Marriott Platinum worth it?
 

Just wondering what real world benefits there really are to the platinum status, I have had 7 or 8 stays this year and I don't see any benefit or change, upgrades etc. since being upgraded from lowly gold last year, aside from the occasional snack upon check in, what am I missing? I do like the United status but I don't fly them too often. All of my stays are through work, but last year I did have 25-30 from holiday.

Where are you traveling? Frankly, upgrades are not the thing that does much for me. They don't happen often. I only ask on holiday when traveling with family. I do like the 50% point earning bonus when traveling for work. The lounge access and breakfasts. Platinum booking guarantees.

We are treated EXCEPTIONALLY well in Asia.

At limited service properties, elite status does not get you much. As a platinum, you should at least get the points/snack (and not just "occasionally," it's guaranteed). At full service properties, upgrades will usually be to the concierge floor but occasionally you may score something nicer.

Yes, do be aware here, Marriott, Hilton and IHG get a bad rap on upgrades, as most of their inventory has only a few suites. As opposed to Hyatt and Starwood who build more suites into their properties and therefore have more suites to upgrade to.

At Marriott FS I find I'm upgraded virtually without exception, usually being "concierge floor", "exec rooms", "larger guest rooms" and "corner rooms". Now admittedly my 500 nights have been mostly EMEA but of the 3 stays (10 nights) in North American Marriotts I have been upgraded every time, at the Marriott YYZ to a corner room, the Marriott Philadelphia a concierge floor room and the Marriott Ottawa an exec room. And of course I received lounge access at all 3.

In reality the only uptick in benefits as a plat are the arrival gift ($10F&B or 500points), the 25% extra platinum bonus points and the 48 hour availability. It's not a great step up from Gold, hence when I failed to make the numbers a few years ago I didn't mind the bust, but I certainly have been determined to make the stays to keep gold, no matter what. I don't want to lose those room upgrades, breakfast and exec lounge access.

Thanks. I don't do much international travel, mainly west coast trips for work and the occasional trip to Hawaii and the east coast. Most of the time I arrive late at night and usually just get the standard substituted point arrival gift and of course the bonus points on checkout. I can't complain too much, it's more then I got with my old Hilton status. I don't think I will go out of my way to achieve platinum but I am already halfway there this year through work trips. The nicest thing I like is the dedicated phone line, still a short wait but I have had everything taken care of I needed with ease. Thanks for the replies.

You do get extra points for the stay, as well as the Platinum arrival gift. I do notice a higher upgrade rate than from when I was Gold, but that was some years ago and the upgrade rate is much higher on shorter stays.

Probably the most significant difference, in my opinion, is the Platinum override, which will often let you book a room at hotels that will show no rooms available to Gold and below. You get rack rate, but you can usually get a room.

I have used the override a couple of times, but I would probably not do a mattress run to get from Gold to Platinum if I still had to worry about that.

Used to be. Free Breakfast is now Gone throughout Asia (resorts).

Pretty sure this is more property specific then a blanket reduction.

Quick reply: No, Plat isn't worth it. No major difference from Gold. I've been Plat since 2008 and probably get upgraded 10-20% of the time, at best. I haven't even hit the required nights for Plat the last 2 years, but Marriott keeps renewing my status. Hell, I didn't even have enough to qualify for Gold last year, and they still sent me the Plat pamphlet in the mail. Been spending more time at Hilton properties. I'm finding them much nicer and with better rates. Marriott has been going downhill for years, in my opinion... Of course, your experience may differ.

over the past 9-days have received breakfast at 2 Marriott asian properties designated as resorts.

nvm..

I have PP and it is completely worthless, so plat IMO is junk too. The only benefit I see if the PAG and additional base points at check out. They definitely add up. Other than that, I struggle a lot with getting late check outs, upgrades, or them handling basic issues. The key difference comes at gold when you get lounge access and free wifi (since I don't book through Marriott.com).

I have had the opposite reaction. For me I only really car about benefits on vacation travel and there it has been great. Upgrade from garden view to ocean view. Suites. At one hotel the manager came out to escort me personally to my villa etc...

Add in the Platinum override which is nice when you are meeting with a customer and no being stuck in the burbs because the downtown hotel was sold out.

I find it useful when booking weekend reward stays for me or family members. Usually some kind of upgrade. Don't really care if I get upgrades when on business.

Also, I am not sure if Gold uses the same customer service as Platinum. But I find the CS to be very helpful on the Platinum line.

