I’ve never been a big fan of the Marriott Rewards program. It’s huge, and it’s popular, it’s been the biggest hotel program winner the past two years at the Frequent Traveler awards. They certainly have loyal members.
But from the perspective of someone that values hotel elite benefits most in choice of program, it’s never especially appealed — largely because the terms and conditions of their program specifically excludes suites from the upgrade benefit, despite the program having the highest bar (75 nights) for earning top tier of any of the major hotel loyalty programs.
Still, you can’t always control where you’re going to stay, and I was looking at a bunch of upcoming Marriott bookings. So I decided to go for an elite challenge with them. In fact, with a few incremental nights I could satisfy a Platinum challenge, that seemed intriguing enough so I decided to give that a try.
With a phone call to Marriott Rewards (shocked by the hold times for a general member), I got myself signed up — I had the remainder of the current month and then 3 additional months to stay 18 nights and earn Platinum status through the end of the membership year, and I was given Platinum status for he duration of the challenge (which updated in Marriott’s system overnight).
I’m just coming off my first Marriott stay during this period, and I’m underwhelmed. But this isn’t really the story of one particular stay, every chain has some properties that don’t treat elites well. It’s really the story of how my experiences at one property highlight how the Marriott program works, and how it led me to finally dig into the nitty gritty details of the program (beyond knowing that suites weren’t a published benefit of the program) and discover that it comes up even more lacking than I had thought.
I was booked into the JW Marriott Desert Ridge resort for a conference I was speaking at. The hotel looked nice enough, though huge, it’s a 950 room conference facility. The place certainly gets great reviews on TripAdvisor (currently “Ranked #11 of 176 hotels in Phoenix”) though I don’t ever put much stock in that.
Reading up on the property in advance, I noted that the health facility was accessible with a charge (not included in the resort fee!). That’s ok, I figured, I’m a Platinum Guest! But reading over Marriott Rewards Platinum benefits I realized that complimentary health club access is not a benefit of Marriott’s elite program, top tier members do not receive it even when the hotel gym is owned and operated by the hotel. Most properties don’t charge for access, of course, but I’ve never paid to access those that do at a chain where I had status.
And late checkout? Fortunately I wouldn’t be needing it. Hyatt guarantees 4pm late checkout for their Diamond members. Starwood guarantees 4pm for both Platinums and Golds. Both make it ‘subject to availability’ at resorts, and this is property I’d be staying at first is considered a resort.
But even at non-resorts, Marriott’s Platinum late checkout benefit is subject to availability, on request on the day of departure, and it’s not even offered at resorts.
Priority Late Checkout
Call the front desk the morning of your check out, and let us know your planned departure time. Late checkout is based on availability and offered at all participating Marriott hotels, except resorts and Marriott Vacation Club.
Fortunately I wouldn’t be needing a late checkout on this trip, and my additional locked-in Marriott stays wouldn’t be at resorts!
I didn’t arrive at the property until a bit after 11pm on a Thursday evening. I was tired and looking forward to sleep in a comfortable bed. But I was hit with a bit of a surprise.
Clerk: I see that you’ve requested a King bed, but we don’t have any available this evening, we’re completely full, so I’ve assigned you to a room with two doubles.
Ummm.. excuse me?
- If there’s one thing I do know about the Marriott Rewards program is that Golds and Platinums are guaranteed their bed type preference.
Guaranteed Room TypeWhen making a reservation, be sure to note both your Marriott Rewards membership number and room/bed preferences. At locations throughout the U.S. and Canada, we’ll always honor your bed type request.
- And in any case, they’re seriously not honoring the bed type request for a Platinum member?
Ok, maybe I’m not a ‘real’ platinum in some sense, but for the purposes of this stay and the next few months I certainly am. But I’m really just interested here in learning the ins and outs of the program.
The desk clerk went to get a manager, who looked at my reservation and for available rooms and said there was just nothing that could be done.
I then asked about the Marriott Rewards guarantee — aren’t they supposed to provide cash compensation when they fail to honor a Platinum member’s room type?
The manager explained that I had requested a King bed, but that because my room was part of a conference block it wasn’t technically a reservation for a King bed. And so no guarantee applied.
