After revealing membership in its loyalty programs has surpassed 100 million travelers, Marriott International announced Tuesday that it has invested in travel technology solutions provider PlacePass.
The partnership will provide members of all three programs with even more authentic travel experiences.
Marriott said it plans to add more than 100,000 local experiences in 800 destinations worldwide later this year.
Marriott Rewards-which includes The Ritz-Carlton Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) members-will be able to select the experiences when they book directly. PlacePass will provide members with an online platform to search for in-destination experiences.
SPG Moments launched more than a decade ago, while Marriott Rewards' Experiences Marketplace rolled out last year, allowing members to redeem their points for unique experiences built around various passions like sports, music and culture.
Some of the new experiences coming later this year will include a VIP guided tour of filming locations from the hit series "Downton Abbey," a mountain biking tour of Cambodia's famous temples, wrestling with a retired sumo wrestler in Tokyo and cooking lessons with a local Italian chef at a Tuscan farmhouse.
"The addition of PlacePass activities and tours beginning later this year reflects Marriott's commitment to giving our guests a complete travel experience, whether they are in planning mode, staying in our hotels and even in-between stays when they're thinking about travel," said Marriott's Global Chief Commercial Officer Stephanie Linnartz in a statement.
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"We want our guests to count on Marriott to give them access to more of the destinations and things they love to do when they travel."
Some of Marriott's notable partners include the NFL, MLB, Universal Music Group and AEG, among others.
The company expects to appeal to more partners as its membership continues growing, ultimately leading to more experiences down the road.
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