission to make such a change, when it’s otherwise a brand standard.
So while this directly impacts those who are staying at this property, otherwise we’ll mark this as “developing.”
What do you make of the St. Regis Macao elite breakfast benefit change?
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