Tag Archives: business

Why Marriott?

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When I first started traveling for work, it was with a new company, and it took a while for us to figure out the best types of hotels for overnight trips. After a few “profit-maximizing” decisions led to some questionable stays, we started to develop a few basic rules:

  • No hotels with a number in the name
  • If the front desk clerk is behind bulletproof glass, move on
  • No chains with a misspelling in their title
  • No hotels where you have to park directly outside your room
  • Avoid places where the TV remote is bolted to the counter

These guidelines weren’t perfect, but they helped us avoid some… memorable experiences.

Beyond that, over time I started gravitating toward a single hotel brand for most of my travel. Brand loyalty makes a lot of sense when you’re on the road frequently. There is less friction when selecting and booking with brands you are familiar with.  Plus concentrating your stays allows you to build status and unlock perks that you simply won’t get if you spread your business around.

I experimented with Hilton for a while. It’s very easy to earn status, and their points accumulate quickly. The downside is that those points just aren’t worth that much, which makes redeeming them less appealing. It’s a large chain, but early on there were also a few key locations where Hilton didn’t have great options near my clients.

I’ve always liked Hyatt. In many ways, it’s the best value for redeeming points, especially in premium locations (although this may be changing with recent devaluations and a move to a tiered redemption system). For years, it was often cheaper to stay at a Hyatt using points than to use points or pay cash with any other brand.  Add in no resort fees on point stays and strong customer service, and it’s a compelling option. The challenge is scale. Hyatt simply doesn’t have as many locations, especially at the lower-cost, business-travel end of the spectrum. And earning meaningful status with Hyatt can be more difficult.

That led me to Marriott.

The biggest factor is footprint. No matter where I go, there’s almost always a Marriott option (or multiple) nearby. That matters when your travel schedule isn’t just built around vacation destinations but around where the work is.

Second is reliability. You generally know what you’re going to get. When you’re bouncing from city to city, that consistency matters more than you might expect.  I know that when I stay at a Courtyard, for example, that they will have reliable free internet, a business center where I can print as much as I need, and a restaurant on property that has a burger I like and can get for free with my welcome gift.  Knowing things like that when I roll into a new city can relieve a lot of anxiety about work preparation.

A nice bonus is the range of price points. Marriott has everything from basic, budget and business options to family friendly choices up to full-service and luxury properties. That flexibility makes it easy to match the hotel to the purpose of the trip.

Last time I checked, my lifetime total at Marriott properties was over 1100 nights.  The bulk of those were work trips where I typically ended up staying in dozens of different Fairfields and Courtyards all over the country. Over time, that has added up to Lifetime Platinum status. That gets me welcome gifts, bonus points, late checkout, and the occasional room upgrade. None of those perks by themselves are life-changing, but together they make travel a little easier, a little cheaper, and a little more comfortable.

These days, even when I’m traveling for personal trips, Marriott is usually my starting point. I still shop around, but once you factor in status benefits, familiarity, and convenience, it’s often the best overall option.  There are things I like about other brands, and I still use them occasionally. But for me, Marriott has the best balance of location, availability, price range, and rewards. 

It’s not perfect, but it’s consistently good. When you travel a lot, that might be the most important thing.

Smaller is Better Continued (State Parks)

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We recently spent a day at Huntington Beach State Park, and it reminded us of something we don’t think gets talked about enough. We have always loved national parks, and if a place earns that designation it is almost always worth visiting. But on this trip, we were reminded that state parks often offer many of the same benefits with fewer crowds, lower costs, and a more relaxed experience.

First Impressions

Huntington Beach sat just south of Myrtle Beach and felt like a completely different world almost as soon as we entered. There were no long lines or chaotic parking lots, just a simple gate and a modest entrance fee. It cost $8 per person to get in, which immediately felt like a bargain compared to most attractions in the area.

Variety in a Small Space

What stood out was how much variety the park packed into a relatively small space. In one visit, we walked along a wide, uncrowded beach, explored marsh boardwalks, and hiked through maritime forest. The transitions between these environments happened quickly, which made the experience feel dynamic without requiring multiple days of planning or driving.

Wildlife Highlights

The wildlife ended up being one of the biggest highlights. Huntington Beach is known for birding, but the most memorable encounters for us were the alligators. We saw dozens in the freshwater ponds and marsh areas, sometimes just off the trail. (We also learned that crouching down for pictures is not recommended.) Being that close to wildlife was both fascinating and a little humbling. Along the way we also saw herons, egrets, pelicans, and more turtles than we could count. By the end of the visit, it felt less like a park and more like a living ecosystem that we got to step into for the day.

Atalaya Castle

One of the more unexpected features of the park was Atalaya Castle. Built in the 1930s by Archer and Anna Hyatt Huntington, this Moorish-style winter home sat right in the middle of the preserve. For an additional $2 per person, we explored the grounds and walked through its open courtyards and rooms. It was not a polished, highly curated experience, but for us that was part of the appeal. It added a layer of history that complemented the natural surroundings and made the visit feel more complete.