Again, guarantee aside, they really don’t work to honor room type preferences for Platinums? I asked whether any benefits accrued here?
I would have figured I’d at least get lounge access, but I had done the research in advance, this property has a club that doesn’t count as a lounge for elite access.
I’d have figured I would get free breakfast, but I did the research on that in advance, too:
- Free breakfast when there’s no lounge access applies only Monday through Friday
- And it doesn’t apply at resorts, in any case.
That gives Marriott a weaker breakfast benefit than Starwood, Hyatt, or Hilton. Starwood gives a checkin amenity choice of Continental breakfast on every stay. At Hyatt it’s full breakfast. Hilton even gives breakfast to Gold members.
So I knew I’d get no lounge, no breakfast.
The manager explained that I would receive free internet, free health club access (not required by the program’s terms and conditions!), and a check-in amenity. That was what I could expect as a Platinum at this property.
Except… they never returned to the issue of check-in amenity, never offered it or provided it. And that’s guaranteed, too, supposedly backed by cash!
The Marriott Insiders forum recently offered an explanation of how the guarantee works:
As you know, our hotels aim for 100% delivery of the Platinum Arrival Gift – whether for a food/beverage amenity or bonus points — however there are some rare cases where the hotel is unable to deliver the gift or there is a delay in the bonus points posting process. If a hotel does not offer a Platinum member a choice of arrival gift, or if the hotel fails to deliver a food/beverage amenity (if selected) during the member’s stay then the hotel will compensate that guest $100 for the inconvenience. As for the bonus points option — since bonus points can always be “delivered” to a member’s account, there is no monetary compensation for “not delivering” Arrival Gift bonus points. If for some reason members do not see Arrival Gift bonus points in their accounts, we ask that they contact the Platinum Elite Guest Services desk at 800-321-7396, and they will gladly post the Platinum Arrival Gift points for that stay. Arrival Gift bonus points should be posted within several days of the member’s check-out, along with other earned points for that stay
So if you aren’t offered the amenity, or if you opt for food and beverage and it isn’t delivered, you’re supposed to get $100.
That’s what happened to me, it was never offered.
If you opt for points, they can always deliver points, even late — so no payment applies.
I’m posting this before the points for the stay posts, so if someone at the hotel has a Google Alert set for their property name, they could presumably post the points to my account and I would have a hard time arguing that I didn’t select points since they were never offered. I have no idea whether I’d have chosen the 500 points or the food and beverage amenity, not having been offered the choice I never asked what the food and beverage option consisted of.
So I figure I’ll follow up on this in a week, after I’ve seen whether they post the points without having given me that option. But most reports I’ve seen of the $100 guarantee are that it’s not easy to get.
On the second day of the stay I went downstairs at 1pm to see about changing rooms. They were supposed to call me when a new room was ready, I didn’t figure that would happen at all (those calls don’t usually come quickly on their own) and since it was before check-in time and I was less tired I figured I was in better shape to specify what I hoped to get in a new room.
The clerk at the desk found a room with a king bed that didn’t overlook the hotel’s entrance. Good enough, he promised I’d get a call when the room was ready, he though that would be in an hour or so but certainly by check-in time.
At 6pm, when hadn’t heard anything I went down to the desk and spoke to the same clerk. He seemed shocked no one had called me. Really? I wasn’t shocked at all! They gave me keys to the new room and I switched.
The hotel was fine, large, good for upscale but not luxury conferences. I wouldn’t stay here on my own, I certainly don’t think it was worth the $330++ per night he conference was paying let alone the $500++ that rooms were going for on the Marriott website shortly before the stay.
But it was a great education in Marriott Rewards, in the Platinum program, and independently of the specific treatment here I think what I’ve internalized about the Marriott Rewards program is:
- The highest threshold to earn top tier status
- Suites specifically excluded from the upgrade benefit
A weaker breakfast benefit than Hyatt, Hilton, and Starwood
- A weaker late checkout benefit than Hyatt and Starwood
- No complimentary fitness club benefit
And in too limited an experience to generalize from, not a ton of effort to accommodate either.
