Starwood Luxury Privileges Program
The Starwood Luxury Privileges Program is a hotel collection representing the world’s largest and most diverse collection of iconic luxury brands including St Regis, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels and select Westin hotels that offer value added amenities when booking the Luxury Privileges rate.
The value added amenities and perks are only available when booking with select travel advisors (The Family Travel Guy is one of them), who have been invited into the exclusive invitation only program. The amenities and benefits are complimentary when you book through a travel advisor and you’ll get VIP status for your stay at no additional cost.
What are the amenities/perks?
When booking a Luxury Privileges rate at St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels and select Westin hotels worldwide, you will enjoy a suite of privileges that include:
Is there any extra cost?
When booking this rate through a Starwood Luxury Privileges travel advisor, there is no additional cost. Most of the time the price is the exact same as you could find online and in some cases, the price or overall value may be even better if there are special offers available such as free nights (every fourth night free, etc) or other promotions going on.
Sounds to good to be true? Let's take a look at an example:
I have plans to visit the Los Angeles area in December and wanted to stay in Hollywood. The W Hollywood is a great choice and central to all of the activities and things I want to do during my stay.
The W Hollywood is a part of Luxury Privileges and offers the following amenities and benefits as shown below. The one item of note is the special offer currently available for the complimentary third night, adjusted at checkout.
Let's check the pricing for my three nigh stay at the W Hollywood for December 13-16, 2017. The best available rate directly at the SPG website with all taxes and fees included is $284 per night, for a grand total of $852 for a three night stay.
The Luxury Privileges rate is $309 per night (which includes perks like free breakfast, room upgrade, etc). With the complimentary third night offer, the grand total comes out to $716 total.
From this example, it would definitely make sense to book the Luxury Privileges rate as the total cost of the hotel stay is cheaper by $136 and you get a ton of extra value through all of the Luxury Privileges benefits such as free daily breakfast, $100 resort credit, room upgrade, early check-in, and late check-out.
If you have top-tier Platinum Elite status at Starwood or Marriott, some of the benefits like free breakfast are included as a part of the your loyalty status perks, but the overall price is still cheaper than booking the best available rate, so the Luxury Privilege program would still win out in this case.
Summary
If you’re staying at any of the Luxury Privileges properties, it’s worth taking a look at the list to see if there is a promotion available for your trip and what other perks apply. You can check the list here.
Sometimes the rate may be higher (or appear to be in this example), but given the extra value added amenities, the Luxury Privileges rate may be the better option and provide greater value for your trip.
If you're interested in learning more or would like a complimentary quote for your next trip, feel free to contact me and I can take a look at pricing and the value added amenities available. I don't charge any booking/quote fees and booking your hotel stay through The Family Travel Guy doesn't cost you anything extra.
Also, be sure to check out similar perks available at Ritz Carlton properties through the Ritz Carlton STARS program. You can also read more about me and travel services I offer here and at my Virtuoso travel site.
The value added amenities and perks are only available when booking with select travel advisors (The Family Travel Guy is one of them), who have been invited into the exclusive invitation only program. The amenities and benefits are complimentary when you book through a travel advisor and you’ll get VIP status for your stay at no additional cost.
What are the amenities/perks?
When booking a Luxury Privileges rate at St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels and select Westin hotels worldwide, you will enjoy a suite of privileges that include:
- Daily continental or full breakfast for two each morning of the stay
- Special welcome privilege (Value of $100)
- Examples included spa, food/beverage or resort credit
- Personal greeting on arrival
- Room upgrade, subject to availability at time of check-in
- Early check-in and 4 PM late checkout, subject to availability
- Complimentary in-room internet access
Is there any extra cost?
When booking this rate through a Starwood Luxury Privileges travel advisor, there is no additional cost. Most of the time the price is the exact same as you could find online and in some cases, the price or overall value may be even better if there are special offers available such as free nights (every fourth night free, etc) or other promotions going on.
Sounds to good to be true? Let's take a look at an example:
I have plans to visit the Los Angeles area in December and wanted to stay in Hollywood. The W Hollywood is a great choice and central to all of the activities and things I want to do during my stay.
The W Hollywood is a part of Luxury Privileges and offers the following amenities and benefits as shown below. The one item of note is the special offer currently available for the complimentary third night, adjusted at checkout.
Let's check the pricing for my three nigh stay at the W Hollywood for December 13-16, 2017. The best available rate directly at the SPG website with all taxes and fees included is $284 per night, for a grand total of $852 for a three night stay.
The Luxury Privileges rate is $309 per night (which includes perks like free breakfast, room upgrade, etc). With the complimentary third night offer, the grand total comes out to $716 total.
If you have top-tier Platinum Elite status at Starwood or Marriott, some of the benefits like free breakfast are included as a part of the your loyalty status perks, but the overall price is still cheaper than booking the best available rate, so the Luxury Privilege program would still win out in this case.
Summary
If you’re staying at any of the Luxury Privileges properties, it’s worth taking a look at the list to see if there is a promotion available for your trip and what other perks apply. You can check the list here.
Sometimes the rate may be higher (or appear to be in this example), but given the extra value added amenities, the Luxury Privileges rate may be the better option and provide greater value for your trip.
If you're interested in learning more or would like a complimentary quote for your next trip, feel free to contact me and I can take a look at pricing and the value added amenities available. I don't charge any booking/quote fees and booking your hotel stay through The Family Travel Guy doesn't cost you anything extra.
Also, be sure to check out similar perks available at Ritz Carlton properties through the Ritz Carlton STARS program. You can also read more about me and travel services I offer here and at my Virtuoso travel site.