Hotel Companies Promote Incentives to Passport Holders

As passport applications and renewals escalate and waiting times lengthen, hotel firms are introducing or extending offers to offset the application and expediting fees for their guests.

The Passport to Paradise promotion launched by Sandals and Beaches Resorts features a $60 resort credit per expedited passport application. The offer is valid for travel through December 21, 2008 for guests who book a four-night minimum stay at any of Sandals and Beaches’ 16 Caribbean properties.

The promotion applies for up to two guests per reservation at a Sandals resort and for up to five guests per reservation at a Beaches property. The resort credit can be applied toward services that include Red Lane Spa treatments, private dinners on the beach, premium wine purchases and gift shop items.

Meanwhile, Marriott and Renaissance Caribbean & Mexico Resorts extended their passport incentive, also called the Passport to Paradise, to Dec. 15, 2007 to address the demands for new passports.

The promotion, initially valid for stays between January 23 and April 30, offers a $100 resort credit to guests who present a new passport at check-in. Passports must only show a stamp from the host country as their first port of entry.

The offer is valid for one credit per room, requires a five-night minimum stay and is available at the firm’s nine resorts in seven destinations, including Aruba, the Cayman Islands, Curacao, St. Kitts, St. Thomas (a passport is not required to enter the U.S. Virgin Islands), and Cancun and Puerto Vallarta in Mexico.