Ritz Carlton Lounge Access - Titanium
 

Does anyone have experience on Lounge access as a Titanium member at Ritz Carlton properties?

I was told by Marriott Customer Service that I would have access bu the Ritz Kapalua said no....

Any thoughts?

I am afraid you were advised incorrectly and unless you have the email advising you of this or a record of the phonecard then you probably won't get anywhere.

If you do and this advice came before you booked if you complain to Marriott you may get somewhere but realistically it's highly doubtful, from my experience Marriott takes ages to consider anything and generally does not a lot.

I am just thankful I have an ambassador who is a star as anytime I have dealt with the non ambassador agents in last 6 months it's been painful and generally I have had to correct them on what the terms of various things are in the program!

in the benefits of the program for Titanium members it says:


https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...8954b65ee0.png

Note the "See terms and conditions for participating brands" in bold, which will tell you all Ritz-Carltons are excluded if you follow the link.

And what happened when you clicked the bolded and underlined sentence that says See terms and conditions for participating brands. ?

Marriott somehow used to be "the consistent company" - it is now an insane, mind-boggling series of brand and benefit contradictions.

And of course 10 CSRs will likely give you a minimum of 3-4 different answers to a similar question.

It's ridiculous. My husband and I were just talking about this yesterday. Since the merger in August, his stays have been almost exclusively with Hilton. His comments when I asked him where he's staying on his trip next week were: "I really like the Garden Inn breakfast so much better than Courtyards. And I like the Curio hotels because they don't have lounges so I get full breakfast in the restaurant." (compared to Autograph Collections' ability to limit breakfast to a muffin and juice.). He's lifetime titanium and used to be crazy-loyal to Marriott but has now discovered that the grass can be greener elsewhere.

To the OP's question: As LTPP last August (post merger) we were given a nice suite upgrade at the Ritz Carlton Kapalua, but no breakfast.

It's always been consistent on no breakfast or lounge access at RCs unless it's included in the rate.

Cheers.

Please don't cloud emotional tirades with inconvenient facts! :)

Many in this forum are now more focused on seeing how many times they can use the word "Bonvoyed" in any given post than on the reality of any given situation.

Regards

iv. Guaranteed Lounge Access. The Member plus one guest staying in the same room receives access to the Concierge/Executive/Club/Signature Club/M Club lounge (collectively, “Lounge” or “Lounge Access”) during normal hours of operations at JW Marriott, Marriott Hotels, Sheraton, Delta Hotels, Le Méridien, Westin, Autograph Collection, and Renaissance Hotels. At Delta Hotels properties without a Signature Club Lounge, as the approved alternative the Member will receive access to the Elite Pantry. Lounge Access is offered at Courtyard properties with a Lounge outside the United States and Canada. This benefit is not applicable when breakfast is included in the rate or the brand offers an approved alternative. Additional charges may apply for Lounge Access where the guest count greater than the Member plus one allowance (including children).Lounge offers light snacks and daily continental breakfast. Lounge Access is not offered at the following brands: The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, EDITION, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels, Design Hotels, Tribute Portfolio, Gaylord Hotels, Four Points, SpringHill Suites, Protea Hotels, Fairfield, AC Hotels, Aloft, Moxy Hotels, Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites, Element, Marriott Vacation Club, Marriott Grand Residence Club, and participating Vistana properties. This benefit only applies to the one (1) guest room in which the Platinum Elite Member is staying.

That was from the T&C (bold is mine)

Or maybe "many in this forum" realize that Marriott's "consistency" in this regard places it squarely at the bottom of the market, given that Hilton has added a breakfast benefit at Waldorf Astoria properties and Park Hyatts have always taken care of their elites. Couple this with the fact that "many in this forum" are legacy SPG customers who were long accustomed to being treated well at St. Regis and other top properties. The fact that Marriott is content to sit at the bottom of the pack is not much of a compelling argument.

Being wrong for many years does not make one right. With Marriott tanking in many other regards - horrible IT, points/nights accounting issues, and a questionable rebrand - it could use a quick win or two to engender good will and retain customers who are looking elsewhere. Bringing elite benefits up to snuff at its flagship properties might be something that fits in this category.

This is not true.

There is no limitation on the category of suites that a guest with titanium and ambassador elite statuses can receive. The "select" or "standard" was a legacy SPG limitation. This is not the case with Marriott Bonvoy.

The terms and conditions do state an upgrade to a room or suite on the club lounge level at Ritz-Carlton doesn't entitle the guest to lounge access, but there have certainly been reports of some properties, on occasion, not keying the room key to prevent lounge access.

With all of that said, I really wish there was a sticky thread on the forum about this because I swear every three weeks someone asks about lounge access at Ritz-Carlton properties.

There is a sticky. Post #2 specifically mentions no free breakfast or lounge access at RCs due to status. I've created a wiki for this thread that mentions the same.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...worldwide.html


Cheers.

I would rather they keep the suite, make a few hundred bucks a night off someone willing to pay for it and instead spend, at the most, $4 on me for breakfast (eggs or oatmeal with coffee).