jsq

fine hotel program room upgrades are sometimes dependant upon the training (or lack thereof) of the people who are checking you in.

we have received a large quantity of upgrades with no problem but occasionally someone at the check in has no clue. even if, as it often is, the upgrade request is hard coded into the reservation and available for them to see on their check in screen we have been denied it and told the program does not exist or..... take your pick. if it matters we just ask to talk with someone else, preferably a manager. not to get the person in trouble just to get someone with a bit more experience and that usually does the trick.

so, politely go up the hotel management chain and that usually solves the problem. it is nothing personal, just people not having been trained or ....

all the best

chalf

Like others, I have had a hard time determining whether I have really been "upgraded" with FHR. My sense is that I am just upgraded from 'basic' room to 'slightly nicer' room, the sort that I might have received anyways if the hotel is slow/I booked an expensive rate/desk staff in a good mood/etc. I book the room category I want, and view the upgrade as a pleasant surprise. The value of FHR for me is in the other benefits.

I agree, however, that there should be some compensation when breakfast is already included at a property. I stayed in a [very nice] Amex SLH [not FHR] property in May, but as breakfast was included in all rooms as best I could tell the only benefit I got was late check-out, and possibly a slightly nicer room. No complaints and I was very happy with the hotel, but the rate (with breakfast) was also available on the hotel's website.

EDIflyer

I noticed that too on an SLH booking I was considering in Turin - ended up booking via Expedia instead for a nice chunk of cashbook - all rates included breakfast and a junior suite was cheaper (even before cashback!) than paying SLH rate and hoping for an upgrade to a junior suite!

RedRox

Indeed, so many properties have these "micro" room levels, i.e., the same exact room/size/amenities but different room levels, e.g., deluxe, superior, club, club superior city view, club superior bay view deluxe, etc. that an upgrade may just be a room 20 feet further down the hall. But then, there are those properties that actually upgrade the room type significantly. Just wished it wasn't so hit or miss.

Yes... A recent stay, the breakfast buffet was included, although I ordered off the menu as well. Free breakfast only covered the buffet part, even though every guest in the entire hotel received that, so no FHR benefit there.

mtkeller

Wondering if anyone has experience with FHR upgrades checking into a sold out hotel. I'm staying at the MO Singapore later this month, and they're showing no availability (on the MO website) for the day I'm checking in and the previous day. For the other two nights of my stay, they are not selling the lowest couple of room types, so they must be fairly full. Because of the ungodly arrival times of flights to SIN, I'm going to crash at the transit hotel after arriving and then head into town in the morning and spend three nights at the MO. Thus, I could avail myself of the noon check-in FHR benefit, or I could wait until later in the day to check in if it might help with my upgrade chances. (Booked into a Premier Harbour, if that helps anyone advise me based on actual experience.)