Take a look at Post #24 of this thread as ONE example:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marri...arriott-2.html

This complaining all seem rather hypothetical. Has anyone actually booked a concierge room and gotten to the hotel to find it's closed, or are you really just upset that you can't get free access on weekends? If someone actually booked a concierge room for a night when the lounge is closed, I imagine the hotel would then offer breakfast and/or allow the guest to downgrade to a standard room.

People have posted that yes, they've gotten to hotel and the lounge is closed and breakfast coupons are no longer offered. There have been multiple reports of real-life experiences with that. No reports of allowing guest to downgrade - in fact, in one case the person had booked a standard room, and virtual concierge emailed a 'buy-up' to exec level w/ lounge access. The person didn't click through so didn't realize the lounge was closed, and paid extra for basically nothing.

PS - I don't get your comment re: it's closed or just not free access. It's either open for those who have booked it or for those (ie, Gold & Plat) who are entitled to free access, or it's closed for both.

Cheers.

I just want what I pay for and NOT be deceived, is that to much to ask?

You imagine the hotel... Ya, and I imagine a company who truly values their guests would NOT deceive them.

The C floor no longer means much of anything. The rooms are usually the same as other floors and the amenities are little if any different from other rooms. There is certainly no reason I can see to pay extra for a C floor. Who is Marriott trying to sell these rooms to? The only reasonable selling point could be the CL access. However, now that the offerings in the lounges have deteriorated so much and are closed weekends and other unannounced times (around holidays sometimes, for example) there is no reason to pay to be on C floor. I think Marriott is going to come to regret their recent actions.

I had this same conversation twice yesterday in regards to the Salt Lake City Center Marriott and the Park City Marriott. I must admit that while I knew the answer before hand I just had to hear them say that for the more expensive room the only extra was security to access the floor. No breakfast coupons and certainly in the case of Park City any other rate offered beyond the Concierge rooms. It is so shortsighted given the current state of affairs. Where once a vacation for us was a regular March/Summer/Xmas and often long weekend event has become quite unusual. In today's economy little things mean so much more (I actually enjoy this evolution). But to come across such blatant abuse of the consumer gives a bad feeling for the chain and one imagines is seriously damaging the culture that they worked so hard to develop. It is interesting to think I used to highly regard Marriott and appreciated their service by sending many people their way.

I tend to agree that it is likely that a downgrade would be permitted. I am not certain about the free breakfast.

On balance, I think Marriott is pretty consciencious about full disclosure - e.g. disclosing when a hotel is undergoing construction. And as I indicated in my OP, this is really about disclosures, and I did not particularly intend to have it morph into a forum for complaining about declining CL benefits.

I'll give one example. I'm not irate or anything, but see how someone else could be.

Last weekend I booked a room for he Renaissance LAX (previously one of the best hotels in the entire system when it came to the quality of the lounge). I was generously upgraded to a mini-suite on the concierge level, which clearly stated in the "room details" section on the website that it included lounge access and that the lounge was open "Sun-Sun", implying 7 days a week like it used to be.

I checked in on Thursday and out on Sunday. Thursday night and Friday morning the lounge was open, albeit with very standard fare. Saturday morning I found the lounge closed, so I went to the restaurant to ask if breakfast was complimentary. I was told that the front desk should have given me coupons at check-in if my rate included breakfast, so I paid. I later checked at the front desk and they told me breakfast was not included on the weekend, but after a little typing (and perhaps seeing my PP status?) they agreed to waive the charge and gave me coupons for Sunday morning.

Again, all was handled well and according to the rules of the program they gave me more than they had to. But if I was not a savvy Marriott traveler who simply booked a concierge room, I would clearly have expected the lounge to be open all weekend and would have been upset to find that I was "lied to" in the information on the website.