Yes it is. Worth it, that is.

Billy

Been Platinum for many years, haven't seen any benefit beyond what Gold get except they called me once at 10pm local time asking if I'll really be coming so they won't walk me on a sold out night

As I posted in another thread, Ritz Carlton bought my two years of Platinum status for hosting my wedding in late 2016. I had never heard of this happening and was excited to accept. I wasn't sure if anyone had a similar experience.

IMO -- Yes

Not for the Plat vs. Gold benefits unless you fly United 5-10 per year and don't make status on your own.

Marriott's strength right now is their point value, even though they hiked up many hotel category levels, generally the points you earn by staying a Marriott make it easier to earn points for redemption. The 50% vs 25% bonus for plat vs gold and the welcome points can add up. I'm comparing most against hilton, since I need the ability to find Fairfield, Courtyard, HGI, type hotels...some who can pick Hyatt/SPG might say those programs have better value.

When you say "worth it" what is on the other side of the balance sheet? What is the cost to doing it?

If it is the $85 for the CC to get the 15 free nights, I say yes. If it is $2000 out of pocket to do 10 nights worth of mattress runs, then no.

For me the only cost is not getting status somewhere else, but who cares, I have to stay somewhere and they are all about the same.

Marriott Platinum worth it?
 

Don't forget platinums get same day change/cancellation instead of 24 hours ahead.

I would love to get walked and collect. Cha-ching. But it just doesn't happen. :(

Personally, I like the extra points and the lounges. My family and my wife's family are located very close to a Marriott and I can use the AAA or Military discount to get very good rates. So for the nearly 19 years we have been married, we take at a minimum one trip a year to each set of parents. This generates lots of points - and I also have the Marriott Chase Visa, which gives you even more. As a Platinum I get 20 points a dollar (10 per dollar plus 50% Platinum bonus and 5 points per dollar on the card).

We have traveled to Europe and the mid east in the last couple of years and in London and Brussels, the breakfasts were FREE (usual cost was 20 pounds in London and 25 Euro in Brussels. Plus drinks, snacks and desserts at night probably saved us over $100 a day in food alone.

But for me, it is the points - I transfer all the points with the Marriott travel packages to an airline and my family has in the last several years traveled business class to Hawaii, Europe and Alaska. Marriott is my first choice but my employer has the actual choice, so sometimes it is Hyatt or other hotels.

All things being equal, I chose a Marriott - but if there is a nice trip to Vegas or elsewhere, I chose the best hotel.

If you just want lounge access, Gold is really good enough, but if you want to maximize your points, I would aim for Platinum.

I haven't heard of this. Is it true, or sarcasm?

Same day change/cancellation is an unwritten and unpublished benefit, sort of like the flat tire rule when flying.

Nice to know .. thanks !

Is this really a benefit you can rely on? They just changed the cancellation deadline at the beginning of the year? How many times has it been tested, just because one agent makes an exception don't expect it to happen for you.

I don't think this is a "benefit." I've had two trips this year that due to weather and last minute flight issues, I had to cancel or come in a day late. Both times, calling into Marriott, I was denied the ability to change (as a PP) due to it being within the cancellation window.

Instead, I had better success calling the hotel directly (the first time, the agent did it), and both cases, they made the adjustments - one gave me credit for a future stay, and the other just made my stay one day shorter.

Until something is in writing from Marriott, I wouldn't believe that.

I think whether you think it's worth it depending on the hotel you are staying at. Some hotels respect status more than others. I have stayed at hotels where they don't see Platinum as anything and some that gives suite upgrade. Recently I talked to a FD in a CY in Asia and she said that they don't do suite upgrade anymore (they used to for 1 night), their GM pushes the FD to upsell them instead of giving it to Plat/Gold.

In the US I did get upgrade as Gold/Plat when staying at FFI/RI - twice at CY after asking.

The UA silver is a nice touch if you do fly UA.

According to MR customer service it is real benefit for Platinum. They confirmed it when I called but I was hesitant to ask for a link to documentation.

I'll believe it when I see something in writing. Just last week I thought I would have to cancel a NYC hotel within the 1 day window. When I called the Plat line to inquire about a day of arrival cancellation benefit for plats, I was first told by the first agent that there was no such benefit. When I spoke with a supervisor, he said, "At this time, there is no formal same day cancellation benefit for Plats! However, we will contact the hotel directly on your behalf and encourage them to permit cancellation or changes to your reservation without penalty. This is done on a case by case basis depending on individual circumstances. Ultimately, it is up to the individual property!"

