On paper, Marriott Bonvoy is probably the best large hotel loyalty program. It’s not as rich for elite members as World of Hyatt, but the chain is more than 5 times as large.
Since combining Marriott Rewards, Starwood Preferred Guest, and Ritz-Carlton Rewards into a single program, though, Bonvoy seems as though it’s primarily worried that someone, somewhere might be getting great valuable out of their membership. And so we have seen annual devaluation after devaluation, including the elimination of award charts, the removal of caps on how much free night awards might cost, and the introduction of blackout dates for legacy Starwood hotels.
But what’s most frustrating about Marriott Bonvoy is the extent that hotels seem to be allowed to flout the program, and rules of the chain itself.
Reader Z.L. shares the welcome message from the Marriott Courtyard Lake George, which explains that it explicitly will not honor Bonvoy elite food and beverage credits because their restaurant is operated by a third party.
In May the St. Regis Chicago played this game denying breakfast benefits to elites claiming they’d outsourced their restaurant and had no obligation to honor it. Then last month it was the Muir Autograph Collection in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In response to a guest complaint about the Muir, Marriott Customer service actually responded that there are no standards, “each hotel has its own policies and offerings.” While Marriott offers a cash guarantee for its elite benefits, the Muir simply said it had been exempted from that.
Marriott’s terms and conditions contain no exception to the breakfast benefit for situations where “the restaurant at the hotel is operated by a third party.” However,
- terms and conditions don’t matter if Marriott won’t enforce them, and
- in my experience, Marriott customer service invariably sides with hotels against the customer even when the customer is right.
Hotel owners want loyal customers from a hotel chain (what they sometimes call ‘leads’) but don’t want to deliver on the expectations the chain has created to build that loyalty. Marriott has been broadly allowing hotels to get away with this more and more, focused on owner costs rather than protecting their brand. They’ll often enforce brand standards when called out, though.
That’s a short-term mindset, because in the asset light model where hotel chains tend not to own their properties, all they have is their brand. They’re afraid of antagonizing owners in a way that costs them revenue in the short term, but that risks sacrificing even more revenue in the long term since the brand becomes the only thing of value that they have, the reasons customers book through their platform. Without a brand driving bookings, a booking platform has nothing else to offer.
The problem with Marriott is that they’ve kowtowed to owners for short term fees, while sacrificing the reputation that brings customers – and therefore value to owners. By allowing one property after another run roughshod over the published benefits of the program – by not proactively auditing and enforcing standards – Bonvoy remains valuable only on paper and not in practice. And that’s a hole right down the middle of Marriott’s strategy of infinite brands held together only a program that is anything but rock solid.
Keep trimming and we’ll keep walking from these hit and miss perks… Marriott is starting to loose it in MANY WAY and points devaluating… What a shame…
It’s hardly the “best hotel elite program” if it’s ignored by Marriott hotels without penalty.
Since when is there a breakfast benefit at Courtyard?
That aside, even worse is when you have a block of rooms and the hotel signed a contract with you that they would provide specific elite benefits only for them to not provide them. Renaissance Aruba, JW Marriott Los Cabos and Ritz-Carlton Denver all refused to provide upgrades despite contracts requiring them to do so.
The grass isn’t greener at Hyatt. Hyatt allows properties to create fake room categories to avoid award redemptions. I couldn’t find a single Hyatt hotel in London over a 7-day period with any award availability.
@FNT Delta Diamond – You must not be looking hard enough, as I just booked one in September.
Hong Kong flaghsip MARRIOTT restaurant also does NOT honor the Bonvoy Gold card….
as restaurant operated by 3rd party….
so much about BRAND management; everything outsourced and the client doesn’t know what he really gets, except the ADVERTISEMENT
I usually check with properties on benefits if I haven’t stayed there before. If they aren’t meeting my expectations, I go somewhere else.
If they can notify me they are exempt from the program, Guess I’ll have to start notifying hotels they have been eliminated from my consideration as well.
Doubt they will care.
Ever try to get something in lieu of the elite benefits when they roll them into a “resort or other fee”? It is in the standards, but don’t expect it.
Curious who you think is primarily responsible for setting this “customer-second” tone that seems to be drive every Marriott move over the past 10 years. They are always chipping away from the value proposition for members. Even when they do something additive, like raise the free night certs to 85k from 50k on some credit cards, you can tell it’s only because they realized they went too far with devaluations.
