Originally Posted by
keeton
You've gotten several good responses telling you how you can make Platinum before year's end but not really saying if Platinum is worth it or not.
If you are going to be staying in full-service (Marriott, JW Marriott or Renaissance) properties most of the time and if you are going to be a frequent enough stayer that would sustain the Platinum level, then the answer is "yes"! The Platinum perks make a difference at these properties.
If you are going to be staying mostly at limited-service properties then going out of your way to attain Platinum status is, in my opinion, not worth it. In this case, I would agree with bigguy and direct my efforts at making mid-tier status in another chain so you would have a fallback when Marriott's weren't convenient or available.
So, I recently made Gold on Marriott and have been less than impressed:
1) grudingly given a 2 PM late checkout at the Napa Marriott
2) no breakfast at the Sonoma Rennaisance (it is a "resort" property)
3) understand that you basically get nothing at Courtyard properties
This is in contrast to Hilton which always gives Diamond breakfast and Starwood which gives 4 PM checkout to Platinum without much trouble etc. (I am also Hilton Diamond thru 2010 or something silly like that and Starood Platinum thru 4/2009 having requalified already for those.)
Now, it turns out that I am sitting on 70 Marriott night credits this year (including the Premier Signature Visa Card).
So, my question is, do I go for 5 more night credits to make Marriott Platinum? Is it worth it? I could perhaps swing a business trip for some of the nights, but I might have to buy 1, 2, or all 5 myself.