So I’ve decided that Marriott Platinum just isn’t worth it, and I’m not going to stretch and direct incremental stays over to Marriott to retain the status. I’ve decided to abandon the Platinum challenge. Although hopefully with the remaining Marriott nights I can’t weasel out of I’ll receive some benefit.
The resort benefits are definitely lacking, it’s one of the biggest complaints.
The tough thing is that if you’re traveling to non-major cities, Hilton and Marriott become your only friends. Yes there might be a Starwood, but it could be father away or more expensive.
So I read you guys talk about all the wonderful Hyatt, intercontinental, and Starwood properties, reminding me of their benefits, but I’m a top tier status at Hilton and Marriott because it’s all that is consistently available.
And comparing Hilton to Marriott, I feel the latter definitely is better. So thus the popularity for the product. It’s the best of what is available for non-major cities.
Interesting post and I walked away from Marriott in 2001 or thereabouts.
The bed type thing is kind of funny as I always thought that was the one thing Marriott did better than anybody else.
-David
I let my Platinum status expire at the end of February and am Gold until February 2013. This program is definitely not for me. Not at all impressed. Hyatt is definitely my top choice.
Agreed. I am currently in the plat challenge, but most cases i still picked a spg hotel over a marriott over suites and late checkouts.
Gary,
I am a Marriott and Starwood Plat and have been for a while. I generally use SPG for the aspirational hotels. While Marriott has the JW and Ritz brands, you NEVER get any more than what you are entitled to at those brands. I’ve had better experience in getting great rooms at SPG, though service can be spotty, even at the St Regis. At the Ritz, where I never get upgraded, nor expect it, the service is impeccible, the Ritz is a unique proposition because of their service. As a frequent traveler, I appreciate the Marriott coverage. SPGs is limited, so I use Marriott as my backup. One of the elite Marriott benefits I constantly use is the coupons. As a plat you can get $1000 in coupons for 135000 points. Those go a long way. I view those as similar to getting credit at spg for award stays, as I am paying with points but still getting elite credit. Spg has upped the ante recently and Marriott has made no improvements to their program. I am waiting for Marriott to respond. I’ll be interested to hear how your other Marriott stays go, assuming they aren’t at JWs.
Great detailed review. It is certainly the Marriot loss. thanks
I avoid Marriotts like the plague when I can. Really, they are only in the “taking care of elites or frequent guests” because they have to keep up with the competition.
Starwood created the bar & at the very worst they at least can pretend that they care. Marriott doesn’t even try. They do the least they can.
The whole resort thing leaves me shaking my head.
Whether chasing free stays or paying, resorts with all their fees and exemptions seem the most costly way to stay — drink the kool-aid and get what you get (your description of being charged to use the “gym” is telling). It reminds me of the spa thing in Europe with the extra costs, limited access, and people tromping around in towels and flip-flops (which itself is reminiscent of little more than an upscale high school locker room).
I did have a (Marriott) rep tell me what a really great thing it was that parking was “free” at a property recently (in the boonies in Georgia). Ridiculous.
Great post. Very interesting.
I have been a Marriott platinum for two years now and my experience is very different from yours. I have almost always been given a suite upgrade, many times the presidential suite.(I do always call the hotel manager prior to my stay and request the suite upgrade) In one hotel in Seattle that I use when visiting my daughter in college, they have always given me the upgrade and free breakfast on the weekends when the lounge is not open. One month ago in Boston, the Ritz also gave me a guaranteed suite upgrade.(This again followed a call with the front desk manager)My only concern with Marriott is that some of their hotels are very much in need of updating.
I’ve been Marriott Platinum for ~6 years now. I have to agree with AA. Lots of blogs talk about how great Hyatt and SPG programs are but they just don’t have nearly as many properties. Personally, I have had a lot of luck at Marriotts including them let me check in at 5 am at some properties, check out at 10 PM in others, and one even gave me a free parking for a month in a paid parking garage. Quite often I have also been upgraded to suites without asking for it. I’ve also had a few properties give me breakfast vouchers even when it wasn’t support to be a benefit on the weekend. To each their own I guess.
