Is Platinum level worth it?
 

I am currently Marriot gold elite member. I am within striking distance of becoming Platinum for this year, but I have undergo a little pain (staying farther, less preferable places, etc).

Cursory glance of Gold Vs. Platinum benefits doesn't reveal anything compelling with Platinum.

What do other road warriors think of this?

Wish I could say but I have not experienced the luxury. I try (although emotion can get the better of me) to apply a "reasonable person" filter to most stays these days. If your willing to put up with the travel hassles then go for it.

Im quite curious to know what the ammenity welcome gift is personally.

This year so far I have received:

1. $400 from Marriott for forgeting the Plat. arrival gift.
2. 25,000 points from the Plat arrival bonus (500 per stay)
3. Used the 48 hour gar. 4 times at hotels w/no avail.
4. Maybe about 20,000 additional points (30% vs 25% bonus)
5. Upgrade to a suite four times

I would say go for it!

It's worth it for the 48-hour guarantee alone. Everything else is gravy.

Agreed. Of all the chains, Marriott's highest elite level has the worst benefits. But I still make it to Platinum every year! If I started to travel less, I would go for Starwood Platinum and Hilton Diamond (both of which I attain as well every year).

Gotta disagree emphatically with zakami. I've been Hilton diamond and Starwood platinum and found NO benefits to those levels at all. No suite upgrades, no bend-over-backwards customer service, zip. Marriott at least treats me like a valued guest almost every time I stay. A simple "thanks for staying with us again" goes a long way toward building customer goodwill, but the other chains don't seem to get that.

I have been Marriott PLT for a while and while I have recieved far more upgrades without asking as a Hilton Gold, I have always recieved a thanks for being such a loyal guest as a Marriott PLT.

However, each and every time I have emailed the hotel requesting an upgrade to a suite before check-in, I have never been turned down yet.

I totally agree.

Dan

I would go for Platinum. 48-hour reservation guarantee is very useful. Platinum amenity is a nice touch at regular Marriott hotels (though disappointing at the lower-tier Marriott brands in my opinion). I find that special requests for room location, type of room, etc., will generally be honored and front-desk personnel will make an effort to honor requests at check-in if asked. Almost always I will get a nicely upgraded room even on the cheapest room rates (no suites though).
I stay almost exclusively at full-service Marriotts so my experience may be different than someone who stays at the some of the other Marriott brands. The few times I have stayed at Courtyard, Residence Inn, etc., I generally noticed nothing special in room assignments.

I have to agree with others, the 48 hour guarantee makes Plat worth it by itself.

I will echo the other posts. The 48-hour shoe-horn is a very good thing indeed.

The arrival gift is worth about $13 at a full service, and $2-$3 at any other MR property.

The real answer to your question requires an understanding of the opportunity cost. Since you are gold already, I assume this means diverting 25 convenient nights to MR instead of hilton, to get plat the subsequent year at 50 stays at MAR. If those are all full service, it is probably worth it.

If your MR stays are mainly courtyard or springhill, its worth less.

albatross

Add my vote here...It also helps if you earn Plat in a single hotel...They really do bend over backwardsf or you.

48 hour guarantee is great
Upgrades are nice
Bonus points
Arrival gift at full service marriotts is nice
Lounge access but you get that with gold

Really? Hilton Gold and above provides you free breakfast. Since I have a limited daily meal budget, the free breakfast is a great benefit to me (it means I can have a nicer lunch or dinner that day!). Marriott (or SPG for that matter) doesn't provide this benefit, even to Platinums! :(

Actually, Marriott does.

Elite Membership Benefits
Guaranteed Lounge Access/Free Continental Breakfast***

*** Available at participating Marriott Hotels & Resorts, JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Renaissance Hotels & Resorts and Marriott Conference Centers (except resort locations)

I just came back from a one night stay at the Portland Marriott and one night at the Eugene Hilton, both as Gold member. Neither places gave me breakfast coupons (which is expected at Marriott). At the Marriott, the lounge is very good in selection both in the evening and in the morning. Hilton's evening hors dourves and breakfast in the lounge were both pretty bad. The lounge also closes at 7:30 pm. This is the first Hilton that I didn't get a free breakfast. I will not stay there again.

in fact after reading the T&C I still don't quite understand how this works...at the hotels they almost never failed to ask me what Plat arrival gift I want, and I always asked for the 500 points...but roughly half of the times the 500 points don't get posted (while the base+30% bonus do), and I have to email the service center every time for this...am I qualified for the $100 each time ?? should I have asked for it ??

but in the T&C I think it says I have to ask when I was staying at the hotel, but the problem / hassle for me is actually after the stays when I have to check every time to make sure they post the 500 and then email them if not posted...I have talked to the hotel that I stayed most of the time numerous times but this problem still persists...quite a hassle seriously...

thanks.

marriott sucks
 

After being treated shabbily as a gold all I can say is that to spend another 25 nites for Plat you have to be a glutton for punishment. Hilton rocks

Thanks for your valuable insights. :rolleyes:

Could you give us some specifics as to why you feel this way? I'm not being sarcastic in any way; I genuinely would like to know.

