paying with GC's
 

This summer I drew the short straw and am stuck going on vacation with the sister-and-brother law. Being that our total resort charges will be several thousand dollars, I was thinking about seeing if I can find discounted Marriott GC's at BJ's, Costco, etc. to pay for everything. Assuming I can, is there any reason not to go this route? I'm only worried about some obscure MR provision that would, say, void Elite benefits, make the stay ineligible, mandate my sister-in-law's lounge chair be constantly next to mine, etc.

Thanks in advance for your insight.

Not sure if it was in this forum or a blog but I thought I read that Marriott GCs are not available at other outlets anymore, just through Marriott.

Pick a resort that you get points on incidental spend. Would suck to be a RC & only get points for hotel room. Also, might be worth a few bucks to the cabana boy to make sure the SIL's lounge chair is across the pool :p :D

Cheers.

Cardpool.com and giftcards.com often have discounted gift cards. Sign up for alerts, but even then you have to be quick to get them before they're sold out. If you participate in MyPoints, you can buy them through its store for a bunch of bonus points.

If you're using a Marriott gift card, it SHOULD be processed just as if you're using another credit card. 80% of the time I have used one, it works just like a credit card. Just ask for a paper print-out of the bill after they use the gift card. In Hawaii once the person at the front desk tried to use the card as "credits" which would lower the total bill. I.E. less points for me, as the price of the bill was lower, rather than having it used as payment.

Basically, you're probably fine - just check the bill.

I recently booked two rooms at the same hotel for myself and a cousin. I used an e-certificate to pay for one, and guaranteed the other one to my Marriott credit card. When I checked in, I told the clerk I would want to use gift cards rather than have them automatically charge my card prior to sliding the portfolio under the door the next morning, and they said no problem, just bring them down when I'm ready to check out. At checkout time I handed them 4-5 different Marriott Gift Cards & Travel cards varyinig from $50-75-100-125 each. It took the clerk less than five minutes to process all of them, and that was that. No problems.

HTH.

If you use GCs, my advice is to email the property ahead of time letting them know you intend to use them, asking if there is anything you need to do ahead of time. Print the return email. Show the return email at check-in and ask if there is anything that needs to be done.

I've not done this pre-stay work and had to stand and wait while the hotel clerk figured out what to do. Others have wound up not being able to use the cards. When I've reached out ahead time, there is an envelope waiting at the desk letting the clerk know what to do, and/or an employee called to the front who is ready to deal with the GC.

Since I started doing this, using GCs has been problem free.

I just used GCs at the Marriott Vail and had no issues. Payment applied just like a credit card and there were no reduction in benefits. Got all my points.

Used them many times, the only problems have been with the clerk having to go get someone that knew how to deal with them. I just wait until check out and then go to the desk.

Haven't seen discounted ones for a while though.

Exact same experience. Not every clerk knows how to process them.

A couple of times I paid at check in, most often though at checkout.

Do they work at ritz Carlton's? Are they still for sale at staples?

all gift cards issued by MI are redeemable at all MI brands regardless of the brand identified on the gift card

My understanding is that they're only available from Marriott now & not other retail outlets.

Cheers.

Thanks everyone for your knowledgeable input. Have a great day.

paying with GC's
 

I've heard that using Marriott gift cards may possibly void the earning of points. Is this true? I see a poster above said that he received points for the stay. Not sure

You get your points for your stay. Did this dozens of times when they were sold at a discount. What you give up is the credit card bonus, but if you buy your card through Marriott you still get the 5 points per dollar bonus for buying gift cards.

Billy

Thank you!

If memory serves, some properties posted the GC payment as a discount and not a payment. This would cause the system to not issue the proper number of points. Watch your folio closely and make sure they don't pull something similar. They shouldn't, but ...

I find this to be unnecessary from personal experience. I have never had an issue at checkout when using gift cards at any marriott or RC properties...

Last summer Marriott ran a promotion which was the equivelant of 10% off gift card purchases through marriott. You may want to keep an eye out if they run that again.

I have used GCs multiple times in different countries and have never had an issue (other than perhaps checkout taking a few minutes longer).

Check here: https://dailygetaways.ustravel.org/Calendar.aspx?week=3

On 6/9, Marriott has limited GCs for 10% discount! I'll be stocking up.

Same experience here. I've had it take quite a while to get them to process as the staff aren't usually familiar with them. Also, I've never been able to get them to "take" on stays using my corporate code (tried it 5 or 6 times before finally giving up). AAA rates have worked fine, though. I also always get the points.

Anyone ever had any experience using gift cards for lnf

Yes... multiple times. Never had any issues and always received points expected.

Anyone used them outside the USA?
 

Has anyone used them outside the USA, I am wondering how they the deal with the currency conversion from US$ to local for the bill? Most of my $ stays this summer are in Canada. If it's not a good deal that is fine, I'd rather know up front.

I mostly use them internationally. (Asia and Europe) The dollar conversion hasn't been an issue, although, I'll reiterate my advice to contact the property ahead of time to ensure there are no issues and not wait until check-out, when you need to be at the airport by a certain time, to surprise a lone desk clerk with the GCs.

There is a thread on this board about people having trouble with GCs, including people who have wound up paying for the room with credit cards: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marri...light=giftcard An ounce of prevention in this case (contacting the hotel) is worth a pound of cure.

Is it preferable to use an egiftcard or a physical gift card to pay for a stay, or does it not make any difference? If location matters, stays will be in Hong Kong and Seoul.