Based on the boldfaced above I think that the property owed you those coupons. I may be in the minority but if they stated what you wrote, if you booked this after the closures on the weekend started.. then they more than owed you this or some sort of room rate reduction.

another problem I had with this was at this same property where I was this week; the property info folder in the room still states that the club lounge is open 7 days a week

if the property is going to make these closures they have an obligation to update everything that says its open 7 days a week; there is absolutely no excuse for this other than the property is intentionally misleading its customers in the hopes of making a few more bucks

Actually, I got burned by this when I was a traveling newbie circa 1996 at the Marriott Slough in the UK. I was unfamiliar with the CL concept at that time.

My travel agent booked me a room there for a week long stay, told me the rate was outrageous but at least breakfast was included. So check in Friday and get a usual room on the top floor no different from any other Marriott I've been in. The only breakfast I could find Saturday and Sunday was in the restaurant and I probably signed for some outrageous buffet amount for two thinking it was included. Only Monday morning did a door mysterious open near the elevator with a limited breakfast (the CL). And of course I was charged for the weekend food. And there were other nickle and dime charges for other "free" stuff I can't recall.

This started a running gag between my traveling buddy and me as the word "complementary" had an entirely different meaning at Marriott - as not meaning "free" but "we complement you on your choice of newspaper - that will be 2 pounds please". We still joke about this to this day when we try and kiddingly try to rip each other off.

Got to give them credit as a very proper English GM responded to my complaint letter a few weeks later with 2 voice mails once Stateside and a refund check a few days later...

+1....total agreement!

These days my travel is 85% pleasure...ON WEEKENDS and 15% business....THUS.....at 95% of FS properties in which I stay on weekends, I am basically just any other paying guest...nothing special to differentiate my PP status (or Plat or Gold....we've earned our "perks")....it is discriminatory....and just plain rotten!:mad:

[QUOTE=jfhscott;11328975]I tend to agree that it is likely that a downgrade would be permitted. I am not certain about the free breakfast.

On balance, I think Marriott is pretty consciencious about full disclosure - e.g. disclosing when a hotel is undergoing construction. QUOTE]

NOT TRUE! I can site a few examples of where there IS construction that is NOT disclosed...some current, some past.

1) in 2007 the NOLa Marriott on Canal had the entire lobby torn apart, and NOTHING was said! (i am not disputing the need for a redo, they did not mention it at all! I moved to the JW 2 days early!!!)

2) Courtyard EWR/Elizabeth...currently torn apart and more than 50% of the parking lot is unusable due to contractors crap all over....the ONLY way to find this out is to CALL and the phone agent has to hunt. I discussed with the GM, Customer Care and IT! It has been this way for over a month...it is NOT on the room selection screen nor the hotel homepage. (in the hotels defense, the GM made my lousy stay right but they still did not address the fact that they do not tell guests...incidentally, the RI across the parking lot is also under a redo, and this is plainly indicated.

3) FS is torn up for renovation...part of the lobby area near the restaurant, the public phone area and part of the 3rd floor meeting room space....and one access to the pool/health club is closed....not mentioned on marriott.com

there have been others....

NOT TRUE!

When The Montreal Marriott Chateau Champlain was on strike and there was no daily housekeeping service, lounge closed, no room service, restaurant closed, pool and fitness centre closed. NO ADVANCE WARNING WHEN I ARRIVED.. YET THEY WERE ON DAY 12 OF THE STRIKE!! :mad:

I have to believe that positions like this really exist at Marriott and other travel related companies:

http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2009-02-28/

I was there too...I went past the hotel...we used to stay there til we found the SHS in Old Montreal..

what is worse though, was that IIRC it was the hotel's ownership/management that locked out the associates...SO...I don't recall all the details, but I guess the owners didn't want to get any additional egg on their faces...and that labor action lasted for a very long time....at least that's what one of my favorite bellman told me!

the place was a ghost town....i was going to walk through and they weren't happy about it...i think they even had the restrooms closed...but they were acting as if nothing was happening...:rolleyes:

needless to say, i will stick with my happy little SHS......