I think this goes along with other FT's experiences. I can see MR not wanting to publish this as a benefit. As soon as this unwritten benefit gets abused, it will disappear and when it does, we won't be able to cry foul because it was never a formal benefit anyway.

Regards,

RIP...

I second this 100%. The travel package for 270,000 pts in exchange for 132,000 United miles and a 7 night stay in a Cat 5 is perfect.. that's 2 round trips to Europe, and a 7 night stay in an AC hotel. Can't beat that.

For those that stay lots and lots of nights, PT is a must... maximize the points with the 50% bonus, and the ability to convert 2:1 Marriott pts to United miles is unbelievable... I don't think this is sustainable by Marriott to continue this redemption, but I will make the most of it until that day comes.

Platinum status is a must for the 75+ nights/yr traveler... I have not seen anything even close to comparable in HH, IHG, Starwood, etc. etc. etc. from a travel package redemption standpoint or hotel night redemption standpoint. If I am wrong, I am absolutely receptive to advice... especially catered to the 150+ nights/yr traveler.

I have been told by several reps that Plats will be allowed cancellation if reservation is made through Marriott. I have successfully done this 3-4 times,
That said I do not think it is a completely 'official' policy as franchise properties have the right to refuse. A call from Marriott directly is certainly helpful in this regard.
Overall I HATE the one day cancel policy. Even with Plat policy I do not like calling hat in hand to ask for a cancellation. As a result on several occasions have held off reserving (checking availability day before or in morning) only to find when I was sure of my lodging needs that there was limited availability.
Also have been caught where rates increased.

As stated Plat is great for addtl. points but if one policy would cause me to leave the fold the one day cancel is it.

The problem is most of Marriott's big competitors have done the same thing (or have even more draconian cancellation policies.)

At least Marriott has this un-official Plat exemption for the 1-day cancellation policy. I don't think Hilton or Starwood do that for their top level elites.

Good to know. After being a Hilton Diamond for years I stay exclusively at Marriott props so wasn't aware of other chains restrictions.
Left Hilton primarily because of diminished value of points even though in general I like their props as good or better than Marriott.
Gold Hilton through CC is too easy also.

In no way, shape, or form am I a Hilton "slappy" but the folks at the Diamond line have gotten me out of reservations inside the cancellation window on numerous occasions as have the fine folks at Marriott's Platinum line.

For the one-day cancel, I just move the reservation to sometime in the distant future, confirm, then immediately cancel. It's worked so far.

All chains' elite lines have granted me a free after-6PM cancel for one reason or another over the years. It required a phone call, usually my explaining some unusual circumstance that impacted my travels (weather, etc.), and a response that it was a "courtesy" as a thank you for my loyalty.

I don't doubt that it still works for Plats/Diamonds in the "new" world where same-day is the new 6PM.

If it were a systematic ability to cancel same-day from the app without explanation, that'd be a Plat benefit that would be highly interesting to me.

I like this approach, thanks for sharing.

So I screwed up and booked the Marriott Downtown Manhattan Wed-Sat instead of Thurs-Sun. I realized this Thursday morning. Talked with the hotel and they rebooked me, waived the fee and basically told me "You're platinum. You can pretty much do whatever."

Stunned the crap out of me. Makes me value my Platinum status, even after I earn lifetime this year. The more I look at SPG and see you can't get lifetime SPG 75, the less appealing it looks to me.

Gained my Plat status from business travel within the US. At the properties I stay in (RI, FFI) it doesn't make any difference really. There's usually just one room category in the first place and breakfast is included as well.

Reservation guarantee: The only time I actually needed that it turned out to be entirely useless, as the hotel had been granted some sort of "special relief" for the days in question. There was no convention or anything in town, they were just fully booked for "no identifiable reason" (quoting the GM here, a few days later). You don't need a "guarantee" for when there are rooms available. You need it, when there are no rooms available - which is precisely the time it's not honored. :td:

Where the benefits really make a tangible difference is in Asia. I have been upgraded at every single property in several countries here (JW, Renaissance, Marriott brands). Plus, the lounges at those places have very little to do with most in the US of the same brands - lots of food and free drinks, including a completely open bar.

Earn your points in the US, they'll pay off in Asia @:-)