I agree with the previous post. The Ritz Carlton is a true luxury brand. There is a different established client base that probably has some cross over to Marriott hotels but not a big percentage.

And lets face it, those that generally stay at RC's don't really want to be rubbing elbows with the likes of myself

I'm looking for a clean room, free breakfast, the gym and a big screen TV somewhere at the bar to watch sports with a beer. Not exactly the RC demographic.

And the other thing I think they want to avoid is the "family vacation" crowd that goes to a hotel, to the local conveniance store, and camps out at the pool for a few days with their 3 kids and snacks....and wander the hallways in their swimsuits. Nothing wrong with that in my book, but likely to draw complaints from the RC crowd.

And at some of their extremely popular (and expensive) international locations there is simply no reason to be giving anything away. Plenty of demand exist and no real upside by having myself and folks like myself occasionally showing up.

Other hotel chain's luxury places don't compare (IMO) - Conrad isn't anywhere near the RC in terms of either service or reputation (and price since I've actually stayed at some conrads).