I'm always hesitant to give a full review of a hotel after just a one night stay. So while this won't be a review per se, I'll share my experience at the Hotel Icon in downtown Houston, which I thought was a fantastic hotel that I'd look forward to staying at again. The Hotel Icon is part of Marriott's Autograph Collection. The Autograph Collection is a group of boutique hotels that are either historic or unique in some sort of nature. Before the Hotel Icon, my only other Autograph Collection ...

Starwood rolled a bunch of great updates for Platinum Members this week. I won't re-hash them all. You can read about the changes here and here. And if you want to read Gary's thoughts, go here. My thoughts will come in a future blog post.

Today, Hilton responded. Previously, Elite members would have to choose between a list of benefits. As of today, Diamond Members get them all. Check here to see the list of benefits on Hilton's ...

Marriott Rewards provides earning and redemption oppportunities at all Marriott brands including: Marriott, JW Marriott, Autograph Collection, TownePlace Suites, SpringHill Suites, Fairfield Inn, Residence Inn and more.

Marriott Reviews and Trip Reports

• JW Marriott Phuket Review
• Beijing Marriott Hotel Northeast
• Marriott Beijing City Wall
• Budapest Marriott

Marriott Rewards has announced its first promotion of 2012.  This promotion is far less generous than the one mentioned by Kevin SPG Q1 Promo: 2x and 3x Points, Discourages Hotel Hopping.

MegasBonus 2012 Details:

After two paid stays, earn a free night- up to two nights Register by March 31, 2012 To qualify you must stay consecutive nights at a participating hotel between February 1, 2012 and April 30, 2012 Free nights ...

Last night, I took my last flight of the year, and boy was it a doozy. Now with the year in the past, it's time to reflect on milestones I hit in 2011, and what I'm hoping for in 2012.

United Airlines

It was a good year for me on United. I started the year off as a 1K, and I wasn't sure if I would be able to requalify again. My business travel can be sporadic, and I actually changed jobs TWICE this year, often ...

I checked into the Atlanta Marriott Buckhead a couple hours ago, and upon checking in, the Front Desk Agent said to me, "We have an excellent room for you, Mr. Hanson" - now usually at this point, as elites, our ears perk up. We envision suites or large corner rooms or something like that, but then she continued, "It's a 'pure' room." She then went on to say it was a king size bed and blah blah blah.

I asked, "What's a pure room?"

She said, ...