VickiSoCal

I agree that a prominent, accurate link on transportation should be placed on the main page of all airport hotels.

sdsearch

Ok, but this is far from the only example of misnaming. First of all, their are airports themselves that are misnamed, way out in the boonies somewhere very far from the city they decide to name themselves after (at least partially), when there are other airports much closer. You better check where the airport really is, not just rely on its name.

Then there are hotels that are similarly named (at least partly) after a city which they're not really all that close to. Again, you better check where the hotel really is, not just rely on its name.

Then there are hotels which are nowhere near the water (nor any view of it) that have Beachfront or Oceanview or whatever in their name. (Sometimes they're on a street named Beachfront or Oceanview!)

So I learned decades ago to never evaluate a hotel by its name. Meanwhile, long before I was born, someone came up with the saying "never judge a book by its cover".

bennos

So I just went to Expedia, which what I suspect most not-FT people would do (substitute Expedia for your favorite travel portal), and searched for "Manchester Airport" under Hotels. Among the returned results, Manchester Airport Marriott, the hotel named by the OP. On the Expedia description page for that hotel, I find

and

but nothing about airport transfers. So on which "main page" should the transportation link be required?

Reading through the comments, there are remarks such as "Short ride from airport, called hotel from courtesy phone. No free shuttle, £6 charge." which to me imply people are arriving at the airport expecting to find a shuttle. Why would that be? Perhaps because of the word "Airport" in the name?

pinniped

Long ago, I think I would have simply assumed that a hotel with "airport" in the name has a complimentary shuttle that operates to/from the airport at any logical time a flight passenger might need to come or go.

But now I've stayed in a few where that's not the case, so I know to look at the details or query FT to find the answer.

And it's not just Marriott: the Sheraton Munich Airport has no complimentary shuttle and several miles away from the actual airport. Even though it is in a small town, it has no free parking either.

VickiSoCal

The marriott.com home page for each hotel. I believe that is the only one they control.

allset2travel

+1

cova

Call the Manchester Airport hotel and ask them about the special taxi rate - they don't know anything about it.

cova

Don't get me wrong. I always check the hotel website concerning lounges, transportation, health club facility, etc. For international hotels - I usually call the hotel direct ahead of time (via Skype) to confirm any items of interest.

MSPeconomist

ATL Marriott is connected to the airport by the monorail. At PHL, the Marriott is right in the terminal, so no shuttle is needed.

SkiAdcock

So you're saying the airport moniker is accurate then in those cases Not really the same scenario as the OP's.

Cheers.

writerguyfl

Unless it is near 100%, standardization is ineffective as it then becomes X percent of hotels and a list of exceptions.

Renaming a hotel takes money: new signage, marketing materials, labor costs to handle everything, and potential loss of business when stays chooses a competitor with "airport" in the name because other chains don't follow this rule of standardization.

Given that there would be no immediate tangible benefits and will actually create a competitive disadvantage for both the franchisee or Marriott, the only way this standardization happen at 100% of hotels is if it's funded by an external source.

cova

TPA Airport Marriott is also in the terminal.

Monorail, right-in-terminal, etc. meet the requirement - same as a shuttle. The Monorail would be considered a form of shuttle. Use your feet to walk and you are shuttling. Using the word "shuttle" means that there is regular transportation to the airport - short of having to make your own arrangements (taxi or rental car).

To get back to the original example - the train from Manchester Piccadilly is 15 minutes via non-stop train for 4.10 GBP. That is actually cheaper and more convenient than getting from the Manchester Airport Marriott to the Manchester Airport. Maybe then all the Center City hotels in MAN would be more appropriate as an airport hotel than the Airport Marriott. The city of Manchester has 3 free "MetroShuttles" which circulate the city and the train stations.

The DoubleTree across from Piccadilly MAN train station is more convenient.

I still think the word "Airport" in the name implies some convenient transportation method. One can take a taxi or drive a car from any location to the airport.

sdsearch

Similarly: Though none of them have "airport" in the name, my favorite location for LHR airport hotels is Paddington, because of Heathrow Connect/Heathrow Express. That way I'm in the city itself, yet just about as close in time to the airport as if I were in an "airport" hotel.

(Though whether there's a Marriott family hotel within walking distance of the Paddington station, I dunno. I wasn't yet active in Marriott Rewards the last time I stayed in London. There's a Hilton right above the station, and a Choice family hotel across the street.)

craz

+1 Ive found this to be the case with alot of diferent hotels among the different chains. MUC is a case in pt, theres a Kempski and 1 other hotel right outside the Term, otherwise all the other Airport Hotels are miles away and no free shuttle to any of them. Ive come to accept having 'Airport' in a hotels name only means being close by and nothing more, so for yrs Ive always checked to see if theres a free shuttle or what the charge is.

Dont stop there as many so called Airport Hotels dont have a 24/7 shuttle, so make sure it will be running a few hours after you are to land (leave some room for Irrops causing a late arrival) and if they will run early enough to get you to the 1st flights out in the morn. Ive CXed many a res once I found out the shuttles will be of no use to me since they dont start till after I needed to be at the airport and stopped before I was to land even if on time.

CMK10

I agree with the OP. To me, "airport", at least in the US, has always meant "airport shuttle available".

Though I always make sure to check because not everyone else, including Marriott, agrees