Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images
- Marriott says it ended its licensing partnership with the short-term rental company Sonder.
- Guests at rentals say they were blindsided. One was told to vacate his room halfway through his stay.
- Sonder’s stock price was down more than 13% after the termination announcement.
Marriott and Sonder have broken up, and guests are bearing the brunt of the fallout.
Hotel operator Marriott International signed a licensing agreement with short-term rental company Sonder in August 2024. On Sunday, Marriott announced that the agreement had been terminated due to “Sonder’s default.” The change canceled guests’ current reservations and stopped future bookings.
Marriott guests who had booked accommodations at Sonder properties say they were blindsided by the announcement.
Tim Schaefer, a blogger from New York, told Business Insider he had booked two separate Sonder apartments in New York City for a total of 10 days. But he received cancellation emails from Sonder and Marriott about an hour before his check-in on Sunday.
He said he spoke with Marriott’s help desk for an hour, asking for help booking another hotel for himself and his spouse at the same price, but was kept on hold.
“We have a high loyalty status — Platinum Elite — with them. We are not happy,” Schaefer said.
David Klingbeil, an NYU course instructor who studies luxury and marketing, said that he was halfway through his two-week stay at Sonder Flatiron in New York when he received an email on Sunday afternoon telling him he had to vacate the hotel by 8 a.m. on Monday.
“I didn’t believe it when I saw the email, I had to check that this wasn’t a phishing attempt or something. Then I saw the articles and posts on X,” Klingbeil told Business Insider.
Klingbeil said he had to book another hotel at a much higher price.
He said he was a Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite member and had spent $15,000 with the hotel group this year.
“If I don’t see a strong reaction from them, I believe I will never choose Marriott again,” he said.
The company said online that customers who had booked a Sonder property through Marriott’s channels would get a full refund. It added that customers with future reservations would receive an email about the “potential to rebook at another Marriott Bonvoy property.”
Sonder’s stock is down about 87% in the past year, to a $6.8 million market cap. Founded in 2014, the company went public in 2021 through a special-purpose acquisition company. The company had 9,400 live units in its portfolio as of March, according to its earnings report for the first quarter of 2025.
Representatives for Marriott and Sonder did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Were you affected by the termination of Marriott-Sonder’s licensing agreement? Contact this reporter via email at abharade@businessinsider.com.
