Originally Posted by
Marykatesmom
The most recent disastrous change is Marriott has reconfigured its Club Upgrades and no longer uses the "certificate" approach but now I am forced to use a "code" that is entered at the time of booking. This drastic change now means I can no longer get a "Club Upgrade" but rather approximately $100 or $200 off a night for a club room. Instead of a regular rack rate for a standard room with an attached Club upgrade I am paying much, much more. You can no longer book a room, and then when you receive your CL certificates, add them to your room.
I agree that having to attach the certificates at the time of reservation vs. being able to apply them later is a big downgrade. Especially because you can't make the reservation now without calling in and to your point it can take forever to get a human being. Ideally the Ambassador's should do this for you but in my experience the Ambassador's are often clueless about the certificates and unwilling to book the reservation for you.
What rate code are you entering? Z34/Z38 don't seem to work for me anymore. They only way I get the credit card rates is if I have the card added to my profile as a payment option. I will say that in most cases the credit card rate is the same or very close to therack rate however it seems as though when you call in to apply the certificate it's hit or miss as to whether they will honor the rate the website quoted.