They are just so big they can’t be avoided. In my experience, apart from a couple extra points there just isn’t much difference between gold and platinum. I have never expected or received an upgrade to a suite. The main reason I stick with Marriott is the coverage and our corporate travel program. With the credit card and roll-over, qualifying for gold is not that difficult. You should consider calling and asking to switch to the gold challenge, if you don’t have that already. They do have some interesting Autograph properties and good coverage in cities like Paris, London and Rome. The standard Megabonus offer (2 cat4 after 4 stays) is decent value.
In order to get the ca$h for not being offered or receiving a Plat benefit, the Plat must ask for it before leaving the Hotel. Once you leave teh Hotel deals off , which means if you indicated you want the Pts as the Welcome Gift then since it wont post before you leave the hotel if it should not post you arent entitled to the $$
Personally I never asked for the $$ when staying @ a non-FS property (usually $25) and only twice at a FS and got the $100. There were a few other times I could have goten it but didnt pursue it since the Hotel went out of their way in helping me with other things
there are pro and cons with all the programs the main thing is to know exactly which program offers what and most bets are off when staying at a Resort.
Yea Hyatt is on top but with so few properties what good is it, and now they did away with their FFN promo to boot.
I feel kind of the same way. I’m in the middle of a challenge and just left the Ritz Dove mountain resort in Tucson a couple days ago. Although very polite, I was extremely underwhelmed, and somehow they charged me tax, a resort fee, and then tax on the resort fee…..I have no problem spending money when I need to, but I dont appreciate being nickel and dimed
I stay at Marriotts because they have great availability in the suburbs where I work. In most suburbs in other states, I can’t find a Starwood or Hyatt but I can easily find a Marriott or Priority Club.
My preference is Starwood. But unfortunately there are none where I travel. I can usually find a Starwood in the big cities.
@craz I asked for the money and they offered the points. They said “I can post the points right now.” I said, “My point is, I wasn’t offered the amenity. That’s supposed to be guaranteed. And at checkin, arriving so late, a little snack would have been nice.” They said, “I’ll post the points right now.” I said, “NO, please do not.” And I now have to take it up with Marriott Rewards. We’ll see.
Gary,
Wise choice. The only thing that Marriott has going on is the sheer number of properties. I left the program in 99 after some lackluster experiences followed by a particularly bad one a at a different conference hotel, followed by an even worse customer “recovery” that sent me shopping to SPG. 600+ SPG stay later I am still extremely happy with them (and happier still that they just made me lifetime platinum…)
You won’t regret it.
Gary the best thing to do is to call Marriott rewards during your stay, explain the situation, and have them set the record straight with the hotel. Some times even the FDM doesn’t know the policies when it comes to the guarantee – which is a whole other issue.
@CodeAdam10 I was mostly interested in using the experience to learn the Marriott Rewards program, and i think I’ve accomplished that, I don’t ACTUALLY care whether they fulfill a guarantee for me, I care about learning that they didn’t want to 🙂
As a previous Gold member, I came to the same conclusion over the past year and decided to skip out on renewing my Gold status again. The nail in the coffin for me was not receiving an upgrade or breakfast on a weekday stay at the JW Marriott Las Vegas Resort. It wasn’t until after my stay that I realized the lack of benefits at “resort” properties, which seems counterintuitive.
Marriott clearly needs to step up and increase benefits for Gold and Platinum members. I sent an e-mail to Marriott explaining why I’ll be abandoning their rewards program, and never heard back after the initial response from Customer Service that they forwarded my message to the appropriate department.
I was thinking about going for the challenge, but after reading your devastating review will not bother.
Not a Marriott guy, but as others noted, they are excellent for out of the way places, and those properties I find to be a step above Holiday Inn. I especially like Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites.
Now I would probably choose a Holiday Inn if I wanted to maximize Priority Club with all of their bonuses. But since I can effectively buy those points at an incredibly low rate, I prefer Marriott, or also Hampton Inn, when I am in such locales.
