Are you lifetime Plat? If not, if I were you, I'd take it as a gift, as you'll roll over 25 extra nights next year.

bd

I am staying in the Dalmahoy this week, and its been a real disappointment. I won’t be going back.

It is a really strangely laid out hotel, with no obvious logic to room numberings, and the room heating doesn’t seem to want to switch off so I’ve had to sleep with the windows open.

Tried the Long Weekend restaurant in the hotel for dinner a few nights ago, which is bizarrely located in the gym complex and a long way away from the main lobby. It had zero atmosphere, and the food was cold.

I like using the Exec lounge in the other Marriott for breakfast as its not busy, and service is good if you want anything. There is no Exec lounge in the Dalmahoy, and breakfast service in the main hotel is slow and disorganised. I ordered porridge today (usually laid out in the buffet in the other Marriott, but has to be ordered in the Dalmahoy) and it took 15 minutes to arrive, by which time I had given up waiting and was about to leave. No apology from staff.

It might be nice to do a round of golf in the Summer there, but not a good location for a business traveller, or for someone who wants to visit Edinburgh city centre.

I might try one of the Hiltons next week

Ha...not yet, almost....

You make a good point though; however i busted my derriere to make sure I got to the number of nights that I was told I needed in teh email I got saying...you need XXX nights to renew as a PP.

Otherwise, I would have moved a few to Hyatt (mainly for their free internet) or *wood for a change of pace

....but it's the principle now...

AND, when I filled out the customer care form, the rep who replied didn't even address my question...he said something totally different...THAT really p!$$ed me off....at least ANSWER the question posed...sheesh!:confused:

I'd be irritated by both as well - ie, told stay this much & you'll get PP & then didn't; b) got a response not addressing the question. You might want to PM MarriottConcierge. They're usually helpful w/ stuff like this. Good luck.

Cheers.

Thanks Sharon...actually I sent them an email....we shall see....

My second reply was that my account was "downgraded" on 2/28...yet last week it plainly said PP. I know there isn't much difference but if they are going to be *&^$ busters then they can give me 27 rollover nights instead of just 2.

(Thanks all for permitting me to rant....I think I will be done ranting for a while...guess I should celebrate St Pat's day!:p)

I stayed at this hotel a lot last year while just a Plat. and received that level of treatment almost weekly. When I made PP I stayed another time or two and got suites of some form each time. However, I can not tell if that's b/c of the PP or just because I had been staying there for months.

Since then I've been at a regular Marriott in CT and have noticed no difference from being a regular plat for several years.

I must just be an easy PlatPrem. I never get upset with not getting much. I think you just have to ask for the goodies, since I rarely do I tend to get them when I ask.

Property: JW Marriott, Penn Ave, Washington, DC
Length of stay (repeat stays?): 2 nights
Greeting: Thanks for being plat, oh wait you're PP!
Room upgrade: Yes, CL
Suite upgrade: No
Special requests filled: N/A
Other: Personally I don't think this hotel should qualify for JW status as it reminded me mostly of a mid-range FS Marriott in quality and service. The rooms even on the CL are small compared to other FS and much smaller then most JW's I've stayed in. Apparently it gets the JW status solely based on location.

Kudos to the Concierge Team
 

Thanks to the Concierge team........my PP status will be restored.....


^

Agree w/ you 100% on this.

Cheers.

Sharon,

With all due respect, and you know that I do respect your opinion, because it is well educated and well considered, I still do not think this is comparable. While I wish that it was comparable, in a direct way, I do not believe that Hyatt, or Starwood, is comparable to Marriott.

Hyatt has less than 340 full service hotels, worldwide, with less than 200 more hotels in its other brands, with the majority of those hotels being corporate owned properties, and Starwood has less than 950 properties total, worldwide, in all brands, with many of those hotels being corporate owned properties. On the other hand, Marriott has more than 3,100 hotels, in all brands, with less than 2% at any one time being owned by Marriott International.

The reality is that size is convenient in some ways and inconvenient in other ways. Also, closer corporate control and smaller size allows for some staff training and customer benefits that are just not practical for companies of larger sizes. Is this an excuse for Marriott? No, not by a far shot. However, the reality is that large companies, in every industry, give up certain benefits as they grow larger.

*Do I wish that I did not have to call Marriott to ask for my upgrades? YES!
*Do I wish that I was always recognized for status and treated as I should be at every location where I check in? YES!
*Do I wish that I was treated with respect by Delta Air Lines as a Platinum member who has given a lot of business to Delta Air Lines? YES!
*Do I wish that all employees of Marriott hotels, Delta Airlines, and Avis Rental Car were as trained and knowledgeable as they should be? YES!
*Do I wish that the service and benefits that USAirways had offered me for 20+ years had not deteriorated into a state of total lack of recognician that caused me to leave for another airline? YES!
*Do I wish that wishes were horses? YES!

So, in the scheme of things, does it bother me to pick up my cell phone and spend 3 minutes of my time, probably while I am driving from one place to another using the bluetooth speakerphone in my car, in order to get more and better upgrades? NO! NO! NO!

The fact is that modern travel has become an art form, and we all practice our own particular art of travel in different ways, to squeeze whatever we get the "most bang" from out of to make us happiest and most fullfilled.

To me, investing 3 minutes to ask for what I want is MUCH PREFERABLE than not getting what I want, and then being unhappy about it or complaining about it as a result.

We'll have to agree to disagree. I think that Marriott PPs shouldn't have to call & ask & basically beg each time for stuff they are entitled to according to the program. Heck, it would be even nice in their email communications w/ the PPs that they acknowledge they are such :D

Back to the topic at hand ;), other than the 20% off food & the golf thing, the title of too much carrot w/o any taste is pretty accurate.

Meg, glad MC came through for you.

Cheers.

One thing worth considering on the diff between these two levels might be one's priority on the list(s). For example, if too many Plats for the available upgrades, maybe the PP types are bumped up and a few of the Plats don't get the goodies.

Hard to quantify, but would be worth checking on in a busy/sold-out situation.

I'm still a bit of a Marriott n00b, relatively speaking (<300 nights total), and still feel like I'm learning the ropes. This may be OT, but what is the technique that you use to maximize upgrades? I always ask at the desk. Do you call the hotel ahead? Call the PP line? Do you ask for a suite, or just an upgrade?

Thanks,

bd

I will ask at the desk if I know the property has a lot of upgrades (rooms with views and suites). Some hotels don't have many upgrades, but they still have great service (like the Marriott at the CSU campus in Fullerton, CA).