Why feather pillows?
#16




Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: YYT
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Now, this is interesting! I am quite shocked that Marriott would consider it as such given that somebody with a legitimate allergy is making the request. It seems wrong to me that they would do this!
#17
FlyerTalk Evangelist




Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
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"Why these hotels always carry feather pillows? alliance between hotel and chick farm? Cost serving (I doubt that feather is cheaper than polyester)? Political reason (certain states who raise chickens want to protect chicken farmer)?"
when the obvious reason is that it's because other customers (who aren't allergic) prefer them, and the Marriott hotel program wants to satisfy those customers.
I agree that the OP should get better treatment from the hotels for their allergy. But obviously whatever the request is, not all hotels are good about honoring the request.
So with that in mind, maybe the best solution is not to request non-feather pillows at hotel chains that carry feather pillows, but to move to hotel chains that don't carry feather pillows at all. Unfortunately, that presumably means abandoning Marriott Bonvoy.
Last edited by sdsearch; Nov 2, 2019 at 8:24 pm
#19



Join Date: Sep 2002
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then you dont understand vegans.
my vegan wants a mink coat. Eating weasels and wearing them are two very different things.
back on topic. I abhor foam pillows, always a stiff neck. I put my down vest in a pillowcase rather than using a foam.
my vegan wants a mink coat. Eating weasels and wearing them are two very different things.
back on topic. I abhor foam pillows, always a stiff neck. I put my down vest in a pillowcase rather than using a foam.
#20




Join Date: Jul 2009
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I'm not allergic to feathers and I prefer foam pillows. I don't ever call a hotel to ask for special pillows because its already noted in my Marriott profile.
#21
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2018
Posts: 21
I also think that Holiday Inn carry feather pillows too.
#22




Join Date: Jan 2000
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#24



Join Date: Aug 2010
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I know the Courtyard we stay in when we are visiting family in SoCal has a group of rooms on each floor that are permanently Defeathered. If you request no feather pillows you will get one of those 6 or 8 rooms on each of the floor.
#26




Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: BNA (Nashville)
Programs: HH Diamond
Posts: 7,192
Pillows have bird feathers in them?
I didn’t think that was a thing anymore.
I prefer foam because I love firm pillows. I suppose a feather pillow is just a bunch of chicken feathers in a bag? I honestly had no idea that was a thing.
I didn’t think that was a thing anymore.
I prefer foam because I love firm pillows. I suppose a feather pillow is just a bunch of chicken feathers in a bag? I honestly had no idea that was a thing.
#27



Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: Somewhere between SFO and LAX...FYI aka FAT
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Posts: 542
For me, the feather pillows are just too darn flat even when I put one on top of the other. Recently, after two miserable nights on down I called down for foam pillows (yes, it's in my profile) and had a much better night. Lesson learned. To each his/her own. With an allergy, I can certainly understand why the OP would be proactive.
#28




Join Date: Jan 2016
Programs: Marriott Titanium and Air Canada 35k
Posts: 266
I prefer feather but if they had memory foam pillows I'd go for one of those. They usually don't have the nice ones that conform like a feather pillow does.
I have extra feather pillows in my profile and I have NEVER gotten them without asking first. That profile crap is useless IMO.
I have extra feather pillows in my profile and I have NEVER gotten them without asking first. That profile crap is useless IMO.
#29


Join Date: Feb 2006
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Posts: 9,502
Same. Foam pillows bend my neck too much. Wake up with terrible neck pains.
#30
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+100000 to the OP.
And Marriott is an absolute joke on this front. I had a similar thread about a year ago because at one point late last year I stayed at 7 straight different Marriott properties in multiple states/countries and none of them gave me feather free despite the fact that it was (a) in my profile and (b) i always submit a request for additional foam pillows when i check-in and put a request for a feather free room in the additional comments bar when I do it (and they always acknowledge both the pillow request and feather-free request).
It's 100% ridiculous -- actually when I wrote them about those 2 things they claimed it wasn't in my profile, except I added it to my profile in 2012 when I started staying at Marriott's -- I'm not stupid I didn't just suddenly develop this allergy and spend the previous 400 nights just accepting feather
This is one place where Hilton has always been pretty on-point for me -- they always seem to at least have foam pillows in the room even if they don't de-feather and 9/10 times they have it feather free for me when I check-in.
I've always assumed it's because feather pillows are cheaper and most of these hotels are cheap but there is no reason not to guarantee these requests, especially when booking far enough in advance that housekeeping can make the changes as part of their normal process in turning the room over (I understand the scenario where you book last minute and they simply don't have time).
I've also had a few experiences where I actually got an upgrade (yay) but then of course they didn't carry over my request so it became a big thing to get them to change the pillows and bed (happened to me at one of the Ren Paris hotels a couple years ago, arrived late night, the upgraded me, I just wanted to sleep and it took over 60 minutes just to get a foam pillow -- so I went from 5 potential hours of sleep to 4).
And Marriott is an absolute joke on this front. I had a similar thread about a year ago because at one point late last year I stayed at 7 straight different Marriott properties in multiple states/countries and none of them gave me feather free despite the fact that it was (a) in my profile and (b) i always submit a request for additional foam pillows when i check-in and put a request for a feather free room in the additional comments bar when I do it (and they always acknowledge both the pillow request and feather-free request).
It's 100% ridiculous -- actually when I wrote them about those 2 things they claimed it wasn't in my profile, except I added it to my profile in 2012 when I started staying at Marriott's -- I'm not stupid I didn't just suddenly develop this allergy and spend the previous 400 nights just accepting feather

This is one place where Hilton has always been pretty on-point for me -- they always seem to at least have foam pillows in the room even if they don't de-feather and 9/10 times they have it feather free for me when I check-in.
I've always assumed it's because feather pillows are cheaper and most of these hotels are cheap but there is no reason not to guarantee these requests, especially when booking far enough in advance that housekeeping can make the changes as part of their normal process in turning the room over (I understand the scenario where you book last minute and they simply don't have time).
I've also had a few experiences where I actually got an upgrade (yay) but then of course they didn't carry over my request so it became a big thing to get them to change the pillows and bed (happened to me at one of the Ren Paris hotels a couple years ago, arrived late night, the upgraded me, I just wanted to sleep and it took over 60 minutes just to get a foam pillow -- so I went from 5 potential hours of sleep to 4).


