Jon Maiman

Some people value their sleep especially when they have a very limited window to do so. There have been times when I have been on the road for extended periods of time, working 16+ hour days, and arriving late at night into a new destination. At that point I want and need sleep to be functional the next day. If the room is still reasonably clean but the bed types are wrong, I probably won't say anything until morning. Because I value sleep, one of the basic services a hotel is supposed to provide is a place to sleep, doesn't mean I am satisfied with being given the wrong bed type and it was okay for the hotel to do so. Fortunately in my almost 2000 nights of Marriott stays, I have very rarely had to deal with this situation.

Upon further reflection, I can see a middle of the road approach when arriving late at night. Call down to the front desk from the room and report the incorrect room type. If it is an honest mistake, the hotel should be able to move you to the correct room type quickly and easily (or admit they made a mistake and no longer have that room type available and grant the compensation). If there is any pushback from the front desk that is likely to result in a time consuming argument, than table the discussion until the next morning and take it up then. E.g. still leave yourself time to sleep so you can function the next day. Furthermore, if you're under tight time constraints to leave the next day, as long as you make an honest attempt to notify the property before departing, it should be okay to take it up later over the phone if a quick resolution can't be achieved. The initial notification and request definitely must be made before leaving the property. The final resolution may not occur until later after departure. If you leave without notifying the property and making your compensation request at all, then at the that point it is implied consent and there is no longer a basis to file a complaint.

For me, I just want to be treated well at properties. I don't want to have any issues where compensation would be appropriate. I have very rarely asked for or received compensation. Hard to remember exactly how many times over the years, but I am pretty sure it has been less than 10, probably less than 5 times I have gotten compensation. I have had to pushback on a property more often than that, but even that has been rare as well. When I have pushed back for room type or room location, it has generally been honored, sometimes more pushback is required than others.

Once in a while at a property I was staying at regularly at the time, unsolicited they asked for my opinion and how satisfied I was at check in time on one of the visits. With one property in particular, at that point I gave them honest feedback that they never seemed to upgrade elite members to a better room. This was a RI and I started getting upgrades from a studio to a one bedroom after that most of the time. If they had never asked, I would have never mentioned anything. Upgrades are nice but are not guaranteed by the program.

It all comes down to the vibe the property wants to project. If I feel I am generally being treated well I am unlikely to point out any small service misses or small program benefit misses. If I don't feel I am generally being treated well, I am more likely to be a stickler for the rules and pushback harder. Of course for some random property your only staying at one time for one night, it is hard to know how they generally treat people. I have had many stays like that as well. For areas I do visit again, I do remember which properties treat me better and I try to direct my future stays to them even if their rates are slightly higher.

--Jon