valor155

True. I like the platinum program, and the treatment I receive at checkin, etc, as a member.

BUT . . . I don't count on upgrades nor whine if I don't get them. I ask for them sometimes explicitly but usually don't and don't expect them nor do upgrades affect my overall satisfaction with the program. Sure, they are nice when received.

I get an upgraded room about 50% of the time, but since I'm usually only in town a night or two on business, this isn't a game changer.

Sounds like from the posts here, that the plat program was better in the past, or maybe more personal. But I get proper greetings and fast service every time I check in, and some other benefits I like. That's enough for me, maybe not so for others. And there are other brands that may suit the individual traveler.

GoPhils

I'm confused...OP says the nights requirement for Plat is "ridiculous" yet most are claiming it's watered-down. Can't really have it both ways...

sophiegirl

The nights requirements is the highest in the major brands....75 nights, with no "stay" option.

The watering down people are referring to are the benefits themselves, not the nights requirements.

Some benefits have been lost, others added - depending on what is important to a person, it could be a major issue, or a wash.

With regards to the OP, the complaint about suites is a complaint, not a watered down benefit. Marriott does not include suites in the programs, so expectations that one would be received is out of line. Nice, sure. Guaranteed, no.

No breakfast on weekends is a watered down bennie- it did used to occur for Plats, no longer. (Resorts was, and is, never). I disagree with this change - so moved enough of my stays to Hyatt and now use them on the weekend and at resorts. Works for me, and as Marriott has not reversed their policy, my guess is they could care less.

OU812

Not sure what you mean by, "Marriott does not include suites in the programs," as MR Platinum Benefits Upgrade Policy was recently changed to include suites:

So the OP's complaint about Suite upgrades is now a legitimate gripe. Although, most FS Marriotts don't have many suites to begin with and I find I am lucky to get a room on a high floor as my, "upgrade!"

Also, Ed French claims that 10% of Platinums are receiving Suite upgrades, as stated in this blog: http://fieldofburch.com/2012/09/27/t...ith-ed-french/ A low number to be sure, but it is now a recognized benefit. However, Mr. French does dodge the issue of MR offering confirmed suite upgrades, which is a benefit of SPG and Hyatt (IIRC).

Regards,

RIP...

GoPhils

I know, I'm just saying that if it were easier to reach Plat status, then the benefits would surely be even more watered down. If 50% of the guests at a property are plats, then the requirements to reach it must not be that "ridiculous."

hhoope01

Some may have also been refering to the fact that Lifetime requirements (including number of nights) were reduced a few years ago.

JimBobDuggarIsABusyMan

Yes. It's easily forgotten that Gold and Platinum Elite levels are actually up 20%.

hhoope01

Note that with Marriott's use of Roll Over nights and CC nights, the actual number of BIB can be significantly reduced. So I guess one could make an argument that the number of nights required for Gold/Plat have been watered down.

oldsmoboi

Business travel is picking back up it seems. Rollover nights came out when the economy bottomed out and business travel was cut back. Don't be surprised if Marriott stops priming that pump.

VA1379

Ed French and Marriott really need to reevaluate the idea that it is too expensive to give elite members (gold and higher) free breakfast on the weekends at full service properties in Canada and the United States. There are many markets where occupancy dives during the weekend, and most of their competitors (Hilton & Hyatt) don't seem to have a problem offering free breakfast.

The Residence Inn brand has become less competitive in the evening offerings, and some properties try to cut corners for breakfast. Hilton's Homewood Suites and some Hyatt's Hyatt House (the former Summerfield Suite properties) are able to put out better evening offerings from Monday to Thursday night. A lot of Residence Inns only have evening offerings from Monday to Wednesday nights.

A lot of people on the FT Hyatt section like to bash the Hyatt Places, but I prefer them over many Courtyard properties. Yes, they don't really have any upgrades (although I have seldom gotten upgraded at a Courtyard without asking), but they put out a better breakfast than the Bistro offerings. It is a buffet, and you can grab coffee/tea & a bagel if you have to have a quick breakfast in the time it will take to order that from a Courtyard restaurant. I like the hot offerings in the Hyatt Place breakfast and the ability to drink more than one cup of orange juice and milk without running up a huge tab.

I am on the side of those who feel that segregating the free internet perk for elite members by making them pay for the fastest internet is not a good idea. Yes, some people use more bandwidth, but guests don't pay extra if they drink more coffee in the lounge/room, take more water bottles from the lounge or use more housekeeping service. It is expected that some guests will use some services more than others. I will never use a hotel iron, and I seldom watch a lot of TV, but I understand that a hotel needs to cover the costs of having an iron and TV because many guests need these amenities.

I do not use as much housekeeping for multi-night stays, am not a coffee drinker and try to drink tap water when possible. This saves the hotel money. I am a heavier user of bandwidth than those who just check email, but if Marriott decides that being a platinum/platinum premier member is only good enough for free internet that is 1 Mbps or whatever the hotel deems fast enough, then I will cut my stays with Marriott.

Hyatt does a better job of making diamond members feel valued, but all hotels treat repeat guests better than top tier guests visiting for the first time. That is not a surprise since the industry values repeat customers. If Marriott had not decided to trim benefits in 2008, I would not have gotten a diamond match from Hyatt. After that, I discovered that Marriott's lead in service was less than I thought.

