Has your father in law ever been invited to Ambassador or any other status above Gold ? It’s clear that Marriott reserves the right to invite folks to Ambassador without meeting the nights requirement. However , I am not sure we have heard from anyone in FT that they were invited and what they spent .

For me, the point of having an Ambassador is to elevate my Marriott experience and hotel stays.

I work with my Ambassador like we’re both part of the same team. I treat her as such. Anyone who manages a team or owns a business likely knows the benefit of such an approach.

I know my Ambassador is a cog in a big wheel. My Ambassador can only make requests of hotels and of Marriott corporate that don’t or can’t always fulfill those requests. I almost always assume my Ambassador isn’t the culprit when things go awry—because I almost always have discovered that to be the case. I trust my Ambassador; my Ambassador knows I have her back, too.

I prefer to book my own hotel stays. I rarely need or almost never expect my Ambassador to book anything for me.

I really appreciate my Ambassador impressing upon hotels—for my most important leisure stays with my husband—the importance of a suite upgrade whenever that may be available. That being said, I maximize my own chances by almost always choosing shoulder or low seasons with lower occupancy. I avoid holidays. I avoid special festivals and celebrations. And I have realistic expectations when a hotel is actually full—and say so both to my Ambassador and to the hotels in question. Everyone appreciates candor and understanding.

I really appreciate my Ambassador reminding hotels to have my rooms/suites pre-cooled to 67 F so I can better ensure the air con will meet my need. That being said, I don’t assume my Ambassador is the culprit whenever this isn’t executed. Even Ritz-Carlton and Luxury Collection hotels have failed in this capacity on a number of occasions, even when I know for certain that my Ambassador reminded them. (I can’t recall a StR failing to know this and at least make the effort, even if it hasn’t always worked out.)

I really appreciate my Ambassador status giving me a VIP priority at most hotels, whether it be because my Ambassador has adevised them or because I have on my own. This is a benefit I enjoy and expect most often at luxury and some upper upscale hotels.

I really appreciate that my Ambassador will try to take care of any and every issue I have with Marriott. She may not always be able to sort my problem as fast as I’d like due to circumstances beyond her control. But I always know she does her very best to sort them for me. And they almost always get sorted.

When any Ambassador has done something that has disappointed or frustrated me, I’ve told them. And I’ve told my Ambassador, too. As a result, my Ambassador and the general Ambassador team has a very good idea of what makes me tick and how best to fulfill my expectations. They don’t wonder what my priorities are. They know.

Hi At what hotel brands do you most often stay? I think that may make a difference.

Though I already mentioned that several RC and LuxColl properties missed on presetting my air con—even as my regular Sheraton Philly and Boston, Le Meridien Cambridge and Arlington, and Four Points Chelsea and Midtown did preset for me.

Regardless, I still expect the luxury brands (and hotels where I’m a frequent guest or where I bring large groups) to be better overall at accommodating my special requests. I expect most “upper upscale” and “upscale” brands to not be so good at handling special requests. I wouldn’t expect much from “midscale” select service brands at all, since special requests are anathema to their less personal service-oriented standards.

Again, I firmly believe that better hotels and hotels that better know us are far more likely to execute the special requests that our Ambassadors make on our behalf.

I suspect that having a healthy annual spend is also pretty useful.

a) I do believe the brand standard (and concomitant hotel standard) for personalized service can have significant impact whenever a customer or an Ambassador makes a special request
b) I’m not sure this quantifiable
c) I don’t think this matters as much now that all new Ambassador guests already are screened for spend and/or invited despite it

Any hotel manager is free to set terms and rates so that (top) suites include breakfast and late checkout privileges. In fact, in many cases, someone booking such a suite would have some communication in advance with the property or its GM and would negotiate check in/out times, etc., or would have a real live human personal travel agent do this.