Hello all,

I am a Hilton Diamond who is quickly becoming disgruntled. I stay roughly 140 nights per year and have done so for the last 4-5 years. This past year there has been a noticeable decline in the benefits that I am getting, not one "bonus" point deal, and worse yet, a real tangible change (for the worse)in attitude from hotel staff towards Diamond members like myself. I have been a Hilton evangelist for a long time and I am wondering if I am missing the boat at this point.

Are there any prior Hilton Diamonds who have moved to Marriot that could give me some guidance here? Does Marriot offer guys like me a status based on stays with Hilton over the last 4 years if I agree to book my next X months travel w/ Marriot? I never thought I would be saying this but I need to find a new program and need some help.

Any Help would be very much appreciated.

AvidFlyer

Done a search?

Yes but I am looking for real life experience HH vs MR relative to Diamond expectations. The "comp" is kinda a given.

Wow, pretty compelling lack of response. Maybe I will try Starwood or stay where I am...

Thanks.

Avid,

I can't answer you specifically on what you need as I'm not such a high level hotel elite. I am however enrolled in the HH club as a non elite and the MR club as a Silver very close to Gold right now. It wouldn't take much after that for me to reach Plat.

I just spent a great deal of time reading a thread in Milesbuzz about which program is the best. It would seem that the SPG program is the best for upgrading a room. Marriott is best for service. I have a HH account mainly because I had to stay there for business and I wanted the points and use it as a back up.

I'll tell you why I use MR. First I am a suite junky so I may look at joining the SPG program for just that reason. However I do a lot of traveling to Russia and prefer to stay at the Marriotts there especially the Ren. in St. Petersburg which just opened 2 years ago. Also I am hooked on renting those damn villas on a nightly basis when I can afford it. They are so comfortable and I am able to bring the family along on business and not feel guilty when I have to work and they are 'stuck at the hotel'. While I feel timeshares are too expensive I can sometimes get great deals at the villas. Finally the Residence Inns are also nice and I love the newer ones with the 2 bedrooms that act like a mini villa for the same reasons above.

Couple together my leisure patterns and I guess I need Marriott as I like their product lineup (others gasping for sure).

I'll be happy to help tell you anything you want about Marriotts as I have stayed at the villas, RI's, Ren, JW and full Marriotts as well as CY. The current 7 page thread on pet peeves will be interesting reading as well.

Best of luck in choosing!

Late last year, I was feeling exactly the same as the OP, so I decided to give Marriott a try. I must say that I have been very impressed. They upgraded my status to both Gold and Plat early without having to ask� Although I have been staying at some high $$ hotels. Marriott has given me more upgrade in the three months that I�ve been a Plat then in six years (over 1000 nights with HH) with Hilton. Had the Presidential Suite last week � something that has NEVER happened with HH.

Hope this helps...

Avid - first of all, sorry for the lack of immediate response...i try to hit FT once a day in the evening.

I have been with MR about 10 years so i can't help you in discussing a change...but i can tell you that I get treated exceptionally well - with the exception of properties like the Marriot Marquis in NYC...which I have chalked up to the fact that they are just soooo busy...

Otherwise, i get upgraded rooms, personal service...the only times i don't stay at a Marriott property is when there isn't one around, like in Brattleboro, VT; Portales, NM or other high business traffic places like that.

If you're staying 100 nights, the individual properties will do what they can to "take care of you..."

Now, i realize that this post is right next to the one complaining about Marriott pet peeves...but they do a pretty good job overall.

I hope this helps...and welcome....

If you contact Marriott Rewards and fax them your prior stays with Hilton, they should comp you to gold and give you a fast track to get platinum. This is usually accomplished if you stay 18 nights in 3 months.

I have not had much experience with Hilton, but I can vouch for Marriott's service being consistent on a high level. The biggest differences between gold and platinum is the platinum welcome gift and the platinum guarantee to book a room with 48 hours notice (with rare exceptions). Marriott backs their guarantee of room type, concierge lounge access/free continental breakfast on weekdays at FS properties (excluding resorts), and the platinum welcome gift with a promise to pay cash if not met. I have received $250 this year for not getting my platinum welcome gift.

If you maintain your prior stay history at Marriott, you will probably qualify for Platinum Premier, an unpublished level. The qualifying levels are not exactly clear, but most people who have this level have stayed at a Marriott property for 125 paid nights/year for at least 3 years in a row.

Marriott also calculates elite status with an rolling calendar year. Unlike Hilton, this is not a written rule. In addition, Marriott also has lifetime elite status. You can qualify for this if you have been a Marriott Rewards member for at least 12 years. A search will provide full details, but the basic requirements are:

lifetime silver (1.5 million points earned with 600 paid nights) This is not that valuable since holding a Marriott Visa card will give you the same benefit.
lifetime gold (2 million points earned with 800 paid nights)
lifetime platinum (3 million points earned with 1000 paid nights)

Although you are suppose to requalify each year to maintain elite status, there have been cases where people have gotten comped to an extra year of gold or platinum. I met one guy in a concierge lounge last week who got an extra year of platinum during a slow year of travel.

My experience at the NYC Marriott Marquis was the opposite of DADISGARYK. I found the service to be excellent, and I got a complimentary upgrade to a city view room. They have one of the finest domestic concierge lounges in terms of food served and the general amenities.

Wow, all excellent responses, THANK YOU!

I am seeing a steady decline in the service level at HH. I too have stayed at Hilton properties at a ridiculous clip over the last 6 years and I rarely get an upgrade, in-fact, when I check in on line I am NEVER even offered a room on the Exec floors. I always have to ask at check-in. Just a few months ago I would get a "welcome back Mr. AvidFlyer, we have you on the top floor". Lately I feel like I am putting them out to even ask if there are rooms on the exec floors at the property I stay at most (ES at SFO). I thought it might just be that property but I have been all over the US this year and it seems to be system wide. I will say that in Asia I am treated like a king, but I believe that is probably the same at the top tier of any program in Asia as they are just more customer service focused.

I am going to experiment a little over the next few months and try Marriot and SPG. I will write them each a note and include my stay history and see if they will give me a very limited status (maybe one or two bookings) just to see what is out there. I have been with Hilton so long that I think I may be nmissing the boat. When you spend $20-25K per year (avg stay = $135) it stings when you feel like you are not appreciated.

Thanks for all of the help and I will report back with findings..

At 140 nights a year or more, you can have your cake and eat it too, Do either 28 HH stays/60 nights for diamond and the balance at MR and you will have top tier at both

ok, the next time i stay there - in November - I will mention your name and ask for the upgrade

IMHO the OP would do the best by working with various programs based what promotions they are offering at various times. I have the top tier status with Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, and InterContinental and have found out that each of the program has its strengths and weaknesses and they are pretty equal at the end.

When I made the reservation, I wrote in the comment section a request for an upgrade to a city view room. Since I wanted the upgrade pretty bad, I also called Marriott's reservation line to have a representative add another note requsting the upgrade.

no difference either you wrote or the agent wrote to asking for the upgrade, they are the same