If Ed French thinks that he can say that elite members are valued without putting the money to back up those words, Marriott is going to discover the hard way that hotel guests can switch chains. I miss the Marriott of several years ago that had more of the spirit of the company that Bill Marriott wrote about in his book, The Spirit to Serve.

CDF

Just tossing my two cents in on a couple of things that people have commented on.

1. Breakfast on the weekends when the lounge is closed
   I wish Marriott would standardize this policy across the higher end brands. Some full service properties I've stayed at offer a breakfast coupon for the restaurant on the days the club lounge is closed (normally weekends) and some don't. I've found it to be hit or miss as to which properties do this since it can vary even among the same property types (i.e. Marriott, JW, etc.) When I find a property that offers this type of amenity I usually make a note of it and tend to go back if I'm in the area. It's not a deal breaker for me but it does tend to improve my view that the hotel values my staying there.
2. Upgrades
   My opinion, just as with the airlines, if it's available and I get an upgrade, great. If I don't get one I don't let it stress me out. Is it nice to get an upgraded room? Definitely - especially if I'm staying for more than just a couple of nights. The biggest issue I see is that again, the upgrade policies seemed to be somewhat inconsistent across brands. I've found that at most of the Fairfields, Residence Inns and Courtyards, I'm almost always upgraded and some of these rooms are nicer than some of the full service properties I've stayed at. On the other end of the spectrum, with the full service properties I would say it's hit or miss with the upgraded rooms - unless I've stayed at a property before. I do find that if you stay at a property more than once then the staff seem to be a little more ameniable to getting you an upgrade if possible. Note: I've never expected a suite upgrade at a full service property for Marriott but some of the rooms I have been upgraded to have been almost as large.
3. Service U.S. vs Non-U.S.
   This is the one area where I have to say that the overseas properties seem to have a definite advantage in terms of consistent quality of service. As some have mentioned, the level of service tends be due to the different cultures and to the fact that the hospitality industry in a lot of countries is considered a profession (somewhat like restaurants workers). To date, I haven't had a negative experience at any of the Marriott properties I've stayed at outside of the U.S. That being said, I have to note that there have been properties within the North America where the quality of service I've received has been just as good if not better than overseas. The funny/sad thing is, I tend to be treated better in most cases by the non-FS brands (i.e. Fairfield, Courtyard, Residence Inn)
4. Benefits and redeeming nights
   I'm not sure if this was mentioned but this is another area that seems to be hit or miss even with the policy of no blackout dates. For the most part, I've always been able to redeem nights when I wanted and haven't had any major stumbling blocks. The only thing that is frustrating sometimes is when Marriott leaves it up to individual hotels to determine if there are "exceptions" to the blackout dates. No blackout dates should mean just that - no blackout dates. I understand that sometimes there are times where a city will have conventions or other special events going on and the hotels want to sell the rooms but it would be nice if there were at least a couple of rooms available to book using points for elite members. Redeeming points is better than it was and there are a lot of hotel options given the size of the Marriott chain of hotels but there still could be a little more consistency in just what the rules are.

All in all, I think the Marriott Rewards program is in line with most of the other major hotel programs as far as benefits go. There are some things that I think Marriott does better than other chains. There are some things that other chains do better than Marriott. Each individual's satisfaction with a program is determined by what they're looking to get out of it.

CDF

You beat me to this one As a general rule, I've found that the FS Marriotts don't offer this amenity but there are some properties in the U.S. and Canada that do. Those may be non-corporate hotels but, as I mentioned in my previous post, when I find them I make a note to myself to visit that property again if I'm in the area since this is a nice to have on the weekends when most of the lounges are closed.

AATrout

I'm pretty low maintenance for all this. The issues of a gift, room upgrades, and breakfast on weekends as a PLT don't usually bother me. If it's business during the week, the critical benefits, always delivered, are a decent CL to save time in the morning, and a hotel staff that will flex reasonably to address problems like room location, service issues, or noise. In FS Marriott properties, I've been satisfied with these expectations here and in Europe. I'll ask for an upgrade only if I check out the room and really don't like it, or if it's a facility with some kind of large group event where I want to be on a floor away from a lot of that noise. I've been pretty successful when asking for those reasons.

Otherwise, a room upgrade is a bonus - if the property wants to hold out for full revenue stays at the last minute, fine. I usually push for it if traveling on vacation with my wife and explain that she does not travel much and it would be nice for her. My batting average for that is pretty good.

Someone correct me if this is wrong, but the desk sees only your current status, points and paid nights year-to date. They don't know if you are lifetime anything, but may (or may not) see your total lifetime nights. I suspect but can't confirm that anything apart from your current status - lifetime or otherwise - cuts any ice with the staff that can get you a room change or upgrade.

SkiAdcock

Or you could check out the exec lounge sticky on which lounges are open/closed on the weekend & if brekkie coupons are provided when closed

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/13849211-post1.html

Cheers.

McGoogles

I want a rainfall showerhead in every Marriott room. Until that happens, I'm a Platinum that feels treated poorly.