@ Gary — “Another thousand customers annouce they will no longer stay at Marriotts.” My decision ~5 years ago to never stay at Marriott again (except on a mistake rate) remains my best travel decision ever.
Gary,
Lifetime Titanium here and maybe I’m just missing out but don’t see anything about a breakfast or food/beverage credit at Courtyards. Have stayed in many since earning this status (was too Marriott lifetime before the Starwood acquisition) and never remember being offered a credit at Courtyards.
Please point out explicitly where it states a credit is due or stop the click bait that only gets people upset. As you know Marriott’s breakfast benefits vary considerably across brands so not sure this is that big a deal
This sounds like Bonvoy. Over promise and under deliver.
Well, breakfast is not complimentary at Courtyards as an elite benefit. The notice did not say the guest cannot use the F&B credit at the restaurant. But don’t let your bias against Marriott hold you back.
Is there an simple.way to determine which hotels are Marriott-owned and which are franchised?
As an alternative there is a new beautiful Fairfield Lake George (just off the Thruway not near the lake) that has 8 Level 2 Charge Point EV charging stalls (not free). Free breakfast for all.
US Domestic Courtyards are my least favorite of the Marriott family. Rate does not include any breakfast, and the Platinum and higher breakfast benefit might be a $5 or $10 voucher (per stay, not per night).
In contrast, International Courtyards tend to be quite good for Bonvoy Elites – when I’m traveling on my own dime – based on Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo experiences.
AC – Courtyards are supposed to offering the following.
United States, Canada and Europe:
– 500 points per stay or daily $10 F&B credit for the member and a companion (terms apply).
Asia, Australia, Pacific Islands, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, South America, the Middle East and Africa:
– Properties without lounge: 500 points per stay or F&B amenity per stay or $10 daily F&B credit for member and a companion (terms apply).
– Properties with lounge: 500 points per stay and breakfast in the lounge. If the lounge is closed, guests receive daily breakfast in the restaurant for member and a companion.
Stayed at this property a month ago. At checkin, they gave us a coupon for a free coffee and said the F&B amenity was $10/room, not $10/person (wrong). I expected I would be able to sort it out at checkout, so on top of the free coffee, I got 3 cheap items from the marketplace and also charged a second coffee to the room – should’ve been <$20. When I checked the bill, there was a $10 charge and $10 credit, followed by incorrect prices for the 3 market items, followed by the aforementioned charged coffee. So I guess either the "coupon" turned into the +$10/-$10 F&B credit (which again, should've been a $20 credit), or they just put that in there to say they offered a credit without actually offering it; and I guess they can charge whatever they want for marketplace items, too.
Also, almost every front desk employee was rude.
Everyone’s saying that they don’t see anywhere in the T&Cs where Courtyards offer a credit…. It’s one of the possible welcome gifts…. $10/night F&B credit…. Although I’m not sure why someone would take that as their gift, it is supposed to be an option…
I’m Lifetime Titanium (was Lifetime Platinum before the SPG Merger), and have seriously cut back my Marriott stays. It’s just not worth it. Like many others, I now stay mainly based on location and amenities and not so much on the elite benefits…
Well written! Thanks for calling them out.
It is a very difficult issue, and Marriott certainly do not help by allowing so many sub-brands to make their own rules, yet ask us (the clients) to consider “Marriott” as a single brand.
I do feel that all loyalty programs, air and hotel, are suffering from hyperinflation; the extraordinary amount of their scrip that has been issued through credit card companies is coming back to haunt them, and their inflationary activities simply cannot stop.
Basically, their “best customers” need not really use the brand at all other than cc point redemption, and this divergence is not lost on the properties themselves. Sadly, it seems to be their actual customers, not the cc billionaires, who get the short end of this stick.
To see the end game, consider the Zimbabwean Dollar.
@Gary — This has really gotten way too old already. As usual, you wrote this post based on your own misinterpretation or misunderstanding of Bonvoy T&C on elite breakfast at Courtyard properties, rather than on the program’s actual T&C. I challenge you to wade through the maze that’s Bonvoy’s T&C to find and point out to text that supports the accusation that you and your reader have leveled against Courtyard by Marriott Lake George in upstate NY. [[Hint: that the hotel restaurant is third-party operated is irrelevant; free breakfast in the lounge or restaurant is just not a Bonvoy elite benefit at CY in the US and Canada]
Just like the accusation against the Courtyard property, there is no universe in which that recycled claim is even remotely true — on paper, “probably” or otherwise.
