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Room Upgrade
When you check in, we’ll upgrade you to our best-available guest room at no additional charge. Not available for suites at Marriott Vacation Club International. For Residence Inn and TownePlace Suites, upgrades from studio to 1- or 2-bedrooms are not guaranteed. For The Ritz-Carlton, Club Level and suites are excluded. Of course the first question is how do you know if you are getting the 'best available room'. As noted previously, after talking to managers there always seems to be a better room available and for some 'reason' you were not given it. Originally the PP program used to state that PP would receive 'Marriott's best service'. In recent years it seems they removed this language. Given that PP's can only see our benefits online I can say they essentially just repeat the Plat benefits. Despite all that, when a property does recognize you as a PP it can be quite impressive, in my experience that is only about 10% of the time. The rest of the time you might as well be a Plat. So there is a huge divergence between how a PP is treated when 'recognized' at a property and at properties that don't seem to know PP exists. So if as a PP you have those 10% experiences in your head, you might come to 'expect' getting a room upgrade unless it's an unusual experience. |
Originally Posted by qazw1
(Post 15000530)
I stayed over 100 nights a year for multiple years. One year was over 150. Never get upgrades or anything special. Always have access to lounges.
Learn a long time ago not to expect upgrades. That way, when I do get one, it is like a pleasant surprise. For me, upgrades are really not that important when I am traveling on business. Makes no difference whether I am on a high floor or have a larger room. Only time I care is when traveling with family and the extra space is of use. |
Originally Posted by DJ_Iceman
(Post 14990663)
I know even before I write this post that some people are going to read it and think of me as a whiny crybaby who really has nothing to complain about. But since this is FT, and we're all about getting the most we can in terms of elite benefits, I have to ask...
I'm a platinum premier with Marriott. So far I've stayed 109 nights in Marriott beds this year. The vast majority of those stays have ranged from pleasant to outstanding, which of course is what has kept me coming back to Marriott all these years. Last night I was staying at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel. I noticed online a couple of days before my stay that I had been upgraded to a club level room. Pretty standard, and I was hoping for an even better upgrade before check-in. The day before check-in I was still in a club level room, but the hotel was now sold out, so I figured that further upgrades were unlikely. I checked in and was given my key packet for a room on the 6th floor. The front desk agent thanked me for being a platinum member and told me the lounge was on the 20th floor. I didn't say anything, because that exchange usually means I've gotten a nice suite so I tolerate the low floor despite my profile preference for a high one. I got to my room and found it was a totally standard, ordinary room in the middle of the hallway on the 6th floor. I didn't complain to anybody, because ultimately the hotel was sold out and all I'm really promised as an elite member is access to the lounge. But I found myself getting more and more disappointed, realizing that somebody who'd spent their first 50 nights even in a Marriott this year would have gotten the exact same "upgrade" I got, which was nothing more than access to the lounge. I guess I just have to wonder if every single room on the floors above mine was filled with higher revenue or loyalty guests--of course the answer is "no", so the real answer is that they just didn't care about my preferences and when they decided to downgrade me from the pre-blocked club level room they just stuck me in whatever was left. The room was clean, comfortable, and quiet. I did have access to the lounge, and found all the staff I came into contact with friendly and professional. At one time, that would have been enough to define a perfectly acceptable stay. But I guess I really have come to expect more than the bare minimum promised by the MR T&C. Particularly as a platinum premier, I almost take being on the actual club floor for granted (especially on a one-night stay). And when I'm not on the club floor, I'm at least on a very high floor near the lounge and the front desk is usually apologetic as all get-out. Okay, I feel better just whining to you all about it. I'm ready for the backlash. Let me have it! Positives: -when I called in to make reservations, I was told the hotel was sold out and when I mentioned that I was Platinum and I was making reservations several weeks in advance, he indicated that he could still not book me a room. I went online at Marriott.com and booked it without any problems. -the hotel was located very close to the convention center where I was attending a meeting -the hotel is close to the airport Somewhat negative: -I was placed on the 10th floor, with the club lounge being on the 20th floor. I also prefer high floors but I don’t usually spend a lot of time taking in the views -I was not impressed by the dining room at the hotel; food was not that good -the room service menu seemed to be very meager…and when ordered was not very good -the club lounge was, I thought, subpar….the snacks were average at best…however, I did not have breakfast there and that may have been better. Definitely negative: -on two of the four days there, my room was not made up at 4:30 PM when I returned to the room and I had to call housekeeping. One of those days was Friday when the club lounge closed at noon. I would have expected better service from a hotel that charged $399.00 for two nights and $299.00 for the other two. The only other Renaissance hotels I have stayed were in Hong Kong (now being replaced) and Manila (now a New World Hotel). The Boston Renaissance does not come close to them. But generally good customer service is the trademark of Asian hotels and those hotels had much better club lounges. I did not expect this Renasissance to match the Asian hotels and they did not. I was disappointed, but for the most part I was surprised by what I considered a lack of customer service. I thought it would be better than this. The room I was given was fine. |
As tonight is night #161 in FS Marriott's this year, here's my thoughts:
-Your observations are more or less equal to mine. More and more it seems to be just whatever room they have available, and 4-5 times this year I've been given rooms with double beds, even when booking king. -There have been times that I have been given great rooms, presidential suites twice, and just better than standard rooms another 4-5 times. -Claimed the $100 elite gift guarantee once, and only after being eligible to claim it 3-4 times at the same property, after a really poor check in experience. -Hotels do seem to be more attuned to customers this year than last. |
Anyone ever wondered what kind of room George Washington got when he checked into The Smithfield Inn? When I ponder my expectations of what room/service/amenities I'll receive these thoughts crop up.:rolleyes:
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If the PP's shouldn't expect more, then what's the point of taking your supposed best customers (top 2-3%) and telling them that they are your top customers.
