ft1984

I get to the New Orleans Marriott around 4:00p.m. and my "upgraded" room isn't ready. said it needs to be cleaned. That's fine, someone probably checked out at 4:00p.m. I said fine i'll go grab a bite to eat and come back. Come back around 6:00p.m. and the room STILL is not ready. Now I make a fuss. The receptionist tells me that the room has been cleaned but the supervisor needs to look it over. The room wasn't ready until 7:00p.m. I don't feel like an elite status member at all. Was I wrong for being upset about this? I thought 3:00p.m. is the guaranteed check-in time?

CJKatl

The room not being ready at three is an inconvenience. The misinformation and four hour delay are bigger issues and you are rightfully upset. But...

Not that this is an excuse, but my first trip when I started traveling for work twenty years ago was to that hotel. Being a Marriott nothing I was given a room near the elevator. It remains the smallest room I ever had. The front door was tiny and size-wise the bathroom felt like it came from Barbie's Dream House, On later stays I was given rooms farther down the hallway which were roomy and had nice views of the river. My point is be glad they were not dealing with you by giving you one of those small rooms!

Enjoy your stay in NO.

NDN

There is no official guaranteed check-in time.

Segments

hhoope01

I was thinking the same thing.

If checking in later was going to be a big enough inconvenience, I would have asked if getting the room type I reserved would get me a room more quickly. If they said no, that there are no rooms to check you in to, then I would be getting a little perturbed having to wait that late. But if the choice was to wait for the upgraded room or get my reserved category room more quickly (and I would have asked about that), then the choice to wait was yours to make.

UpgradeMe

Exactly.

And the posted check-in time is 4 pm:
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/fact...eans-marriott/

Kacee

Huh?

Making you wait until 7 pm is not acceptable. They should be doing something to make up for that - points, comped meal, something.

nequine

Yes they should have at least comped you a meal for it being that late to get into your room.

yscleo

Cleaned but supervisor needs to look it over? Bring up memories of our stay in Renaissance New Jersey airport, waking up and finding bedbugs.

CPRich

Disagree. Do you believe the posted check-in time is just a suggestion?

davie355

This doesn't make any sense, by this logic a hotel can say the room is never ready until it's past your check-out time!

GoPhils

pitflyer

It's frustrating when hotels don't have rooms ready by their posted check in time -- but it does happen. Normally it's the room that they have allocated for you (as an upgrade, etc) or in Marriott's case where bed type is guaranteed they only have two bed rooms available when you reserved a king size. Almost all those times I can either take a room that doesn't meet my preferences/upgrade to check in when I arrive (as long as it is after the posted check in time, normally 3 or 4pm).

However, it has happened to me where I've had to wait LONG after check in time because rooms were simply not ready. It's only happened once or twice and its always been a non-brand hotel where I don't have much way to complain.

tl;dr I don't think a check in time is guaranteed. But if delayed you can usually ask for a different type of room or the non-upgraded room.

Nazdoom

I had a similar issue checking into Shanghai Marriott City Centre as a platinum (22 hour layover after arriving from North America, I was eager to check-in, shower, change, and go sightseeing). At checkin they told me room not ready yet as it was being cleaned, go wait in lounge and we will let you know (no option to take another room without upgrade). After an hour of silence I asked lounge staff who told me it would take 2 more hours until 6pm. I asked for FO Manager and they quickly found a room in same category as the upgrade they wanted to give me but on different floor. I was given a bottle of wine and 20k pts as an apology. (In the morning they missed my wake up call -- considering I only had 22 hours in Shanghai, it was overall an exceptionally poor experience as I couldn't do much touring)

Honestly, in this situation your best bet is to tell them to walk you to another hotel. They will suddenly go above and beyond in finding a suitable room.

scubaccr

Hotels rely on guests not all checking in at published 2pm or 3pm time.

Pre 'recently added benefit' of guaranteed late checkout at checkin , hotels could/would previously offer nice suite upgrade without a late checkout, or say 2pm latest , or offer lesser room with late checkout. I guess waiting on suite is more prevalent these days due to the 4pm guarantee. Elites can't have it both ways, as occupying suite to 4pm delays the incoming elites checkin.

As elites we need to take a realistic view, in that
1)we elites get upgraded to better rooms (suites) that there are less of than lower base/second/third from bottom categories
2)the suite occupant the night before arrival is thus likely also an elite exercising the 'recent' 4pm guaranteed checkout.
3)if location / city is top heavy with elites, then many rooms have 4pm checkouts and hotels cleaners/roommaid numbers do not support each 4pm room to be refreshed at 4pm, but instead over a period
4)often top named suites eg Royals etc require the will need need a triple check my a manager after the supervisor check, a further delay

o I have declined a 'delayed' suite upgrade from time to time in favour of a more immediate upgrade , though usually first ask if planned (pencilled in) upgrade room is occupied by elite using 4pm privilege
o I have been given foc 10am sute at hotel, so on another occasion at same hotel would not be able to complain if informed sorry 6pm for your room
o Not often comped f+b, more likely is lounge access whilst waiting on room.
o Although not a part of MR benefits (unlike IHG Royal Ambassador) I have been given temporary entry level rooms at Marriott , either
a)1hour or so to simply shower and go out
b)4hours or so whilst waiting on room

nb's
o Even with 4pm checkout rights if not needing room to rest, then I don'tt room block if hotel has a nice lounge, I offer+do vacate room for lounge at 2pm to aid the hotel and other elites that will be checking in
o A well organised hotel may even have a nominated spare room to allow early/late departing guests to have a 15min shower/changeto freshen up.
o I also feel bad if room is maid responsible for nn rooms/floor, finishes all makeups by 2pm, and is stuck waiting on cleaning just my 1x room 4-5pm, maybe not my problem to deal with but is often how cleaning is divied up... and maybe poor maid earns little/nothing those exra 3hours. So another reason I only take 4pm room over 2pm + Lounge unless must have room over lounge