Marriott Plat
 

It is very worth it. But not for any of the advertised reasons.

Someday, somewhere, somebody will screw up your reservation and/or bill. And you will say, "actually, I'm a platinum member." And then everything will somehow get fixed.

lol - is this experience speaking here?

Until this year, I've been Hilton gold or above since 1995. I will admit that it generally was not due to tremendous loyalty but instead due to promotions or inexplicable status upgrades. In any event, aside from the occasional (I'd say about 25%) upgrades to the "towers" level, I have never gotten breakfast coupons or any other recognition from Hilton, even when flashing my card and asking at the front desk.

Marriott ALWAYS gives either free access to the lounge (which obivously means a free breakfast) or a full free breakfast buffet in the restaurant. What do you mean by saying that Marriott does not provide this benefit to platinums?

Sounds like I was wrong - breakfast is a benefit Marriott provides Platinums. I stand corrected.
FYI, whenever the front desk agent doesn't provide me a breakfast voucher @ Hilton properties (happens more often than I care for), I politely ask for it, and get it right away. Yup, it shouldn't be that way, but they do respond right away (when prompted...)

I've always turned up at the hotel and asked for an upgrade a checkin, I don't have much success to be honest... does emailing the hotel in advance work well, when do you email (day before, same day?), do you email the hotel directly?

G

[QUOTE=bostonbali]Sounds like I was wrong - breakfast is a benefit Marriott provides Platinums. I stand corrected.
QUOTE]

Well, it is and it isn't. Full service properties with a C-lounge provide continental breakfast in the lounge. However, most full service properties do not open the lounge from Friday (after breakfast) to Monday afternoon (open for late afternoon snacks). Some properties that do not open the lounge on the weekend will provide platinums with breakfast coupons which can usually be used for breakfast at the property's restaurant. Some properties will not. Thus at certain full service properties, on the weekend, platinums do not and will not receive comped breakfast whether in the lounge or anywhere else. See, for example, all of the San Antonio properties, and the other properties mentioned in the sticky at the top of the Marriott board.

A few more notes: full service properties without a C-lounge, are supposed to provide continental breakfast in the restaurant during the week, but not necessarily the weekend. In actuality, most of these properties provide full breakfast all week, either with or without coupons. For example, the Renaissance Paris Vendome and the Renaissance Vinoy, both without lounges, provide full breakfast in their restaurant seven days. (At the Vendome, you just give the hostess your room number and the full breakfast buffet is gratis; at the Vinoy you receive breakfast coupons upon check-in, good for continental breakfast at any of the hotel's restaurants or good for $10 towards full breakfast at main restaurant.)

Marriott Suites and Renaissance Suites properties generally do not have C-lounges (with exceptions such as Renaissance Suites Charlotte), but will generally comp breakfast (like Marriott Suites Midtown Atlanta).

All of the above does not apply to locations designated as "resorts". Generally, no lounge and no comped breakfast whatsoever. Even here, however, there are exceptions, for example the Renaissance Vinoy.

Finally, in my experience the breakfast at the C-lounges widely varies in quality. Many are terrific (Baltimore Waterfront, JW Marriott Atlanta), and some are reminiscent of Fairfields.

Another Benefit
 

I have redeemed points in another persons name, IE Father-in-law, Son, etc.

This is one that requires a certificate. I usually have them mailed to me. A couple of times, I have had them overnight them for because time was short.

Because I was a Platinum member, there was no additional charge. Not much, but something for free.

Plat vs nothing or Plat vs Gold ?
 

:confused: :confused: :confused:
Back to the topic of the post. Everyone mention Platinum and lounge and breakfast... true, but now also as a simple Gold I have it !

I was comped to MR Platinum a few years ago so I know a bit what Platinum meant in the past and I was not too impressed.
30% bonus and not 25%, welcome gift (in my case a nice ice cream) perhaps a room with an additional chair and a few more sq meters (well, I do not sleep on the floor).

My point is that I do not see incredible improvements for me. Anyone is freely to disagree.

