Originally Posted by
TheMan
Has anyone been told at the New Orleans Marriott that if they want an UPGRADE to a larger room(suite, etc) that regardless of availability it is never FREE. They tried to charge me 50% of the room value on top of the current rate of a standard room for an upgrade. The most that you get for a FREE upgrade is a room with a better view or concierge floor. My understanding of the rules for upgrade is "Based upon availability at check-in". No charge is mentioned. Am I wrong or how do they get away with it?
I have a stay at the Rennaissance Pere Marquette coming up next week, and received an email stating something similar next week.
Thank you for choosing the Renaissance New Orleans Pere Marquette Hotel to host your upcoming travels on 5/28/2015.
Our team is dedicated to providing a warm atmosphere, exceptional service and a memorable experience. We would like to take this opportunity to confirm that the room type and rate you selected for your reservation is our highly discounted “super small room for a super small price”. We offer this specific room at a discounted rate due to its small size which is 119 sq. ft. total with one queen size bed. Because this rate reserves a specific room type it is exempted from the Elite member complimentary rooms upgrade benefit. If you feel this room will not meet your needs, we would be happy to change your reservation to a standard room. However, please note that there will be a rate increase that will ensure a room from our standard inventory with larger living space.
Thank you for being a Platinum Elite member!
This is just a quick overnight for a wedding, so I'm fine with the small room. But this email really irked me. There is nothing in the Marriott Reward T&C that restricts any rate from upgrades, nor was there any sort of language speaking to this in the rate rules. If the hotel had no other rooms available, I completely understand. But to restrict it outright for any type of rate really bothers me. And seriously, I can't think of many rates that don't reserve a specific room type.
I'm so glad that I did the Hyatt Diamond Challenge last year, and shifted the majority of my stays in the direction of Hyatt.