Wyndham have announced a number of changes to their rewards program (aptly named Wyndham Rewards) all of these changes will start taking place on May 11th, 2015. Wyndham properties include the following brands:
Let’s briefly have a look at the three major changes that are being made followed by what I see as the good, the bad and the ugly about these changes.
- go free: With just 15,000 points you’ve earned a FREE NIGHT at any Wyndham Rewards hotel
- go fast: Get a go fast award at a Wyndham Rewards hotel for just 3,000 points plus some cash.
- go get ’em: You’ll get 10 POINTS for EVERY dollar you spend or 1,000 points on EVERY qualified stay, whichever is more
Now before we dig into these changes, let’s just refresh ourselves on what the existing Wyndham award chart looks like:
| Points | Reward |
|---|---|
| 5500 | One Free Night at Tier 1* Hotel |
| 8000 | One Free Night at Tier 2* Hotel |
| 10000 | One Free Night at Tier 3* Hotel |
| 14000 | One Free Night at Tier 4* Hotel |
| 16000 | One Free Night at Tier 5* Hotel |
| 20000 | One Free Night at Tier 6* Hotel |
| 25000 | One Free Night at Tier 7* Hotel |
| 30000 | One Free Night at Tier 8* Hotel |
| 50000 | One Free Night at Tier 9* Hotel |
The Good
- Top tier properties will be cheaper. If a property is in tier 5-9, it will now be cheaper under the new reward program. Obviously the higher the tier, the bigger the savings will be. Tier 9 properties for example will now have a discount of 35,000 points.
- Option to pay with cash + points. It’s not clear at what rate you’ll be able to purchase points, but it’s always nice to have this option especially if you have some orphaned points you’re trying to use up (although you’ll still need a minimum of 3,000 points)
- All inclusive properties will include meals and amenities for up to two guests.
- No black out dates or held back inventory. There will be no blackout dates and no held back inventory for these new award bookings, this means if you can book the room with cash you can book it with points (room obviously must still be a single or double standard room).
- Minimum of 1,000 points earned. You’ve always earned 10x points per $1 spent at Wyndham properties, but now if you spend under $100 you’ll still earn a minimum of 1,000 points. This will only really affect you if you have paid stays under $100.
- Gold status to be simplified. In the past the amount of “gold status points” you earned every 20th stay varied based on how expensive each stay was (and you’d earn a maximum of 20,000 points and minimum of 6,000 points). Instead now you simply earn 15,000 points (one free night) after every 20th paid stay regardless of how expensive it was. There is still a cap of three of these bonuses per year.
The Bad
- Bottom tier properties will become more expensive. If you want to stay at a bottom tier (1-4) property this will now be more expensive under this new program (by as much as 9,500 points for tier 1 properties).
- Cash + points rates will be flexible and no indication is given of how much points will cost. Being able to use cash and points is great, but if you’re paying 2¢ per point then it’s kind of pointless. The fine print states that the amount of cash required will vary hotel to hotel.
The Ugly
The thing that worries me most about the new 15,000 point go free award nights is the following piece of fine print (emphasis mine):
Good for 1 standard room at a participating hotel, up to room’s maximum occupancy, subject to availability.
Now that makes it sound like some hotels will not be participating and in general when this sort of thing happens it’s exactly the hotels that aren’t participating in that you actually want to use your points for. I’ve sent Wyndham an e-mail requesting more information on whether there are any hotels not participating and I’ll update this page with their response. Wyndham response below:
The only properties that are not currently participating in the program are the ones listed below (Planet Hollywood & Dolce). More than 7,500 Wyndham Rewards properties will participate in the new program. Currently the newly acquired Dolce properties are not in the program but they will be participating later this year. Planet Hollywood also does not participate.
The other ugly thing about this new rewards program is that Wyndham have changed their rewards program a lot in the past and it’s mostly for the negative. There is really nothing stopping them from making dramatic changes to this new program if it becomes as popular as some expect it to be. I always look at the track history of a company and Wyndham’s is less than stellar when it comes to looking after their loyalty customers.
Final Thoughts
I like simple. This new program is easy to understand and provides great value for people that aren’t interested in lower tier properties. I’m considering getting the Barclaycard Wyndham cards because of these changes and might consider putting some of my paid stays with them as well (free night after every $1,000 in spend + another free night every 20 paid nights sounds pretty attractive).
Since I normally stay at Days Inn level properties, this is a bad deal. I already booked my next trip with a different company.
This card has my attention. I will also wait and see if a better offer becomes available. Does Wyndham rewards have status for upgrades, etc.?