Hi, as an update to this question, I am wondering what to do with my e-certificate (The Cat 1-4 type that was given to me when I signed up for my Canadian Marriott Rewards Visa).

See, I can't use the e-certificate as hotels in Vancouver/Seattle start at cat 5. So I made a booking for my parents as they'll be driving to Calgary and there is a cat 4 Marriott there. After booking online and getting confirmation, I called Marriott Rewards to make sure that my e-certificate would work when my Dad would check-in, and they said that only points are transferable, and not e-certificates. I couldn't believe this, and on many forums, people are saying that they always book a points reservation under their own name, an e-certificate is sent to the hotel for their stay, and then they call to change to a friend or family member's name (how does the hotel know this e-certificate came from points, and mine comes from a credit card sign-up bonus?). So I called Marriott Hotel Reservations, and they did reissue the booking under my dad's name. The CSR did say that she wasn't sure whether they would honour the e-certificate without me being there at check-in, and so now I'm kind of stuck. Will my parents arrive at the hotel, only to be told they now have to pay in cash, or have me transfer my points to them?

Oh btw - first post. Hi everyone, and thanks for reading this