The Idiots who Design Marriott Rooms
May 16, 2015, 6:07 pm
#31
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Atherton, CA
Programs: UA 1K, AA EXP; Owner, Green Bay Packers
Posts: 21,690
,
...and get off my lawn, you damned kids!
I gotta agree, sometimes the idiot designers go for fru fru crap over function, like the stupid glass walled bathrooms or the ridiculous square backed chairs with no armrests which are useless to sit in just because someone thinks they "look good."
May 16, 2015, 6:19 pm
#32
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 407
For the love of God hotel chains -- PLEASE put in (or keep) closing, locking doors that block out ALL light and noise from the bathrooms. And while you're at it, please keep the showers fully enclosed with either a curtain or doors. No more of this permanent half-barrier glass nonsense that keeps the ambient air freezing cold when trying to take a shower!!
May 16, 2015, 6:24 pm
#33
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: ABQ
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond, Avis President's Club, National Executive
Posts: 166
I've also stayed at the SFO Airport Waterfront a lot lately and am not so sure about the new rooms. The glass, sliding bathroom door, as discussed, is not great. I also seem to remember that the closet no longer has a door at all. As long as I keep getting rooms with great airport views - I'll suppose I'll live.
May 16, 2015, 6:32 pm
#34
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Tucson AZ
Programs: Global Entry, United Silver, Marriott Platinum Premier, Hilton Gold
Posts: 380
Exactly. We're all paying money for a hotel room and, as the customer, there's nothing wrong with expecting the hotel to fulfill their end of the agreement by providing a clean, comfortable, safe, and functional environment. If I want Motel 6 I'll get a room there and adjust my expectations accordingly. The OP wasn't whining about not getting chocolates on the pillow, and shouldn't be subjected to cat-calling by the FT peanut gallery. :-)
May 16, 2015, 9:30 pm
#40
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Treasure Coast, FL
Programs: DL Diamond, Marriott LT Plat, HH Diamond, Avis Preferred Plus, National Executive
Posts: 4,578
I've also stayed at the SFO Airport Waterfront a lot lately and am not so sure about the new rooms. The glass, sliding bathroom door, as discussed, is not great. I also seem to remember that the closet no longer has a door at all. As long as I keep getting rooms with great airport views - I'll suppose I'll live.
Can't remember ever staying in a marriott branded property with no desk.
A picture from the OP would have been nice. The SFO Marriott website still shows the old rooms with desks (of which I have stayed at many times).
May 16, 2015, 9:56 pm
#41
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Toronto, Ont., Canada
Programs: Aeroplan; Marriott Platinum; IHG Platinum; Best Western Diamond
Posts: 2,165
Agree with the OP. A room should have a desk. That'll be a deal breaker for me for a hotel room. Glass bathroom door? Also not nice.
Better be careful and remember if you pulled the blinds open during the day and then take a show (or use the toilet), you can be seen.
But maybe that's the idea of the design. A hotel with transparency.
Better be careful and remember if you pulled the blinds open during the day and then take a show (or use the toilet), you can be seen.
But maybe that's the idea of the design. A hotel with transparency.
May 16, 2015, 11:28 pm
#42
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Wesseling, NRW, Germany
Programs: UA *S , MR LT Titanium, HH Diamond, Hertz PC
Posts: 3,940
The Stuttgart Marriott is similar - no work-desk and no office-chair, just a movable desk in a height that suggests to sit on the sofa to work, but then there is no power outlet near that location.
I discussed this with one of their Manager's, and I was told I could get one of their conference rooms if needed to get work done for free. This was their response when I challenged the sanity of the decision to get rid of the work-desk in their rooms - they claimed it was in response to a survey where travelers overwhelmingly responded that a desk in the room was not needed.
Greetings - Dirk
I discussed this with one of their Manager's, and I was told I could get one of their conference rooms if needed to get work done for free. This was their response when I challenged the sanity of the decision to get rid of the work-desk in their rooms - they claimed it was in response to a survey where travelers overwhelmingly responded that a desk in the room was not needed.
Greetings - Dirk
May 17, 2015, 12:06 am
#43
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Delta, BC
Posts: 1,646
Yes, 100% of travelers that never use a desk responded that they didn't need a desk.
May 17, 2015, 3:08 am
#44
Join Date: Nov 2013
Programs: LeClubAccorhotels Platinum, M&M FTL
Posts: 578
I am not a Marriott person, but I noticed this thread highlighted on the front page and cannot agree more. Many a hotel room requires an urgent update, but quite many of those are focused around wrong priorities. They just throw in some modern-looking fixtures and furniture (often prone to premature wear - did any FF&E person ever approve those), and the lack of a proper work desk is a total disaster.
On a totally contrarian note, one of my fave hotels (not a Marriott I know) is the Mercure Berlin Checkpoint Charlie, whose design is totally disgusting, but the room arrangement close to ideal:
The desk is quite large, the power outlets are there, the TV rotates to serve both bed and desk (I believe you can plug in your device in as well) and the coffee machine is at hand. My only gripe is the lack of a proper office chair, but the one supplied is actually quite comfortable and well-adjusted to the desk height.
While the Mercure's rooms are quite large, you can have a similar arrangement in a much smaller room, like @ Mercure Milano Solari:
One of the reasons some Mercures do so well is that the chain imposes minimal design restrictions on its hotels. This one misses the office chair as well, though...
...which brings me to the modest Holiday Inn Express hotels. One of the common feature of the new room design in those is a very comfortable and modern office chair:
(this one is actually an Ibis Styles, rebranded soon after launching, but the rooms are formatted exactly to the HIExpress standards).
If the lowly HIExpress (and Hamptons as well for that matter) can do that, why should I pay extra for a full-service hotel only to get a room where I can't work?
On a totally contrarian note, one of my fave hotels (not a Marriott I know) is the Mercure Berlin Checkpoint Charlie, whose design is totally disgusting, but the room arrangement close to ideal:
The desk is quite large, the power outlets are there, the TV rotates to serve both bed and desk (I believe you can plug in your device in as well) and the coffee machine is at hand. My only gripe is the lack of a proper office chair, but the one supplied is actually quite comfortable and well-adjusted to the desk height.
While the Mercure's rooms are quite large, you can have a similar arrangement in a much smaller room, like @ Mercure Milano Solari:
One of the reasons some Mercures do so well is that the chain imposes minimal design restrictions on its hotels. This one misses the office chair as well, though...
...which brings me to the modest Holiday Inn Express hotels. One of the common feature of the new room design in those is a very comfortable and modern office chair:
(this one is actually an Ibis Styles, rebranded soon after launching, but the rooms are formatted exactly to the HIExpress standards).
If the lowly HIExpress (and Hamptons as well for that matter) can do that, why should I pay extra for a full-service hotel only to get a room where I can't work?