Official Upgrade Policy
 

What's the official upgrade policy for gold and platinum (if they differ).
I.e. at Starwood the policy is the best available room/suite, up to a "standard suite."

Is the Marriott policy, best available room/suite period? Or are suites excluded?

The terms mention only room but some programs differentiate between a "room" and a "suite"

Marriott's policy excludes suites but I have received them before but they are not required to upgrade you to them.

I interpret the website T&C to include suites, so if thats not the case very misleading. Says not available for suites at MVC and RC, insinuating that they are included in upgrades at all other locations.

What you've quoted is actually from the member benefits description (not the official Terms and Conditions):

From the actual T&C:

I find it odd that the marketing department couldn't pick up the language from the T&C a little more clearly when creating the benefits description web page. Also, it feels incomplete that the T&C just states "room upgrade", and doesn't clarify "best available room".

I guess somebody at Marriott should be reading both of these to make sure that they jive a bit better than they do. Regardless, suites are very much excluded from the upgrade requirements - and always have been.

Suites may be excluded, but I've received suite upgrades several times. My guess would be that it's site dependent..meaning that you may or may not get it depending on who's checking you in. I would imagine most locations would be interested in a possible repeat of your business so they may swing it even though it's not 'technically' authorized.

Just my 2 C.

Peace!!

IME, suite upgrades are more common at Starwood than Marriott. I have far more lifetime stays as a Marriott Plat, but I've probably received more true suite upgrades at Starwood.

Marriott Plat has some important advantages vs. Starwood Plat, but the suite advantage goes to Starwood. Reading both boards here, I think most people tend to agree with that.

Look back about 5-6 years here and there was a long, long thread on whether suites were included in the upgrade policy. The "Suites not included" was either added due to that specific conversation here and with Marriott and their FT reps, or it was very coincidental timing.

So officially, suites were explicitly excluded as policy. That's not to say that individual properties can't go above and beyond. If had many, many upgrades to suites.

IME, as a practical matter if you really want/need a suite upgrade, most properties will try their best to accommodate you. The key is to have a conversation with a manager or other empowered employee in advance. Be polite, be reasonable, and explain your situation and why the upgrade would be iportant to you. Understand also that there are variables involved and that the hotel still may not be able to honor your request for perfectly valid reason(s).

Requesting an upgrade at check-in, sometimes works, but your odds of getting a suite are lower with this approach.

In all instances, avoid the obnoxious DYKWIA approach!

If you wave your Platinum (or Gold...or Silver) card in the air as you're talking to the clerk, that will eliminate the need to ask them if they know who you are. ;)

But yes, I've had luck writing ahead politely inquiring about a suite. I try to play that card sparingly, but when I do it's had success. Honeymoon stay, an anniversary stay, and once or twice when we were traveling with an infant.

Just wanted to highlight that part of your post. Something tells me that there are people who think they should be UGed to a suite every time they show up at a property.

I guess in the spirit of this thread I should include the following realtime update. I just went online to look up my reservation for tonight (Renaissance Des Moines) and I have been upgraded to a junior suite. :)

I know that's not *exactly* what we're talking about here - a true suite is a much different animal from a junior suite - but I'm anticipating that this will be a pretty nice room.

Would strongly agree - when I get a suite (and it does happen - certainly in Europe) treat it as a genuine acknowlegement of the hotel treating you as special rather than your right (from my understanding of the Ts & Cs). In my experience, when you stay at the same place a number of times as a platinum they look out for you and put you in a suite where it's possible.

We checked in at the Marriott Gaslamp in San Diego on Saturday and the platinum member checking in front of us was having a cow with the front desk supervisor over not being upgraded to a suite. The FDS explained to the guy that he doesn't have any suites in the entire hotel that have 2 doubles, but he was expressing disbelief. We were also platinum checking into 2 doubles so when we got up there he started to apologize to us for not having any better 2 double rooms, we assured him it was fine, but he looked really frazzled. I hate that PM's get a bad rap from people like that.

Marriott Platinum has the toughest qualification requirements of any major chain's top tier.

And yet its published upgrade benefit is really weak in comparison.

Hyatt: 4 confirmed at booking suites per year
Starwood: Upgrade at check-in to best available room, including standard (but not 'specialty') suites
Intercontinental: Generally suite or two category upgrade from whatever you book.

Marriott Platinum's upgrade benefit is more on par with Hilton Diamond (that you can get off $40k in spend on an Amex) and Priority Club Platinum ('cause those franchised Holiday Inns don't have a ton of suites).

It ultimately goes to what benefits you find important. Upgrades to suites don't matter to some of us, but seem to be key to others.

As someone who often checks in at eleven at night and leaves at eight in the morning, a suite is of little benefit. The familiarity of breakfast in the CL is more important to me. Even more important is having more properties in more locations, which means I usually get to stay closer to my customer - every minute of sleep counts - and can find a hotel in Altoona or Tyler or Gillette. And with the arrival gift points, fifty percent increase for being Plat, the credit card and numerous promotions, I'm earning points at a very fast clip, which have allowed me to go on vacations that, IMO, are better than I'd be able to do with the other programs. (Although I haven't checked, I think I earned over 400k points this year, and will be taking three friends on an incredible journey in May 2011.)

If MI doesn't provide UGs that satisfy you, go to *W. If every program offered the same benefits at the same levels, many of us would probably be left wanting. Most of us have five or six practical options for hotel rewards programs and appreciate the one that gives us the best options for our specific situations.