@ Gary
I take it you asked for the $100 when you were checking out as they do have till that point to offer the Gift to you. eg I wasnt offered anything at checkin and when passing by the FD the next morn and asking fora late checkout I mention oh btw I never was offered my Welcome Gift they can then and there offer it to me and thusly dont have to fork over the $100
If you did it at checkout thats when you need to ask for the $100 and if denied ask for the MOD and call Marrott Rewards or MR CS. Its a big headache having to deal with it at checkout especially if your in a Rush.
The Main problem is most of the programs have been declining year after year where the benefits arent what they once were.And the amount of pts for a free night keep going up as they ALL keep increasing their Cat levels Most Hamptons are 30k or $179+ for a MOTEL
I like MR simply due to the availability of their locations unlike *W or Hyatt which are hard to find and when you do its usually 1 hotel in that area while there will be several Marriotts or Hiltons to chose from.
and for now Meetings earns 10 nights and the CC earns 15 so theres no real need to stay 75 actual nights
@craz yes I raised this issue at checkout.
I’m Lifetime Plat (> 10 years as earned plat). I’ve stayed in the Marriott Marquis in Times Square many times, usually for one night and checking in after dinner. I always got a suite, occasionally a monster sized one.
Last June I was in Hong Kong on vacation and had booked with points. When I got there they had no rooms available on the club floors nor any suites. They gave me a standard room (all I actually booked, and it was quite nice) and refunded half the points as an apology.
Maybe they can tell the difference between Plat challenge vs lifetime, maybe not, but I’m quite happy with them.
By the way, as I write this, I’m in a Hyatt Place (Diamond status) which I happen to like a lot. I see them as about equal to Marriott SpringHill Suites.
@Steve There is no distinction between a “regular” plat and a “challenge” plat but… when you checkin, the computer shows your # of stays and MR points balance (the stuff that shows on your account on the website) and some other hotel-specific stuff and a notes section. Checking in as plat with a zero balance and stays may cause a FD person to raise an eyebrow but it shouldn’t; status is status.
@craz Actually, the arrival benefit is an “arrival” benefit, not a “we can give it to you anytime before you checkout” benefit. You have to ask for it before you checkout but once the “arrival” has passed, it’s time for cash. The guarantee makes no sense if they can just give you the benefit after they fail to deliver.
When I don’t get it, I stop by the front desk the following morning if I have time, or evening if I didn’t, and mention that I didn’t receive my amenity, would have liked it, that the $100 will sure come in handy and if they want me to wait for it or if they’re busy, to just deliver it to my room. Oh, and smile when you say it.
@Gary I’ve been a plat (or plat premiere) for the last 14 years. Shabby treatment all around. Did you have your own reservation?
@Richard yes I did 🙂 and yes my Platinum # was in it. And my reservation showed a request for King, though I believe technically the standard group rooms were run of house.
As a newly minted Plat I would have to concur with your analysis, I have been less than impressed. No early checkin, no suite, and no guaranteed late checkout. Though as I’ve written on flyertalk I have noticed that the hotel management now goes out of their way to accommodate me when I have a concern, which is something that didn’t happen before.
It is a shame you had such a bad experience at the JW Scottsdale, which is one of my favorites resorts. I’ve never had a trouble getting a nice King room, sometimes even below $100/night (though not during a conference or peak season). This is a great resort for families, and the pool is truly awesome. The food is good too and there are many good dining options nearby (which is not always the case for resorts).
It is a shame that many of us are stuck with Marriott and Hilton, but SPG and Hyatt just don’t have the same breadth of geographic coverage (though there is a nice Westin in Scottsdale!)
Marriott only provides value if you’re using your credit card sign up bonus points to stay 4 free.
@Boraxo for what it’s worth I’ve eaten at the JW in Scottsdale and much enjoyed it. I wish I had stayed at the JW in Scottsdale! This was the JW in Phoenix, which is much less enjoyable IMHO. 😉
Gary-
Sorry this all happened. I LOVE that property and have been treated better than this when I was NOT a plat. Now, being plat, they treat me very well there….
