Points-Obsessed Travelers Are Terrified of Losing Perks
Starwood fans fear Marriott mediocrity in the world's largest hospitality merger.
The complimentary breakfast buffet at the Fairfield Inn near LaGuardia Airport in New York.
Photographer: Jeremy Liebman for Bloomberg Businessweek
For their honeymoon, Alex Diacre and his wife, Sarah, traveled halfway around the world, from New York to the Maldives, a chain of atolls in the Indian Ocean. The breakfast menu at their hotel, the St. Regis, was a journey unto itself.
Each morning they’d find a table looking out over the ocean, sink their feet in the sand, and make the hard choices. Should Sarah try the eggs Benedict, Maldivian style, with soft-shell crab and hollandaise-infused coconut curry, or should she opt for the duck foie gras terrines with fricassee of morel mushrooms and fried quail egg? Would Alex restrict himself to breakfast pastries or indulge in the coffee opera cake with vanilla ice cream? There was lighter fare, too—fancy cereals, local fruits, and fresh pressed juices.