I guess I'm one of the odd people out that hasn't had a real problem with the merger. I'm only a Platinum member, so I can't speak to perks at highest levels, b

I guess I'm one of the odd people out that hasn't had a real problem with the merger. I'm only a Platinum member, so I can't speak to perks at highest levels, but I've had no problem getting ahold of regular Platinum customer service. I've also had no trouble getting room upgrades (I've ALWAYS had to ask for them, despite the claims of 'automatic' upgrades), no trouble getting early/late checkout, still get treated by staff like they care about me as someone with an upper tier loyalty status, etc. No technical issues, and all of my stays have recorded just fine (knock on wood!). On top of the status perks being the same, I'm loving the increased availability of hotels. There's been times where I've wanted to book at a specific Starwood property, but because it's rates were way higher than they normally are (e.g. 220/night to nearly 500/night), I'd end up fairly downmarket in comparison because I don't want any pushback on my expense report. The addition of Marriott properties has solved that for me a couple of times already this year - the W or St. Regis is way up, but the Ritz-Carlton or JW Marriott have been reasonable. I will say I have found the lounges in Marriott properties to be a little less nice than their Starwood compatriots, however.