Well despite all this gnashing of teeth and clutching of pearls, Marriott International is one of the better stocks to own as it’s up near 23% in the past year.
Marriott is a trash loyalty program. I never stay at them unless absolutely have to
The Marriott Wailea Maui resort only gives a danish or a muffin from a food truck for plat guests, while claiming the main restaurant Humble Market Kitchin which has a decent breakfast buffet to be “third party” (and charges upwards of 50 bucks per adult)
At the same time Marriott.com directly sells at cash rates a under Deals and Packages a stay for breakfast rate that includes breakfast buffet for 2 at guess where! Suddenly not so 3rd party is it.
Pointing to rising stock prices is not a very compelling rebuttal to Gary’s observation that they’re chasing the short term sugar high of signing up property owners (quick revenue!) over preserving their core asset, the brand value, in the long term.
@Tony — Except that there is nothing to rebut in Gary’s post because the hotel’s alleged “infraction” is bogus.
@DCS – Courtyard is supposed to provide a food and beverage credit, there’s no disputing that.
It’s gotta be said (again): “Bonvoy !”
@Gary — And I did not. What I disputed is what I quoted…
Perhaps a class action lawsuit would awaken the giant. Seems like that’s the only thing that garners their attention. …thinking back to the resort fee debacle.
Not sure why all the griping at Gary for the article being false (although he has again utterly failed at proofreading his spelling / grammar)…. Elites staying at Courtyards may choose a $10 per day F&B credit, and an additional $10 if staying with a companion.
My last Courtyard stay the hotel seemed to handle this with $10 bagels and $18 glasses of wine.
Bidenomics is just like Marriottnomics it seems. They tell you something is awesome and you will get everything you want but actually, it will just cost you more money and be a disappointment at the end of the day.
I think it’s time for a mass letter writing campaign to corporate. It is really unacceptable to see these benefits get ignored.
They even don’t honor their “Ultimate Reservation Guarantee” benefit. Recently, I have been a victim of a last minute reservation cancelation. Maybe I was just the unlucky one who does not deserve this benefit.
We can complain all we want about what we want or do not get, but in the end Marriott is not a bad choice. Last year I stayed in Venice for 2 nights. Used two of my suite night upgrade certificates with the hope of getting an upgrade. They gave me their room that was being charged $5250 per night. It was wonderful. In Salzburg, I used 2 more suite night upgrade certificates and got a $2400 per night room. I get upgrades as much as I could ever expect. Breakfast and lounges are a little of a crap shoot, but I live with it.
Since I’ve hit Ambassador Elite I’ve received only praise and thanks… I’ve yet to experience the value of being an Ambassador. Most of the time I can’t even get a digital check-in! I thought that once I hit this level that the hotels would elevate my experience… All that is given is disappointment.
This rewards program has been heading straight downhill for the last few years. I just recently made 3 reservations for Vegas for Super Bowl weekend got 3 confirmations then checked my reservations in my account and had one of them canceled because supposedly my credit card didn’t work for one of the reservations even though they weren’t supposed to charge my credit card for anything till I arrived and there was no cancelation email, just pathetic service wonder what I would of been doing on Super Bowl weekend with my guests once I got the news about my cancelation.
Had no problems with Marriotts. I check if perks are available and make a decision at that point. I’ve been ‘sc..wed’ by Hiltons and have found Marriotts far more accommodating.
Actually, you are correct about F&B benefit at Courtyards. My beef with the post really pertains to @Gary’s penchant for the dramatic and hyperbolic, instead of approaching what may be an appealable violation of T&C with a cool head.
As I understand it, the alleged “infraction” (i.e., denial of F&B benefit) had not even occurred. The reader simply reported about a sign that said that breakfast at the Courtyard in question was not complementary, which would have been fine except for the sign’s suggestion that the reason there was no breakfast benefit was that the restaurant was managed and operated by a third-party. It is this latter, irrelevant part of the statement, that set @Gary off.