Im always surprised when I see Marriott getting high accolades & people praising their program. I haven’t found them beneficial in the last decade I’ve been (seriously) accruing points. They do have more locations than Hilton/Starwood in some popular locals, but not worth my loyalty.
all the above makes sense, but for guy without status and trying the platinum challenege, it sure is just super cool just having access to the platinum phone line. I swear its the only way to have a phone call go the way you would ACUTALLY expect it to go all the time…..so smooth, no hassles.
Gary,
I am a Marriott Platinum Premier and have been at least a Platinum member for several years.
Yours was certainly was not a very impressive stay – appallingly bad CS. Out of the several hundred nights at I’ve logged I’ve only had a handful of cases where I’ve had really bad customer service experiences, so I would say my experiences aren’t that bad.
I very often get suite upgrades or real room upgrades (including most of the time when I ask for it unless the property is quite full, although even then they’ll sometimes still give me a suite if it hasn’t been sold). But it is as you say not an official perk. Treatment depends on the property, I’d say about 25% of the properties tend to just give me the minimum benefits, but most seem to enthusiastically recognize my status. I do agree that resorts often are the ones that are less into status recognition.
marriott is soo bad on their program that I actually prefer IHG sometimes given their coverage is even better. I just dont understand people who like Marriott
That’s quite a damning assessment of the Marriott Rewards loyalty program, and it mirrors reports I’ve seen from others. I guess their loyalty is based primarily on Marriott’s enormous size rather than anything to do with their rather lackluster products and services. Even the people who wish to defend Marriott Rewards standards are routinely claiming receipt of products and services that are explicitly excluded by the terms and conditions of the Marriott Rewards policies. That should be red flag right there. Apparently Marriott Rewards is only worth the trouble when your specific Marriott hotel chooses to break their own rules and offer upgrades that they’re not supposed to offer. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to rely on a program that is only worthwhile when the rules are completely ignored.
In response to Dax – most Marriott brand hotels are owned by hotel groups and individuals and not Marriott International. Hotel owners want return guests.
The hotels contract with Marriott Rewards primarily for marketing purposes. Any hotel that wants to offer more than the Marriott Rewards minimum benefits is certainly within its rights to do so and quite possibly may be making a revenue enhancing choice in the way they treat their elite guests.
They would likely offer these kinds of elite benefits regardless of the hotel brand. Many hotel companies own hotels marketed in several different brands with the same company having hotels in multiple hotel chains like Hilton, Marriott, Starwood and IHG.
@Ric Garrido: I see what you’re saying. Unfortunately that doesn’t change the fact that the Marriott Rewards rules are written to arguably expect the most from their customers while at the same time expecting the least from their own hotels among the big five frequent stay programs. This may in fact be part of their loyalty strategy, insomuch as they are already training you to work extra hard to obtain your status and yet expect very little when you get there. That way every time you receive a suite or some other unpublished amenity it seems like the hotel is really bending over backward to impress you. Cynical perhaps, but apparently it’s paying dividends among those who don’t bother to shop around.
The summary of your stay is you may as well have got the hotel off Priceline’s NYOP for all the benefit you got out of Plat status.
I don’t mind getting Marriott’s off Priceline for 1/4 of there rack rate, but I’d never pay the listed price for any of the ones I’ve stayed at.
@Will – well, I wouldn’t have gone to priceline since I wasn’t the one paying for the stay, but for what it’s worth Marriott honors elite status on Priceline stays (though such stays don’t count TOWARDS status)
I also have had negative experience with the platinum challenge. I stayed the required minimum number of nights at variousMaarriott properties, but for 1 reason or another none of them counted towards my 18 nights required to keep platinum. It is my opinion that your overall experience with the program is that properties can simply choose to pick which, if any perks, they offer for guests. Also that the burden to get the perks falls upon the guest, and not the property. This is 100 percent my experience and I am also abandoning Marriott.
I too am a Marriot Fan. The breadth of their properties is nearly unmatched, and I have always received great value from Marriot Rewards points.
I have been a Plat the past few years, but it does not look like I will travel quite as much this year.
So, I converted my account to Ritz-Carlton Rewards, and applied for the RC Rewards card. It carries a $395 annual fee, but gives you automatic Gold status in Marriott and Ritz programs with a $10K annual spend. (In addition to the 50K sign up bonus plus some other rich rewards.)
