pinniped

It totally depends on the circumstance. Again, to me it would have a lot to do with how it was handled, what the alternate accommodations were, and whether this was being sprung on me involuntarily at 1AM.

I don't think any of the hotel chains do this well, but at least Marriott has a policy in place that guarantees real compensation in addition to a so-called "free" night. Perhaps HH should follow suit...

pbjag

The Hilton Irvine attempted to walk me once. I arrived after midnight due to a late flight. I don't remember the hotel (actually more of a motel) they tried to send me to, but it was nowhere in the same category.

I politely but insistently pointed out that a) as a female, I did not consider the other hotel to be either comparable or safe and b) I was facilitating a meeting being held at the Hilton the next day which was being attended by 40 people. I needed to be onsite for AV setup and to ensure the meeting materials had arrived.

Lo and behold, they managed to find a room for me after all.

I'm pretty easygoing and never kick up a fuss -- but am not willing to compromise my safety or my ability to do my job effectively for a hotel's error. If you've guaranteed the reservation, you've paid for that room. If you didn't show up, they would sure as shooting charge you for it. Walking you to another property doesn't cut it unless you get some type of additional compensation for the inconvenience, particularly when the other property is not in the least comparable. The "free" room is meaningless to me when I am on a business trip because I derive zero benefit from that.

Cromely

The problem is the "Free Stay" doesn't compensate me for my troubles. At all. It compensates my employer, who is not inconvenience.

So now, my employer doesn't have to pay for the room, and I have and 30-60 minutes before I can get to bed after what is likely a really long or bad day.

So, don't comp my walked stay. Give me certs for two nights, valid chain wide.


Further, when I guarantee my room with my CC, barring destruction of rooms, there is no reason to walk me. At all. I paid for the room. If I get in at 5:AM and leave at 6:AM, my fault. If I don't show up at all, I still have to pay for that room, so the hotel has no excuse for not leaving it empty.

MJDORD1K

This is my biggest problem with HHonors, namely that there is NO set policy. As a Marriott Platinum, I would have received $200 CASH in addition to the free room. If walking a diamond is as rare as it seems, maybe HHonors needs to adopt a similar policy. That said, I will say that the HHV has stepped up to the plate and this matter has been resolved to my satisfaction.

CO FF

Agreed! After all, when I try to talk my way out of paying the guaranty b/c I'm a loyal [insert chain here] [insert elite tier here], that's just doing the right thing for a valued customer!

I was "double walked" once by *wood in Chicago -- the Westin bumped me to the Sheraton with a phone call 4 days in advance, and then the Sheraton walked me to the Allegro (a nice Kimpton hotel) at 11:30pm. I got 10,000 *pts for that, which is almost a free night at good hotels.

Next time booking the Westin River North, they started to walk me to the Sheraton again. I had just made PLT, and gave them a hard time (using my cell phone to call the Renaissance from the lobby, and telling the Renaissance desk clerk that they were about to steal a SPG Plat...); they "found" a room for me.

I wrote a kick-... letter to the GM; to his credit, he called me the next day and apologized profusely (and had the sales rep call my corp. travel agent too), and my next stay (3 nights) was in the 3-bay suite on the top floor.

I'm going back next week -- I wonder if my name is in their system, or that was a one-time thing?

Janjanjan

I got to the HGI in Charlotte after a very long, very hard day with plenty of travel irritations. They told me they were walking me next door to the Hampton, but to a smoking room. I had a perfectly good confirmed HGI non-smoking room reservation in my hands and wasn't a bit happy as I have asthma and have sometimes had attacks in smoking rooms. I called the Diamond desk while I stood there and refused (in a very polite manner) to leave until I was satisfied. The Diamond desk told them to take care of me. I happened to know that a much more expensive hotel had rooms and I said I wanted to go there. I also offered to sleep on the couch in their lobby as the lobby is non-smoking. Both of those ideas were a bit rich by their standards, and after much conferring by phone with their GM, they pulled two crisp $100 bills from a locked drawer, handed them to me with the walk letter to the Hampton and (also in a polite manner) basically told me to take it or leave it. Obviously I took it.

They comped the HI, which I believe is absolutely standard policy throughout the hotel industry, gave me a couple of bottles of wine to take to my smoking room as well.

I believe they must have a standard policy in these cases to wave $200 in an irate guest's face. What are the chances they just happen to have 2 $100 bills sitting conveniently waiting for this situation?

Seems appropriate to me as it is truly frustrating to have to walk from the back-40 parking space, and get told to take a hike right back. When one is tired, this is more than annoying. They had several options in my opinion. They had my phone number which they could have called to verify that I was really coming before selecting me for the walk-treatment. Or they could have recognized they needed to walk x number of guests early enough to get a non-smoking room for those who had that type room confirmed. I guarantee they would have charged me for the room, had I no-showed, and they admitted that I may have been the only Diamond in-house booked that night. They're taking a gamble when they give up a Diamond's room earlier in the evening, which they admitted they had done.