Well, was the reader denied a F&B benefit that they were entitled to at the this property or not? It is unclear based on the post, which makes it all useless.
The way to handle a reader email like this one should be
(a) after getting the story straight, ask whether the reader contacted the hotel or the program to report a possible violation;
(b) if ‘no’ to (a), advise the reader to file an official complaint;
(c) if ‘yes’ to (a) and there was no resolution, contact the program to inquire on behalf of the reader;
(d) finally, report the incident and the outcome, whatever it may be, in a post so that may serve a ‘precedent’…
As presented here, what is essentially a “non-incident” simply turned into another meaningless griping session soon to be forgotten until the same exact thing happens again…and there would still be no ‘precedent’ to use for guidance!
DCS you sit on a high horse with great confidence but you’re simply wrong. The article clearly refers to F&B credit not being honored here. You are quoting the reference to the previous article that denied breakfast benefit using the same BS excuse.
Invariably these “third party” restaurants are owned/managed by some subsidiary of the same parent company as the hotel itself. Even so, it does not give the hotel an “out.” It’s up to the hotel to handle the arrangement and it should not fall on the Bonvoyb member. The Marriott franchise and loyalty terms are clear. If they need an exception, they have an opportunity to get one. They haven’t. They are obliged to honor the terms (though Marriott will not enforce it so you know who gets the short end of the stick).
@Anameofaguy — As it turns out, I addressed in a comment that responded to @Chris Raehl, which is now sitting in the moderation queue and was written before I even saw your comment, precisely what you just accused me of. I will just let that comment address your misguided diatribe…
Okay, Gary, why is every one of my comments suddenly going into the moderation queue?
7 yeats of being Titanium with 2 Marriott CC’s here: I’m SO close to leaving Bonvoy for Hyatt/IHG. SO CLOSE. I put my spouse up in a newer Courtyard in an upscale area last weekend. Paid cash rate + used SNA’s to upgrade the room. Late check-in because the room “wasn’t ready”, gor out on the 2nd floor, spouse told me the walls/ceilings were thin and that they could hear everything (got little sleep), was told to come down at a specific time for “free appetizers/lite dinner” in the lobby (surprise! There was none and the lobby was a ghost town). Along with several other issues while they stayed there. My spouse told the front desk at checkout and they apologized and said they would “add points”. 2 full weeks later: NOTHING. Treat me whatever on my work trips. Upset my spouse or ruin a vacation: Your Fired Marriott. Walking on eggshells here, and with MANY others.
Stayed at a Fairfield Inn Laramie Wyoming as a Titanium. At check in, they had some slightly larger rooms available and I asked about an upgrade & was told “we don’t upgrade Titanium’s because we can sell for a higher rate”. 11pm that night, the room was still selling on the app. Didn’t bother complaining as it was an award stay and the hotel was probably making about 30 bucks on my stay.
@DCS this comment did not
Chasing hotel loyalty programs nowadays is a fool’s errand. I don’t even bother anymore. I just stay at whatever property is convenient or has something I like.
As an ambassador elite member I agree totally. What used to be the best in the biz, is now just an excuse waiting on the phone. The Renaissance brands are just completely denying any rewards at all. Marriott went from fixing the missing days to just giving excuses about 3rd party BS. They now are claiming that biz travelers in group accounts will no longer get any credits including nights or money spent. ITS USELESS AND SAD. ILL CASH OUT MY MILLIONS OF POINTS FOR FREE VACAS AND CANCEL MY BONVOY CC. HILTON HERE I COME!!!
Like all publicly-traded companies that reward their most senior executives with grotesque awards of equity compensation, Marriott cares far more about short term profits than alienating consumers over a longer term, By then, senior mgmt will have made their fortunes and the diminished prospects of their former company will be someone else’s problems.
As a lifetime Titanium, I walked from the brand after the Swan & Dolphin insisted that they charge me $100 for a 2pm checkout. They insisted they were exempt from the “guaranteed” benefit. Marriott CS also did nothing after multiple attempts.
Cleaning up prior comment:
“…a sign that said that breakfast at the Courtyard in question was not complimentary, which…”
” (d) finally, report the incident and the outcome, whatever it may be, in a post so that it may serve as a ‘precedent’…”
@Anameofaguy — Any questions or do you still stand by that comment?
Gary — The last comment did not. The prior two did and it is unclear why.