Next year I’ll let you know if I feel any less well treated as a Gold (vs Platinum)…
Once upon a time 20 years ago I knew nothing about programs.
Not the value of point, what elite status could or couldn’t do for me. I never thought about earning miles, transferring them or what an aspirational award really was other then getting a room in the city you needed for the night in question. That was before blogs came to be and the internet ruled. You called made a reservation and waited for the confirmation number to be mailed. Need to redeem a Marriott free night?You waited for a paper certificate to be mailed which could take a month to receive. Do you remember?
Remember something called the post office?
Yes folks Marriott was my favorite program because then it was the only one I was in and quite frankly I didn’t know any better.
There wasn’t a Gary Leff or someone around to detail and debate the positives or deficiencies. Inside Flyer was a cult magazine I discovered only years down the road. You couldn’t buy it on a newsstand.
Fast forward to 2012 the world changed long ago and Marriott only a little in comparison to the generous programs we see today. They are reactive then proactive. Folks that like them don’t seem to care. It’s the same folks that had the same hair style since grade school some of them
Stay with what you know what feels safe.
I achieved lifetime Plat status this year with Starwood/SPG and awaiting lifetime Diamond status with Hyatt
Marriott lost over a half million dollars from just one guest because over the decades it just couldn’t
measure up in the guest program, value, or in house recognition. They still are a good brand where the properties aren’t tired however they continue to coast in the program and promotional end with capped redemption on award categories
Marriott Rewards never met its true promise to many of those in the know.
Thankfully there are still a lot of folks that like the brand with its strengths and its faults, don’t know the difference,dont care and stay anyway
I’m sure Mr. Marriott is grateful for these folks or he and his colleagues would be forced to fix all that’s wrong with Marriott Rewards despite what is reasonably right in some regards.
I am grateful to Marriott they are the far from the best however they take many travelers that don’t know the difference like Southwest and get them out of my preferred hotels and planes and allow me to get my upgrade and rich rewards while they suffer a average fate in many common boring properties by choice or just not knowing the difference. If one loves the brand and sees it as the best of the pack so be it. Then all the rest doesn’t matter anyway.
I’m grateful my relationships
And these brands, programs serve the lion’s share of my needs globally. It’s a very rainy day when I’m in a Marriott which happens once every few years. My family grew up with them and now they and many of my business associates moved to the brands and programs I frequent today.
I don’t need ten thousand properties. I need a few thousand good ones to choose from that recognize me for being loyal at the end of the day in a lifetime relationship
I have that above and beyond and have tremendous gratitude I didn’t stay in Marriott/Marriott Rewards. It’s mostly about Marriott not the customer despite the beating of the drums.Many still vote for them as the best
I’ll bet many have never been outside of a Marriott with any frequency and done a direct comparison with competing programs.
Cheers
Wow. I didn’t know you do not impose a word / character limit on comment posts Gary! 🙂
@ Don: I am Fairmont Plat, Hyatt Plat, and Hilton Gold. I like them all for various reasons, and use them all for certain properties / cities.
I know and appreciate a variety of hotels and their programs, but Marriott is still my primary program / hotel. They meet my needs, breadth of hotels is almost unmatched, and like I said earlier, I receive great value from my Marriott (Ritz) Rewards points.
Good morning – I am not as high a level status as many of you, but I have found the Marriott meets my needs as an international traveler, and one who takes advantage of their rewards program.
I found Hilton takes so many points to redeem for nights vs. Marriott that their program is not worth the effort. 150,000 points for 7 nights in Europe including the Renaissance Plaz Vendome, using the points for an Alaska cruise, etc. made me very happy with Marriott.
I have heard SPG is a great program, but found too few locations to take advantage of their hotels.
One can hope that the criticisms voiced here will be listened to by Marriott to improve the program.
You nailed it. Just wasted 10 years funneling all business to Marriott and achieved Platinum PREMIER this year. But the things you specifically mention are my biggest peeves but you can add upgrades to that list too. If you beg and plead properties in advance and again at the desk, you might get some leeway but most properties don’t care and have to be shamed into providing what Marriott promises…