State Parks vs National Parks

This trip helped clarify something we have been thinking about for a while. National parks tend to offer larger, more iconic landscapes along with more infrastructure and more crowds. State parks, on the other hand, are usually smaller, less expensive, and easier to navigate. They also tend to feel more accessible and less rushed. Another advantage became obvious as we traveled more. There are far more state parks than national parks, and in places like South Carolina, where Congaree is the only national park nearby, they provide more frequent opportunities to get outside and explore.

The Financial Angle

From a financial independence perspective, the value was hard to beat. Ten dollars per person covered entry and the castle and gave us a full day of beach, trails, wildlife, and history. We packed a picnic, so there were no expensive add-ons or pressure to spend more once we were there. The simplicity of the experience kept the cost low.

The Bigger Lesson

This fits a pattern we have been seeing throughout our travels. Smaller zoo experiences often felt more enjoyable than the biggest ones. Eating earlier often provided the same experience at a lower cost. Local recreation options often replaced more expensive memberships. Now we could add state parks to that list. We will continue to visit national parks because they offer something unique and memorable, but places like Huntington Beach reminded us that we did not always need the biggest or most famous destination to have a meaningful experience. Sometimes a quiet trail, a view of the water, some wildlife (and a healthy respect for alligators 🙂  is more than enough.

Your Turn

Have you found places where the simpler option turned out to be just as good or even better than the big-name destination?

Why Finding a Good Financial Planner Is So Hard

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At a meetup today, several people were sharing how frustrating it has been to find a good financial planner. And I totally get it. Finding good professional help is tough in any industry, but it is especially challenging in personal finance where many people lack confidence, the terminology is intentionally confusing, and the incentives are often stacked against the client. The fundamental dichotomy is this: if you know enough to find the right professional and ask the right questions, you probably don’t need them. After all, for most people, personal finance isn’t actually all that complicated.

How Planners Get Paid

At its core, financial planning is a service business. The planner wants to make money, and the client wants to pay as little as possible. That tension has created a whole menu of compensation models and, sadly, some of them are far better for the planner than for you.

Commission-Based “Advisors.” These are the people who only get paid when they sell you something and, on first glance, they look the cheapest because they don’t charge you anything!  Their incentive is to earn the biggest possible commission, not to grow your wealth. Teachers have been especially vulnerable here, with high-fee annuities shoved into 403(b) plans. Early in my career, I fell for this. A commission-based advisor showed up at school and filled my portfolio with variable annuity products that sounded great but were really designed to pay him. It cost me years of growth and some expensive surrender fees to get out. I learned quickly: if someone is being paid to sell you something, expect them to sell you something, whether you need it or not.

Assets Under Management (AUM). – Another common model that is slightly less problematic is charging a percentage of your portfolio, usually around one percent. That sounds small, but on a $500,000 portfolio it’s $5,000 every year — $100,000 over twenty years, not even counting the lost growth. I ran the math once and realized that one percent shaved off my returns was the equivalent of buying a luxury vacation every year, but for the planner instead of me and my family.

Subscription Services. – A newer option is paying a flat monthly or annual subscription for access and advice. This makes costs predictable and avoids the commission/AUM conflict. The downside is inconsistency.  Not all services are equally strong, and if you don’t use them often, you end up paying for more than you need. Still, for busy seasons of life, it can be a good fit.

Fee-Only, Project-Based. – My favorite option is hiring planners for specific projects. I’ve done this myself (once for retirement withdrawal strategies, another time to check my work on tax optimization strategies). It felt good to pay for exactly what I needed, get an expert’s input, and move on without strings attached. An added bonus is the “checks and balances” inherent in having different professionals review my situation rather than relying on, and trusting, a single generalist.

One important detail: always ask if the planner is a fiduciary. Fiduciaries are legally required to put your interests first. Advisors working under the weaker “suitability” standard can recommend products that are “good enough” for you but excellent for their paycheck.

My Takeaway

I sat down and learned a lot of this stuff on my own before I discovered the financial independence movement, but this is where the FI community has really helped me.  FI encourages people to educate themselves and provides resources and a community to do so.   The more you know, the less you have to rely on expensive intermediaries and the less vulnerable you are to being taken advantage of.  I still DIY most of my finances but occasionally bring in experts for a second opinion. The peace of mind is worth it for me (and even more so for Katie).

I do worry about friends and relatives who aren’t interested in personal finance and don’t take the time to learn. The hard truth is that finding a good planner is difficult, not because ethical professionals don’t exist, but because the ones who profit most can afford to have the biggest marketing budgets, fanciest offices, and show up on the first page of Google searches. If you’re impressed by a sharp suit, a fancy lobby, or free swag, stop and ask yourself how it’s being paid for. Spoiler: it comes from clients.

The more you educate yourself, the easier it is to cut through the noise. A few simple questions can help: How do you get paid? Are you a fiduciary at all times? What services do you provide, and what will they cost in total? If someone can’t answer clearly, don’t just walk away.  Run!  After all, whether you manage things yourself, lean on community resources, or hire fee-only experts for targeted needs, the goal is the same: make sure your money is working for you, not for your planner’s commission check.

Has anyone found a good solution to financial planning?