Strange Cancellation Deadline
 

So I'll be the first to admit that I've been kind of indecisive lately. I have 5 free night certificates and I've had a hard time figuring out where to use them. So as a result I've been booking and canceling a number of different stays from between five nights all the way down to one night. When I most recently booked, it said that I needed to cancel my reservation seven days before arrival for no charge. The no charge cancellation deadline is usually 2 to 3 days before arrival, although I have seen up to 14 days before arrival for Marriott Vacation Club properties. Does anyone know why the no charge cancellation deadline is seven days before arrival? I'm hoping that it doesn't have anything to do with my booking and canceling, since I previously booked the same exact property and nights before and canceled.

The property is a JW Marriott for 5 nights. Thanks.

It really depends on a multitude of factors including special events, more difficult to get to (and therefore harder to resell) hotels and so forth. For example Aspen at Christmas, or one of the Marriott hotels in the Maldives may have 30, or even 90 day cancellation windows.

You're doing the right thing by paying attention to the rate rules, just follow them - as if you fail to, the fee that will be charged will be in USD, not points, or else you see threads like this: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...gis-aspen.html.

I can be pretty sure that it isn't due to your own booking / cancellation habits, as they are set by the hotel / by rate, not tailored to an individual. What you are doing is fairly typical, if for the more value driven points collector, though for sanity's sake, make sure as it gets closer to the time you start to remove some you definitely won't use.

So you say that if I don't cancel on time, instead of losing my free night certificates, I would lose USD?? That's wild and definitely something I didn't know about. I will check out that thread. But it still makes me wonder, is there any flexibility with that? Thank you.

Yes you will be charged cash. The only flexibility is throwing yourself on the mercy of the hotel, but it isn't going to be that likely, here is a recent discussion, and whilst you may not agree with it, they are the rules and Marriott' system will automatically enforce/do them:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marr...ward-stay.html

So, just be attentive - and don't forget about timezones (some hotels will say 6pm, some before midnight, some 24 hours in advance etc etc.)

Understood. The loophole seems to be this: If I were grossly negligent and didn't cancel on time, and preferred to lose certificates instead of cash, I could just check-in on the mobile app, get my mobile key, and whether I actually ever physically arrived and when should be irrelevant to them. Feel free to correct me if you think I'm wrong. That's what was mentioned in Outrageous No-Show Fee Incurred At St. Regis Aspen, where OP said in the 1st post:

"Second, the mid-level manager suggested that if I run into this issue in the future that I simply check-in to the hotel via the Marriott app. This would likely work to avoid this nonsensical charge but I found this suggestion to be a cruel one since it was provided when arguing the charge and not when I called on Friday to kindly let the hotel know we would be late."

I am not sure whether checking in the app would be sufficient to avoid the cancellation fee. Despite using the check in option in the app, I always have to check in physically before I can get into the room. This is my experience with the app in Europe.

I have had far more instances where it seemed that the Mobile Check-in meant nothing than where it actually worked as advertised (like never). I've always had to still pass by the front desk and at a minimum swipe my credit card for them.

Anywhere in the world outside the US, online check-in is just a heads-up to let the hotel know the estimated time of arrival and, perhaps, request a late check out. Hotels must comply with local guest registration laws and prefer to have a physical card preauthorization on file.

Even in those places where OLCI is enough, I suspect that the guest will be a no-show if the wireless key is never used to enter the room during the stay.

I wouldn't advise relying on the mobile app: Many hotels globally will not issue the mobile app key/fully complete the check-in until after they've seen the guest (often to check a passport or something like that which is required for local regulations), seems to be the case in the vast majority of hotels in Asia / Europe. It isn't something I'd want to rely on. If the hotel did want to check or dispute your saying you were present, they will clearly be able to see that you never went into the room from their logs - mobile key or not.

The answer is: cancel in advance and set diary reminders if required.

You just beat me to it. I have never had online check-in complete outside North America. Sure, it says you're checked in but a visit to the desk is required to present photo ID. It's even getting tougher for us "foreigners" in the US, with some hotels requiring photo ID and a credit card swipe no matter status or card on file. YMMV

Someone mentioned that changing the stay to a future date might work as the cancellation policy is updated to the new checkin date. I am wondering whether this is really possible or whether the cancellation fee also applies if the reservation is moved to a future date.

Absolutely no guarantees on this approach. With that disclaimer, I have done this a couple of times in the past, when I made a mistake, and it worked. I.e. new cancellation deadline based on the new date of the stay. About the time standard cancellation deadlines changed from 6PM local time day of arrival to 24 to 72 hours before day of arrival, some folks considered this approach a workaround to still do last minute cancellations. Other folks have reported if you have elite status (platinum or higher), calling MR Customer Service or the hotel and they will still allow you to cancel past deadline. I've never tried that. It has also been years since the last time I changed a stay to a future date to work around the cancellation deadline. TL;DR Many folks have reported success with this approach; however, I wouldn't depend on it. Marriott could shut it down at any time without notice. YMMV...


--Jon

Although it "might" work, I wouldn't plan on it. Last year, three days before checking into a St. Regis, there was massive flooding in my area with airports closed and an evacuation order in my neighborhood. My request to push the stay out a few days was refused. Although the hotel had plenty of availability that week, I would have been subject to a cancellation fee of what I believe was over $4000 for two nights. Cleaned up as much as possible before traveling and spent very little at that hotel while there.

I'm a LTT and have had success calling into the Titanium line and having reservations changed/cancelled inside the cancellation window. Usually to move to a different Marriott property on the same day, but also just to outright cancel. Have been told my more than one Agent that they were able to do it as a result of my status. Not sure if that is documented anywhere.