Seems to be a contradiction of customer service. I don't think any of us expect rose petals as we walk in the door, but we do expect something more than how we were treated as a regular Plat. To me the irony is that if the front desk just says 'thank you for being Plat Prem' then I assume they have taken my status into consideration for my stay. When they don't say that I can only assume they did not make a distinction between a Plat and a PP. Given that 99% of the time a front desk says the words PP (which only happens 10-20% of the time), the stay has met or exceeded my expectations I'd say most properties are falling short of what Marriott's expectations are for the PP program. |
Originally Posted by AustinFlyer76
(Post 15002781)
In a nutshell - when i was platinum, i took everything with stride and upgrades were cool, points were cool - etc. it was just a "nice status". But since Marriott took the action to designate me with a secret status of PP (again - i didn't ask for it and none of truly know how you qualify, so MR made the distinction for me/us!) ... i have seen nothing different.
And that is a valid 'gripe' to point out. You can't give someone a special tier and not expect something to change. They've now made my rollover nights change - and that is the only variable i've seen different since PP. No new benefits, no new points, nothing. Cheers. |
did anyone ever stop to consider that the pp level was just another way to make "you" feel special? :cool:
I know several GM's and other than the straight silver, gold, plat.. they have expressed that marketing has not pushed the pp program as much to the hotels as they have to the plat prem. themselves. |
Originally Posted by Deltican
(Post 15030865)
I know several GM's and other than the straight silver, gold, plat.. they have expressed that marketing has not pushed the pp program as much to the hotels as they have to the plat prem. themselves.
Cheers. |
I am not a PP but if I was I would totally expect what you have. I do not think you are being unreasonable in the least. Not sure why the haters are on here making rude personal comments. This is a pretty civil group.
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Made a joke. No longer sure it was that funny. Erased it. Sorry.
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Originally Posted by SacTownGuy
(Post 15030967)
I am not a PP but if I was I would totally expect what you have. I do not think you are being unreasonable in the least. Not sure why the haters are on here making rude personal comments. This is a pretty civil group.
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Originally Posted by gardengirl
(Post 15031911)
Can you point to the specific rude, personal comments you're talking about?
To me that's uncalled for. Since he/she had already made the country club crack it would appear to me that he/she is just hear to flame and be rude. Just my opinion of course. |
Originally Posted by DJ_Iceman
(Post 14990663)
I didn't complain to anybody, because ultimately the hotel was sold out and all I'm really promised as an elite member is access to the lounge. But I found myself getting more and more disappointed, For whatever reasons I have had friends and family point out my tendency to have control issues.:rolleyes: For a time it caused problems with flying so I asked my neighbor who often flew long flights how she dealt with this as I knew she wasn't fond of it. She said she tries to control what she can and let the other go. She would take her own tea bags so she could have something she wanted, took comfy slippers. . .you get the idea. So to get to the point, try to identify what you want in a stay before you arrive. In this case, with your status designation Marriott has offered you the opportunity to have high expectations. Control what you can--communicate. Ask the front desk what they can do to match, as best they can, your expectation (you figure out how to word it). You may even want to drop an email to the hotel prior to your arrival so they can pre-plan when the rooms are empty--not after others have already filled your expected room. Remember, the GM and the front desk are only human too and like everyone they are dealing with more than 1 thing (in this case - you :) ). We have expectations with everything--work, travel, relationships, even how posters should respond on a BB. Control what you can -- yourself. Ignore the responses that at the end of the day really don't matter. If it's really, really out-of-line and worth noting, hopefully the moderators will deal with it. Don't invite the bad vibes the flamer has dispersed to get a moment of your personal dwelling. |
Thanks to everyone for the spirited debate. I guess I opened a bigger can of worms than I thought I would, but it seems that this topic is bigger than my one whiny experience.
Speaking of which, today I got an e-mail; apparently the hotel did read my comment card where I expressed disappointment with much the same tone as in my original post. Here, verbatim, is the e-mail (which pleases me quite a bit, actually): Good Afternoon Mr. DJ_Iceman, I apologize that you were disappointed with your room selection during your last stay. I agree with you, that as a Platinum Premier Member, you should be given first priority when we are assigning our rooms. I appreciate that you recognize that task can be more challenging when we are sold out, but regardless, our goal is to ensure you are happy and satisfied each time you visit. Please feel free to reach out to me the next time you are in town. I will see to it personally, that you are offered our best available room. Thank you again for your feedback. I will share it with our Front Office Leadership to ensure we are more diligent in the future. Best, Andrea Knowles-Mondello Assistant General Manager |
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