Question: Big Fire, Few Hotels, Marriott Says "Your Reservation Will Be Honored."
 

Later this year, we have a reservation in Chico, CA, not far from where the Camp Fire burned more than 6,000 houses. There isn't a whole lot of hotel capacity in that area, so I was wondering if our reservation could be honored, since the few hotels in the area would probably fill with people displaced by the fire. I called Marriott and they say no problem, your reservation is good, but I find it hard to believe they would kick someone out in order to honor our reservation, not to mention we have no desire to displace someone who already lost their home in the fire. What do hotels typically do in such circumstances?

I don't think there is anything "typical" when it comes to these situations. While FEMA might pay for hotel stays, they also might provide people with trailers like after major hurricanes. Additionally, the per diem rates that FEMA and/or insurance companies pay might be too low for some hotels. As private companies, hotels aren't obligated to drop rates and take in disaster victims.

At this point, it's far to early to know what might happen at any given hotel.

why would you think that? hotels turn people away all the time. Not to be overly harsh, but it people are living in a hotel a month or two from now, they are not without resources. I wouldnt be worried about taking up a room.

You're confusing refusing new check-ins with kicking somebody out. Laws very by state.

I understand the OP's concern. Given Marriott's CS issues of late, including things like pretty much ignoring elite "guarantees", it's not out of the question that they would show up at the hotel only to be told there are no rooms available, and sorry, everything else is sold out too and the ultimate reservation guarantee doesn't apply due to the fires being a special circumstance. That being said, I'm not sure what more they can do at this point than check with Marriott and take them at their word that "your reservation will be honored" means exactly that.

How sad that, until the past year or so, I would never have even doubted Marriott to stand up to their word. I would have defended them against any other hotel company as being the most honest, ethical, and customer-focused.

Some caution suggested
 

Yes, Marriott may very well have every intention of honoring your reservation and it would be very easy for someone at corporate to make such a claim. Now, let's talk reality. Should the property be under evacuation orders, you're not going to be able to get there let alone stay there. If the property is ordered to provide rooms for emergency responders, you're pretty much out of luck. AND the biggest issue is would you really want to be in the area if the fire is still going strong? Some of these fires linger a long time, even once contained.

I was in Lake Tahoe one year when they had a relatively small fire nearby and the only place I could comfortably breathe was in the shower. I had another night on my rez and they were evacuating locals up in the hills that needed places to stay. When I called down asking about early check out, I was told I'd be charged for the last night. I escalated to the MOD and only after looking at my account and seeing my history with the chain did he allow me to check out. I had no doubt the room was filled by the time they got housekeeping to clean it, so everyone won.

I think much of this depends on what "later this year" means.

When you check in to a hotel it's for a specific time window. Hotels arent going to take guests in knowing they dont have availability going forward for the length of stay in question.

Regardless of laws varying by state, i doubt there are any state laws that allow guests to stay past their booking.

While I've never heard of laws governing unauthorized stayovers, some jurisdictions do have local laws that cover how hotels can evict a guest. Some places require the local police to be involved, which generally means going through the court system. In those places, the guest has power over the hotel because of all the extra hurdles involved in removing the guest.

Even without local laws, hotels are usually pretty restrained when it comes to kicking out a paying guest. I know each hotel in which I worked were cautious on this issue. When a guest refused to leave, we'd change rack rate. Doing that usually covered our costs for relocating (aka walking) the guest that would have had that room.

On top of all of that is the social media factor. No decently-run hotel wants news coverage about displacing a homeless fire victim. So, the OP's question is a reasonable one. I still think it's too soon to know exactly what might happen for a date in the (not-near) future.

OP, if your plans are at all flexible I recommend you rebook to a location well away from the fire zone. Understand this fire is not even out yet. Rescuers are still pulling bodies from the wreckage.

You're going "later this year" which means within the next 7 weeks. Even if the area is safe and desirable to spend time in by then -- and that's honestly a big IF right now-- rescue, recovery, and rebuilding efforts will extend long past then. There will be enormous demand for hotel rooms for displaced people, rescuers, and repair crews. I'm not saying this to moralize; I'm describing the situation objectively so you can prepare yourself.

A hotel could assert extenuating circumstances or "Acts of God" to void your reservation. Or it could simply walk you. And even if you are an elite member with the Ultimate Reservation Guarantee, how much mitigation is $100 cash-in-hand if it's late at night and the nearest available hotel is 100+ miles away?

Coming from hurricane country, with natural disasters your best bet is to contact the property directly and stay in touch with them periodically until you're schedule to arrive. The Marriott call center operators aren't going to have a clue.

I appreciate all the responses. I've gold status with Marriott, which I place little value on. But when I talked with Marriott corporate, I put my MR number in so presumably they were aware.

I've stayed at this property before and the FD clerk told me that they have less than 80 rooms, and because many will choose that property when their home is being remodeled or whatever (it is a Residence Inn, they have kitchenettes), even driving 50 miles or more in order to do that, they have less capacity than one might expect based on appearances. A good number of the rooms are also used by guests who come in to work in the area. When I was there before (spring of 2018), even though I was by myself, they put me in a two-bedroom suite, presumably because that was open for a points stay. All the one-bedroom rooms were apparently sold out. I've stayed in the neighboring property last April, for the Chico Wildflower (cycling event), and everything was sold out for that event. I figure how much more for a fire that burned down the homes of more than 25,000 people?

Right now they are showing as sold out for our dates, so I'm playing it by ear. I'll ring them before heading up to be sure we actually have rooms. Fingers crossed. As one respondent noted, it is costly to stay in a hotel for 7+ weeks, and I'm not sure how many people have insurance coverage that would provide for a lengthy stay.

Just got a cancellation email from Marriott which I didn't initiate. Not unexpected, certainly, but kind of impersonal.