Originally Posted by
sandyph
if you use the night cert, do you still get the Platinum benefit (breakfast/lounge/upgrade/etc?)
Yes. Marriott provides elite benefits regardless of your rate. This includes free nights. Marriott Marquis Bangkok upgraded me to an M Suite on my Cat 5 cert in June.
Marriott's policy of treating elites as elites, regardless of rate, is one of the unheralded benefits of MR compared to the competition, where an ineligible paid rate (e.g., booked through an OTA or contracted) gets you NOTHING.