I'm a new Gold member. I just checked into a Marriott here in Canada. I had a King room reserved and guaranteed, as listed on the reservation. I was given a two queen room on the concierge level. I asked about a King, and the lady at the front desk mumbled "well, you are staying here only one night." She ended up, in what came over to me as a begrudgingly fashion, giving me an executive king room (not on concierge level). And I checked in at 4:30pm...not early.

Is this the norm? I cracked the whip at the front desk at YYZ once last year when I was Silver and had a guaranteed king bed supposedly. I'm a little bothered that the guarantee seemingly was met today based on status and having to request it.

Is this the norm, or is Gold just as worthless as Silver?

Your experience isn't the norm. I have been staying at Marriott's since the early '90s and can probably count on one hand the times I've had trouble getting the room/bedtype that I reserved.

What probably happened was that someone at the hotel tried to "upgrade" you to a Concierge Level room. There were probably no King rooms available, so they gave you a two Queen room instead. That is probably why you were moved off the Concierge Level to get your King room.

No protocol needed. You received an upgrade to the CL level so all bets are off. #6 under Elite Benefits Guarantee in Marriott Rewards Terms and conditions <-- follow the link to learn more about T&C.

6. The Room Type Guarantee does not cover room upgrades.

But in that case I would assume that if he guest preffered a King-beedded room on a "regular" floor rather than that upgrade, as a practical matter he was entitled to it under the Room Guarantee rule.

I know Plats have the Room Guarantee , but the OP said they are Gold, do Golds or Silvers have it also?

Just checked my copy of the Elite Members Guide.

Mine happens to labeled "Platinum" but the "Benefits At a Glance" table printed on the inner cover notes that Golds as well as Plats are entitled to the "Guaranteed Room Type" (There is an annotation that "Benefit varies by partcipating brand - Log on to Marriott Rewards.com for a complete list of Terms and Conditions"

Here's how it's addressed in the Terms and Conditions (note that Golds do have restrictions.:

5. The Room Type Guarantee covers bed type preferences at Marriott Hotels, Resorts & Suites and Renaissance Hotels, Resorts & Suites and smoking/non-smoking preferences at Marriott Hotels, Resorts & Suites, Renaissance Hotels, Resorts & Suites, Courtyard, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Residence Inn, SpringHill Suites and TownePlace Suites properties (pillow, room location, extra bed, crib requests, etc. are not included in the Guarantee). Exact bed sizes may vary at International hotels.


6. The Room Type Guarantee does not cover room upgrades.


7. A member who makes a reservation on the same day he/she plans to arrive at the hotel, or a member who walks in to a hotel without a reservation is not eligible to receive the Room Type Guarantee.


8. Platinum members are eligible to receive the Room Type Guarantee at any Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Renaissance Hotels & Resorts, Courtyard, Residence Inn, Fairfield Inn & Suite, SpringHill Suites or TownePlace Suites property worldwide. Gold members are eligible to receive the Room Type Guarantee at any Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Renaissance Hotels & Resorts, Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn, Fairfield Inn or Suite, SpringHill Suite or TownePlace Suite property located in North America.

Click on http://www.marriott.com/rewards/term...eliteguarantee for the (MR) screen upon which the above appears:

Golds do as noted at the link I provided in my previous post.

Yes, and that is exactly what the hotel did for the OP.

I wish someone else would have thought of providing that link...

Begrudgingly.

so I guess if Bed type is more important than an Upgrade, a person should put into the comments field ' Please do not Upgrade unless my bed perference is available in the Upgraded room type'.

Good idea, but I don't think that would fit in the 45-character allotment.

And thanks to everyone for their insights here.

Please indulge this gold newbie again. Besides the Concierge Lounge, am I missing anything from a room on the concierge level? I was at an Austin Marriott a couple of weeks ago, and they said there was nothing different between the rooms.

MR Gold Upgrade if King Bed available.

Well that is technically correct in the case of most Marirotts. There is nothing different between the rooms but the amenities in the room are a bit different. CL rooms usually have mouthwash, robe, small rug in bathroom, complimentary water, and cotton swabs/balls. You will still have Concierge Lounge access so you can pick up bottles of water in the lounge and take them back to your room. The only thing nice about a CL room is in some cases you can just walk down to the Concierge Lounge; however in some hotels there are multiple CL floors so that is not even guaranteed. Not getting a room on the CL happens quite often and isn't a big deal for me. The main benefit is the lounge access and you get that no matter what type of room you have.

I've never been upgraded to a room with a different bed type.

I don't remember being upgraded to a different bed either, but I do seem to remember a few times where I was asked if I wanted on the Concierge Level even though they couldn't get me the bed-type I had reserved.