It is a link emailed to you a few days before your stay.

+1 here too. 5 years of traveling, with one year off, and now, I get tired of traveling but the second I stop, I get stir crazy. For example, I was on the road 27 weeks straight, then had a two week hiatus, and 5 days in, I was so stir crazy I booked myself a last minute flight to LA for the weekend, just so I could be on the road.

Is this for only certain Marriotts? In all the time I've been with Marriott, I dont think I've actually received one of these - maybe 2 years ago in London - but never seen this for a US hotel.

Let's see in 2012 I've gotten one for -

Stanford Court (Ren)
Carlton Hotel (Autograph)
Long Beach (Ren)
JW Chicago
Courtyard Waikiki

but not for -

Courtyard Orlando Lake Buena Vista
A couple of Residence Inns
Washington DC (Ren)

So no real consistency is there!

now that's a real road warrior!:D:eek:

I actually called a hotel to ask how to use this a few weeks ago for a stay that I had, and the hotel did not even know what it was or that it existed:rolleyes:

so, apparently, not all hotels offer it, or have been trained for virtual concierge.

I've been offered Virtual Concierge at virtually all JW and FS Marriotts that I have stayed at, which is about 75% of my stays. Very few CY/FFIs offer it. If I need someone in advance, I will try to email the GM of the CY/FFI hotels a few days prior. Ren properties usually have Virtual Concierge, but they don't seem to be consistent across the brand.

I checked into a tier 5 Marriott an hour ago and was not offered an arrival gift, though the desk agent gave me a breakfast voucher once I reminded him I was Platinum and asked about the lounge.

I feel kind of bad asking for compensation, since I checked in at midnight and the guy seemed nice, though perhaps unprepared. If I was going to ask for compensation is it best to do it now while that person is still at the desk or wait until tomorrow?

doesn't matter so long as you do it BEFORE checkout.......

https://www.marriott.com/rewards/mem...s/guarantee.mi

Hi,

Is it possible to leave the bags at the hotel few days before the reservation? I will be flying to Warsaw and I will have 4 days stop in Paris. I will be staying in dowtown Paris for the two nights and at the airport the last night. I thought that it would be nice to leave some bags (even with the fee) at the airport hotel and not to have to take it with me everywhere. Thanks

In the distant past, I have done things like that before. More recently I've left a bag at a hotel that I was checking out of, but would be back in a week. They held the bag for me (no charge.)

But with all the "security" related changes, I'm not sure what an airport hotel may or may not want to do. Your best bet would be to contact the hotel and ask the manager if they would be willing to do that for you.

Thank you!

Hi fdguy, I read in other thread saying that the compensation for the platinum arrival gift is paid by the front desk who forgot to offer the arrival gift, how true is it? Some says that they can even be fired? Thanks.

I do believe that that same thread mentioned, there is a subsequent post from socrates mentioning that hotels aren't supposed to do that (and could possibly get themselves into trouble doing so.)

As for being fired, I would guess that any front desk employee who keeps making the same "mistake", especially one with the visibility and cost as the arrival guarantee does, would be in line for either more training, discipline, or even termination. So while I wouldn't think it a norm that they would get fired for the first offense, if they kept on missing it, I could definitely see strong repercussions as a possibility.

I stay about 100 nights p.a., at least 75% of which is at athe LHR Ren. I almost always get an upgrade to CL wherever I go without asking, but I'm not that bothered about the room to be honest, as long as I get Exec/Club lounge access.

That is correct - labor laws in most states prevent employers from "docking" employee paychecks over something such as this

HA! I was booked into a handicapped room that was occupied - I was given access to the concierge lounge for the rest of the stay....

different rates
 

I booked a few months ago for 2 different upcoming stays at a Marriott (FS) and a Ren. I couldn't believe how good these rates were including breakfast for two + under 12. The current rates (even with a new different promo) are about 30% higher per night. "Beachfront, Balcony" at one of the properties!

My first question is -- am I going to get treated like a 2nd class citizen? I have only Silver status.

Both were booked directly on Marriott.com.

Second, I do plan on paying with a combination of Marriott gift cards and gift checks, although the reservation is held with a Marriott Premier Visa -- does that make any difference?

Thank you!

Q - I booked a few months ago for 2 different upcoming stays at a Marriott (FS) and a Ren. I couldn't believe how good these rates were including breakfast for two + under 12. The current rates (even with a new different promo) are about 30% higher per night. "Beachfront, Balcony" at one of the properties! My first question is -- am I going to get treated like a 2nd class citizen? I have only Silver status.
A - IMO, depends on the occupancy at checkin and the length of your stay

Q - Second, I do plan on paying with a combination of Marriott gift cards and gift checks, although the reservation is held with a Marriott Premier Visa -- does that make any difference?
A - no........

A. Ren -- full occupancy / 3 nights
B. Marriott Resort -- not so much / 4 nights

Thanks!

since this is a future res it will depend upon what's available at checkin'............... no crystal ball to say what that will be at this time, but I can now say that as a silver you'd generally be at the tail end of a long que......

To your first question - If you think you will make 18 nights in three months (or if you don't care if you retain it after three months), you can register for the Platinum challenge prior to your stays. You can only do it once a year, but you get immediate Platinum status once you call (usually overnight). Here is a link to a thread with more details: Marriot Rewards Program Taste of Gold/Platinum promotion

I found another possible reason (by shoulder-surfing) recently. The interface for making a key is (at least at some properties) separate from reservations, so the FD agent has to manually input your check-out date.

wow I missed the posts you quoted...the old (yes and it's old) full service PMS system actually can check someone in by performing 1 action....the swipe of a credit card will retrieve the reservation, assign a room if one hasn't been preassigned, update the method of payment and check the guest in......very quick process and it's been this way since the 90's .... some hotels have the interface that makes the keys for you....some don't...just what the owner is willing to pay for