I have used these certificates many times. Locations may opt to not particpiate at all in the program. If they do agree to participate; however, the rooms are NOT capcity controlled. If a room is available you are entitled to it. The only place I have had a problem with this has been Cancun, which tries to black out awards at Christmas. Central reservations intervened on my behalf and I got the room. In terms of what category suite you get, it is typically what the hotel calls an Executive Suite. It is the lowest category suite. At the www.ritzcarlton.com website you can view descriptions of the suites by clicking on a hotel link, and if you proceed to book a reservation you can see regular room rates. If you want to line up a reservation before requesting the certificate, call Ritz Carlton at 800-241-3333 and request a reservation using an Incentive Certificate, code RPIB (that's the suite certificate). By the way, there is an active market in these things on e-Bay, with the suite certificates selling for about $400 each. I haven't bought any there, and not sure if the sellers are trustworthy, but if that's a fair price, the Amtrak points requirement is excessive.

Oh, and yes, you can combine as many certificates as you want.



[This message has been edited by BeantownFlyer (edited 09-06-2003).]