I just had my 20th night at a starwood property. My next stay will have 34 nights in it. Was just wondering IF I get 3 starpoints for every dollar spent starting on my 25th SPG night or this would only take effect AFTER I checkout on my 54th night. Similarly, will I get complimentary lounge benefit starting on my 51st night? If not, will paying AFTER my 25th night (but not checking out), have any effect? Or should I not do this (will this flag SPG?) I know the easiest way is to checkout on the 25th night, find another property, then go back for my 26th night-53rd, but I think my specially arranged rate is unrebookable. Thanks and have a great day everyone!
I suspect you may be confused. You seem to be referring to becoming SPG Platinum which results in lounge access and other benefits over SPG Gold. However, Starwood requires 25 STAYS or 50 NIGHTS in a calendar year for Platinum, so that hitting 25 nights in the middle of your stay won't matter. In addition, there seems to be no way that the property is informed of a higher SPG status that occurs within a stay, although mentioning it to an assistant manager might result is getting some of the higher status benefits as an optional discretionary goodwill gesture by the hotel. YMMV. The property is not required to do anything to recognize a higher status level that is obtained during a stay.
I don't think you're granted the status until the stay posts to your account after the end of it. So I don't think there is any status acquired half way through. More importantly, I seem to remember reading that the T&Cs stated that stays over 30 nights don't earn points, so you might want to split your stay anyway, or end up preferred and not plat.
I think this rule changed several years ago, although there still might be a limit at something like 90 nights in the same property. If you pay your bill weekly or whatever, the points and nights/stays should post, but to your current hotel, your status remains what it was when you checked in for your long stay. I'm not sure whether there's some way to get your new higher status recognized by your current hotel unless you leave for a night and return on a new reservation.
I just went back to the OP and realized that the same concern discussed here related to both crossing 25 nights (Gold) and 50 nights (Platinum). Sorry for not understanding that earlier. However, now my concern is the OP's special negotiated rate. My understanding is that such rates do not normally qualify for SPG points or stay/night credits, although this could possibly be part of the negotiation with the property. Can you see whether indeed you are getting SPG credit for your long stay in this hotel? I'm not questioning the length of stay being an issue but rather that it isn't a rate obtained through SPG or booked through their website. If it's a corporate discount, these rates do count even though they're not "published" (but they can be booked through spg.com), but this sounds like an individual rate for the OP's circumstances that was negotiated individually with the hotel's general manager or sales manager. IIRC the rule about more than thirty consecutive nights in a property not counting for SPG credits was eliminated about four years ago, but there might still be a ninety day rule in effect. A good place to start would be for the OP to read the SPG T & C carefully and then perhaps contact SPG Champion.
Thanks! I actually have my rate arranged by a Starchoice member (perhaps unrelated), but will again have her check the T&C of our stay. It was in our initial belief that this qualified for SPG stay/night credit. Hope the SPG Champion can also provide some guidance. Thank you all for your inputs!
You won't get the elite member benefits, including 3 Starpoints per dollar and lounge access, until your full qualifying stays/nights are completed and they get credited to your account. That is when the upgrade in status occurs, not during mid-stay. As to whether or not the stay/nights are eligible for stay/nights credit, the consensus of opinion on this end is that as long as the Starchoice member booked you an eligible rate, then they will count; however, sometimes this is bartered away by businesses looking for the best possible deal, so I can never give an absolute assurance without knowledge to base it on. Best regards, William R. Sanders Social Media Specialist Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide spgchampion@starwoodhotels.com
Thanks William! Understand fully that stay/nights need to be credited to account to get elite benefits. Just checked my SPG account in the SPG website, and in the "next stay," I can see the future stay I am talking about. I guess it's safe to assume it's an eligible rate?
You're right, I checked the T&Cs and section 5.11 states that it was a 30 day limit that changed to a 90 day limit in June 2008.
