whistlindiksee

Thanks to the posts on this thread, I had a successful meeting of one last week and attained my lifetime plat status.

I booked it at a local CY. Asked for meeting space for one hour on the following day and she reduced the rate from $250 to $100, since otherwise the space wasn't going to be rented. I didn't require any services at all--not even pitchers of water, although they were provided.

I signed the contract and paid for it with my Marriott Visa via email within an hour of calling. I'm sure I wouldn't have had to show up, but I did since they are local and I was curious about what the room was like for $100. It was actually a great meeting room. I went in, poured myself a glass of water, took a picture of the room and left.

I knew I would attain LT this year, but was on a Plat challenge to complete 9 more stays by the end of May to retain it for this year, and I knew that wasn't going to happen. For $100, I never have to think about it again!

Btw, during all the years I've been loyal to Marriott, this is only the 2nd time I've used a CY. The first time, I found out they do nothing for Platinum members and never stayed with them again. Attaining LT status by paying them a hundred bucks was quite satisfying.