It's a double-or-nothing game. Either they get paid twice for a double-booked room, or they lose their gamble and pay me double.

sdsearch

Well, first of all, you should still get AT LEAST stay status for what originally booked. (In my case, I'm often JUST SQUAKING by for requalification, or for qualifying enough stays for some promo, or such, and it's all on my own dime, so if a hotel walks me and then doesn't give me points/miles/stay credit/whatever because I didn't end paying for it, I've LOST something I can't regain.)

Second, do you also know why I fly? (Many of us who do fly AA think it's a silly ad campaign.)

Often the hotel doesn't know why I booked THEM.

It may be because I wanted a TV channel that only they have (that other nearby hotels don't) and was planning to watch an "appointment" program on it; walking me to a hotel with a different TV lineup means I LOST something by being walked, despite gaining back some money.

Or maybe I planned to keep something in the refrigerator (I booked a hotel where I knew I would have a refirigerator in the room), but they walk me to someplace with no refrigerator, which means I've LOST something.

Or maybe I was depending on using the internet and knew that it worked fine in the hotel I booked but they walk me to a hotel without it (definitely a possible scenario in the midscale category, you could get walked to a Best Western where the internet only works in half the rooms and you get a room where it doesn't).

In my opinion, they should start by walking all the people who booked "blind" (PriceLine, etc), because they didn't know (and thus I guess didn't care) what exactly they'd be getting. Me, I tend to very carefully choose a hotel, often not just on price, but because I really care about the specific location for some reason or a specific amenity for some reason. If I wanted just ANY hotel in the category (but I never do) and only cared about price, I could have booked "blind" and saved money (and all my stays are on my own dime, so it is my money!).

If a hotel walks me to somewhere I lose an amenity I would have had at the original hotel, how is that not as bad as finding out that a promised
amenity was not given to you at the original hotel (if you expected it)?

(Having said all that, I don't recall ever being walked by an HHonors hotel, only Priority Club plus some smaller low-end chains.)

gof

Hmm, this is the first "walk" I've heard for not having a non-smoking room. I've been subjected to these on occasion (delayed flight, very late arrival) where only smoking were left. I didn't know I could request/demand a walk credit. Anyone else experience this as well?

bbbb

The bottom line is that 99% of the time the last guy to check-in will be the one walked. Because if he don't show up the hotel wins and does not have to pay for a walk.


Also I am sorry but the story about the tour bus staying a extra night is a line of bs. The hotel took a chance by over booking and it bit them in the a$$.

LR Flyer

A couple of years ago walked from a Hilton Garden Inn (Beaverton, OR). I was checking in around 4:00pm and was surprised and talked to the Front Desk Mgr.

She offered to comp the other hotel room for my troubles but I also had her include one night for qualification purposes and 10K points.

I asked her why she is walking a Diamond member and she said they were hosting a huge conf and they underestimated the number of rooms they needed.

charsnow

when a Hhonors member is walked the hotel is required to credit the member with the same points and miles that the member would have got if they had stayed. that said its a manual process and often gets forgotten. If you are ever walked ( Hhonors members should not ever be walked) then ask for a copy of the emergency stay credit form that he hotel is sending in- this gives you some back up and saves the hassle if it gets lost. If you ask some hotels will top it off with bonus points for you being so understanding...

emma3

I was walked from Hilton Los Cabos as a Diamond last year, on a reward stay with my husband to celebrate my birthday. Arrived mid-afternoon and was intercepted by a manager (whom I mistook for yet another time-share sales rep -- ouch!). We stayed the first two nights at the Hilton, and agreed to move to our choice of two other properties for the remaining two nights, with all four nights comped, plus $200. We went with the Marquis next door and were happy with the choice.

However, in retrospect, they were really desperate for space for some larger groups, and perhaps we should have negotiated for more. We spent nearly the whole sum in just one dinner at Fenicia...

srk123

You did good for what you gave up. Don't be greedy.

mazzer

What did they do to compensate you?

ohmark

Some posts have mentioned the Marriott compensation. Here's the rule quoted from the Marriott website, applying to plat, gold, and silver:

"At Marriott Hotels & Resorts; Renaissance Hotels & Resorts; Marriott Conference Centers; Marriott Vacation Club International; and Horizons by Marriott Vacation Club: Alternative accommodations, plus $200 and 2 free room certificates.


At Courtyard by Marriott; Fairfield Inn by Marriott, SpringHill Suites by Marriott; Residence Inn by Marriott; and TownePlace Suites by Marriott: Alternative accommodations, plus $100. (Platinum members also receive 2 free room certificates.)"