Sorry, do you really think "48-hour reservation guarantee " is useful ?
I had this option with a competitor of Marriott but when I tried to used I was quoted the rack rate. Something like 350% of my usual rate at that property. "No, thanks". Hilton Diamond guarantee for awards is something else in my opinion and I used it quite a while.

I agree 100%. ^

It's useful; but give me suite upgrade availability, guaranteed breakfast everywhere everyday, free hs internet, award room blackout waiver, or elite night credit for award stays. Any of those would be, to me, more useful.

MARRIOTT Plat vs Gold
 

Can someone answer the question, and compare being MARRIOTT Platinum versus Gold? Are there ANY upgrade and/or breakfast/lounge differences being Platinum versus Gold?

I received an offer whereby I can retain Platinum one additional year for 50,000 MR points. Since I have never been MR Gold--have no idea if I should go for one more year at the top? Have three seven day award reservations booked in Capri, Hing Kong and Ko Olina this year....

I have always been treated great as a Platinum. I would go for Platinum!

The answer to this question is that the program rules provide absolutely no difference. It appears that some properties use platinum versus gold, along with other factors such as length of stay and price paid for room, as a basis to break ties as to upgrades.

I have received fantastic service from Marriott for being Platinum. Most recent example:

I had a flight this week from AMS to DTW to MCO (ugh). Checked in at the Orlando World Center (my first time, and GOSH, the hotel was gigantic). I was only checked in for the night, I had a flight to ORD scheduled the next afternoon.

During check in the Front Office Supervisor came and introduced himself, gave me his business card, and told me that if I needed anything he would be there until midnight. He asked me how my day was going and I mentioned my flight from AMS.

He was very sympathetic, said I must have been exhausted, and offered a $100 credit toward the Spa as a check in gift. I booked a 50 minute Swedish massage that night and fell asleep about 30 minutes in.

Beyond that, and this may sound stupid, but since I became Platinum, room service seems to be much quicker. CSRs have been superb, etc. etc. I just wish I got this kind of service from NWA or UA.

Funny enough had a similar experience at that hotel...not the spa certificate though.

i completely forgot that Marriott utilizes a rolling calendar and when i looked at my account this morning, i was a PLATINUM...woo hoo...

i have a question though...do you always get a 500 point bonus for checking in or is that considered the 'gift'.

my account says i need another 25 nights to maintain my platinum status. i don't know if i will get those nights, but when does this status expire?

Good question...I assume that qualifying in late 2007 would yield Plat status good through early 2009. I'm in the same boat: made Plat with a rolling 75 nights, but might not hit 75 in calendar 2007.

The 500 points is one of the choices for the Plat gift. I've been taking a 1/2 bottle of merlot and mixed nuts instead...although I've only hit 2 different full-service properties since making Plat. Nothing unusual was offered.

how do you specify what gift you want? what are some of the other options?

when i hit my gold mark earlier this year, the card i got said february 2009. i thought it was a fluke. i hope i can keep the platinum thru feb 09 b/c i am going to Phuket and i heard that the breakfast at the Marriott is to die for and that you get it free for being a platinum (a $100 value for 2 people...)

What I've seen so far is that they hand me a card at check-in. I can mark points, or I can mark a beverage and food choice.

I don't recall all of the choices off the top of my head: 1/2 bottle of Chardonnay, 1/2 bottle of Merlot, beer, or soda. Food choices were nuts, cheese/fruit, and a couple of other things.

I do believe there was a discussion on this a while back and Marriott Concierge (Chris) chimed in. He stated that no matter when the rolling status kicks you up a level, you will have that level for the rest of the current year and all the following year.

If I remember correctly, I think there was some speculation about getting '74' nights on a rolling basis by Dec. 31st and then get the 75th night in early January. You would then get your elite upgrade and have it for more than 2 years.

The options on the card that Pinniped mentions for the most part seem to have similar options, but can be different. You will only receive the card at FS properties. At the lower end properties you will normally just have some water and maybe some cookies in your room when you check-in. No real options. (Though at some Courtyards, if I ask, I have been able to choose a cola and a snack from their mini-mart next to the check-in counter.)

thanks for the info...for the past 3 months i have been in a FS, but all of this is going to stop in a week or two...bleh...but i still get a vacation (or 2) out of this...woo hooo...

That about sums it up with the addition of a pint of ice cream. I suspect the offerings are all the same country wide since the blue card looked the same at the 20+ different FS/REN's I've been to as PLT in the last year.

Some properties seem to go all out in their presentation of the same offering while to others it just seems like a necessary bother. For example, the cheese, cutup fruit and crackers can be fresh, varied and arranged nicely -or- here's a small package of generic crackers, a commerically packaged & sealed chunk of cheese and an apple.