Starwood Preferred Guest is offering a sale for Starpoints, perhaps one last time. Here, you can buy SPG Points Sale at 35% off the usual price through July 2018, almost at the edge of the transition of the SPG program into the new Marriott Rewards program.
You have to purchase a minimum of 5,000 Starpoints to be eligible for the purchase discount. A maximum of 30,000 Starpoints can be bought every calendar year. This includes points self-purchased and points received as a gift from other members. Usually, every Starpoint costs $0.035 (INR 2.4). Under this sale, the price will drop to $0.228 (INR 1.56)
Does it make sense to buy SPG points?
SPG points are all about the flexibility they give you. Under the new program, the flexibility will be retained to a large extent. You can convert Starpoints to Marriott Rewards points in the ratio of 1:3, so if you want to stack up your Marriott Rewards account, then this offer gives you an opportunity to do that.
Then currently SPG points can be transferred to over 20 airline partners including Jet Airways, British Airways, Emirates and Singapore Airlines. The usual transfer ratio of Starpoints to most Airlines is 1:1. Additionally, you earn 5,000 bonus miles for every 20,000 Starpoints transferred to your preferred airline programme. The same value will be retained after the programs merge in August 2018.
However, the best value of Starpoints can come from the most apparent use of hotel points; i.e., reward stays. For example, The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa in Phuket, a category 3 Starwood hotel that sells for an average of 265 US Dollars (INR 17,000) a night.
A reward night here will cost you 7,000 Starpoints. You’ll only have to shell out 159 US Dollars (10,200 INR) to buy Starpoints under this sale.
That’s saving a 106 US Dollars or 6,800 INR every night. Moreover, SPG offers the 5th night free on all reward stays so if you book this resort on points for five nights you’ll only have to pay the price for 4, i.e., 28,000 Starpoints. Therefore where a five nights cash stay would cost you 1,325 US Dollars (INR 85,000), a five nights reward stay will only cost you 796 US Dollars (INR 51,000).
In the coming weeks, when the programs will merge, there will also be a big window from August 2018 when Cat 7 will be the topmost category, and hence some properties will become cheaper on points through the end of 2018.
Bottomline
35% is the highest point purchase value that I have seen SPG offer, and it is identical to what SPG offered last year, so if you are short of points, it may be worth stacking up. Also now that SPG and Marriott Rewards are interoperable, you may want to consider this as a way of adding up Marriott Rewards points.
Marriott has also announced the merger of all three loyalty programs in August this year. If you are a Marriott Rewards, SPG or a Ritz-Carlton Rewards members, here is some essential reading for you.
Are you planning to buy Starpoints at 35% discount? What’s been your best Starwood redemption stay?
Ajay, is the point purchase worth it now since the Marriott-SPG merger is happening and there is too much uncertainty on the worth of the points going forward? While 35% is too tempting, I personally use SPG points only at beach-side resorts. Else, it’s just the bed which I need at night and not worth spending valuable SPG points in city locations.
Given my travel visibility for next 2 years and what I’ve been to in the past, the only options that come to mind are Mauritius (Westin Turtle Bay & Le Meridien Ile Maurice); Bali (Sheraton Kuta, Westin Nusa Dusa and Laguna which has become super expensive in Marriott regime); Thailand (Sheraton Koh Samui, Le Meridien Phuket) or Malaysia (Andaman Langkawi or Westin Langkawi). Obviously there are Cat 5 and Cat 6 properties in Tahiti, Fiji or Maldives but it’s best to book via deals as significant discounts can be had for cheap.
I am not sure if worth accumulating now for these hotels. Opinions?
@Ankit, it depends on your value for these points. generally, SPG points should be able to get you good value in the overall Marriott system as well (1:3 is being retained). There will be a value arbitrage in the coming months when Cat 7 will be the topmost category before Cat 8 takes over next year.
i dont think it is straightforward as that- regarding “Cat 7 will be the topmost category before Cat 8 takes over next year”
Almost all bloggers are advocating purchasing points just for the sole above purpose. IMHO, marriott and spg are not that stupid – what they would do is probably release very limited award availability for base category rooms – so you would have to use points to book higher category rooms – and those points are going to be way way more
@Jay it is indeed that simple. And while other bloggers have affiliate links inserted for you to buy points, we don’t but we share the view regardless.
Is the SPG 5th night free valid only on SPG free nights or also on SPG cash and points redemptions?
@Anshul only on free nights AFAIK