joshua362

I've done that for every single reservation since 2006 since making PLT / PP despite them moving and practically hiding the comments box online.

No rhyme or reason whether its read and acted upon in advance, read for the first time in front of me (clerk usually starts typing furiously at this point) or simply ignored until I ask whether it can be honored. Very property specific the way its handled.

hockeyinsider

Also, the Marriott mobile application on occasion has notified me that I have been upgraded. Literally, there is a notification that says you've been upgraded. The problem is that many properties don't use the application, particularly the chat feature. Same with mobile keys. Few properties seem to actually offer it.

kennycrudup

FWIW, I've had decent success WRT upgrades, snagging rooms bigger than some folks' apartments, and a few Presidential suites- but you HAVE to ask when checking in, be it SPG OR MR- and of course, it depends on the hotels' expected availability (i.e., don't try it on a week they're sold out) comes into play. Doesn't hurt to play up to the FDC, either.

Plus if you're going to be at a property for a while, let them know and see what you can get. At one point a few years back I was for all intents and purposes blocked into a two-floor loft at this one SFBA hotel for weeks at a time, losing access only when someone actually paid for the room class (and given a standard suite almost every other time then).

kennycrudup

Is that an iOS thing? I don't see the ability to turn that on/off in the Android app.

hockeyinsider

I don't know about the operating system. I think it depends on the property and the technology they have in the doors. Out of 170-plus nights this year, I believe only the Marriott in Georgetown has offered it. Then again, they fully renovated within the last 1-2 years. Every property has check-in and check-out through the application. Most have chat capabilities, but many don't respond to chat. Some allow you to request just about anything -- extra towels, extra pillows, wakeup call, toiletries, bathrobe, slippers, full housekeeping, you name it -- through a series of menu options. Others have limited options, as the application seems programmed to know which properties, for example, have bathrobes.

Kagehitokiri

marriott website shows number of suites under Hotel Details
marriott.com/hotels/fact-sheet/travel/

for example
marriott.com/hotels/fact-sheet/travel/waswe-washington-marriott-georgetown/
Washington Marriott Georgetown 462 Rooms, 8 suites
presumably numbering 7 suites and 1 presidential

AFAIK starwood does not show similar suite count online

SkiAdcock

Yes, you can always see the # of suites which gives FTers an idea if they might get one or will be SOL. If a property only has 1-2 suites, odds are it's not going to happen. If a property has 30 suites, better odds.

DJ_Iceman

I know you know this, Sharon, but "better odds" are still not necessarily GOOD odds. Despite the unsubstantiated claims by some that SPG guests are, on average, more affluent, it appears that no one actually pays to stay in suites at SPG properties. Many Marriott hotels and resorts actually sell their suites to paying guests, meaning even a decent number of suites at a property doesn't mean many will be available for complimentary upgrades.

UA-NYC

Well, agree to disagree - one of the benefits of SPG Platinum has always been that the "upgrade to standard suite at check-in" language is pretty clear cut, and thus the properties I have stayed at actively try to upgrade you w/o asking. I don't ask and I don't fight for it, but I do get upgraded about ~50% of the time (excluding places like Aloft that don't generally have suites) - and I'm not talking faux-upgrades like "lounge floors"..

kennycrudup

Huh. I checked into an SPG property back in June(?) and was given a standard king room. Having been "programmed" to ask from my MR experience "... so, do you have any upgrades available?", he checked and after a few clicks, what do you know- a two-room suite came available. I had to end up "Vegas $20"ing an FDC who tried to put me in a broom closet next to an elevator back in April and then something also miraculously "showed up".

But we'll see- in two weeks another SPG stay is coming up. Maybe the rules now say "Don't resent the MR Plats anymore, they're people too" and I won't have to ask for it?

UA-NYC

Well, I am talking of a sample size of N=~800 vs. N=1-2 but give it a few more chances and see what you get.

Sheraton UG chances are always lower than the other brands, FWIW. Also you can look up the hotel on the Starwood site and check out the # of suites relative to the # of rooms, that always is a good indicator too.

Thaikwai

I live in Bangkok and most of my travel is in Asia Pacific region where I have a great suite upgrade success rate. Marriott Tang Plaza Singapore, JW Marriott Jakarta, Marriott Resort Hua Hin, and Renaissance Harbour View Hong Kong are the best, with it being a big surprise if I don't get a suite upgrade at these properties. However, I do carefully plan every visit, e-mailing my local "contact" in the hotel to warn them I am arriving and expecting my "usual" suite upgrade. If I am checking in to a hotel I do not use frequently, I will always ask for an upgrade on check in.

I am also lucky at the St. Regis Beijing, where I occasionally got an upgrade even before the merger, but now get a suite upgrade every time.

I use Marriott in Europe also, especially in the UK, but these hotels are a world apart from their Asian cousins, definitely the poor side of the family, with very few suites in the properties outside Central London. When I ask for an "upgrade" at these properties the Front Desk tells me "we have upgraded you to our Executive Floor" and when I politely point out that this is not an upgrade as the rooms are exactly the same as the standard room and I have Exec Lounge access as a Platinum member, they just say "sorry, that's as good as it gets". Ho Hum!!

Happy New Year everyone and safe travels in 2018

hockeyinsider

I find the Marriott properties in Europe to be closer to Asia than the United States, though there are, of course, always exceptions.

Some of the U.K. properties are well, tired, like Aberdeen, York, or wherever. But some of them are quite nice. I'm actually surprised there aren't more Marriott -- of any brand -- properties in the U.K. and France, given the number of U.S. tourists to these countries. Paris could easily handle another 5-7 Marriott portfolio hotels.

I'm guessing that the high cost of doing business -- namely labor costs -- prevent Marriott from expanding. In London and Paris, properties outsource housekeeping to third-party contractors, who just don't get the job done.

voweffekt

Odd data point.. a Le Meridien outside the US said they purposefully did not give me a suite upgrade because my booking stated I was traveling alone. They gave the suite upgrades " to elite members who had listed 2 in their party". Lesson learned!

hockeyinsider

Isn't that against SPG terms? I'd report the property.