Cancelled reservation and already have the useless NUA back in account. Relying on NUA a stupid move folks.

Marriott has incensed a long time customer.,

hahahaha. You clearly don�t get it. Read what I�ve been writing. Relying on NUA is a path to fail.

I lived in Asia long time and upgrades used to be reliable except for key holiday periods. I know many of the properties, not my first rodeo.

The system changed. So now I�ll make my own changes accordingly.

I just booked to Hilton. With the room type I originally wanted but foolishly relied on NUA to get at Marriott.

Marriott not getting one dime from me on this trip. They can stick it.

Im not sure Marriott has the analytics to assess this. It�s essentially game theory to assess what options consumers will choose. Hotels just look at occupancy which for certain hotels may be all that matters. For other hotels this process is leading to people checking out other options. Hotels probably don�t realize the money they leave on the table.

I�m a fool for having given Marriott my 100% loyalty during the heavy travel years should have gotten lifetime at Hilton as well.

The NUA process is a complete failure. Fire whomever came up with it. Completely unreliable last minute process. Insanity.

I emailed property to ask why my NUA did not clear despite being able to book on website and they replied usually they only clear day or two out. That is a horrible deal as it�s inside the cancellation window.

So clearly hotels gaming the system. Who knows if would have cleared but can�t wait last minute to guess what room I�ll get after traveling from US East Coast.

Yes, I must not have been clear. If you need a suite, you should book it rather than relying on the NUA.

[QUOTE=Lifetimenotelite;37240075

Hotels probably don�t realize the money they leave on the table.

[/QUOTE]

If their occupancy is consistently at or close to 100% then they are leaving nothing on the table as there is someone right behind you willing to fork over their $$.

I believe this is very much tied to occupancy rates and properties believing they are able to monetize those rooms/suites...can you blame them for that? That said, when travel slows down (and it will) they will be back courting us frequent travelers again, until then do they really feel like they need to do that?

I could go in right now and book the room type I had applied the NUA for�.. I was also not on points but a revenue stay. Now they get zero and lose out on spa and F&B spend plus paying for hotel transfer.

Made it clear to the GM who just emailed me that the NUA last minute process essentially forced me to book elsewhere.

If an NUA does not have advance lock it it�s useless to me. Making me wait until last minute removes ability to ensure I get room type I want So for me the annual choice award becomes totally useless as I don�t need elite nights and NUA not worth the electrons they are printed with.

You are right, if economy tanks they�ll beg us to come stay.

So you have options then. You can choose to book (and pay for) the room type you really want or you can roll the dice and see if you get UG'd for free at the last minute, that's the way the system works.

It's no different than trying to use my eUP credits on Air Canada. As a SE/MM usually traveling on high fares, I often get my UG confirmed in advance, but more often these days it goes to the gate and sometimes I get it and sometimes I don't; it's the way the system works so I can accept that or pay for J if I want to be sure I'm flying J.

I don't see any point at yelling at the clouds because I wish the system worked differently that it does.

I played their game. I applied the NUA and it didn�t clear at the 5 day window despite the room being available. Why have the process? I�ll never let Marriott dupe me again. Ever.

Don�t want to get into the airline analogy as not directly the same. I don�t play upgrade roulette anymore as well. If I want PE or BIZ I just book it. It also frees me from being loyal.

my goal to post here is to bring awareness to others about a poor NUA process and encourage people to not let them sway business chasing false hope. NUA are basically a scam now. Hotels don�t even need to honor them..

it is interesting to read this thread because, as all of you know:

"I earned <INSERT APPROPRAITE PRECIOUS METAL/ROCK> Status on <INTEREST TRAVEL RELATED COMPANY (i.e. hotel, airline, rental car) and I got rewards with the promise of upgrades, but I can never use them because too many elites chasing too little inventory, a dysfunctional process, and advanced revenue management"


I applied some NUC last year to a stay in Disney last year - I got a room upgrade (beautiful view of the Anaheim highway) and then about 2 weeks before new years, I got an email about "we are sorry we could not honor your request, so we are returning your NUC"....which was odd....and now, what was I supposed to do with 4-5 certificates right before the end of the year......

I am still pretty new to Marriott - moved over after hitting LTD on Hilton, and qualified for Ambassador on my first full year (2024, will do so again this year based upon current travel plans).

My strategy

• For vacations Book the base cash / point rate at the property I want.
• Request only the NUA options that will get me what I want.
• Have a backup (Hilton mostly) property.
  • It makes me feel better (more spiteful?) to move my business and spend for that stay
• Cancel the moment i get a reject at the 5 day window. Move my business (for that trip) to Hilton.

I do suspect the more seasoned elites (Flyertalkers specifically) are going to do much like what I am doing.

Edited to add: I don't blame them for trying to monetize every room they have, and I also understand the business behind breakage for them is part of the strategy. I likewise understand I am sure they don't care if I move a stay or 3 through the year. I also don't get overly worked up about it.

This is exactly what I just did. Literally.

The danger is the rates can get really high close in. I�m heading to Asia next week for vacation and luckily found good selection/price at Hilton.

If you absolutely want a certain room type at a specific property just avoid NUA and book it.

Be glad they have ambassador with more defined benefits. The old �platinum premier� was a joke.

Im LTT so never need worry about qualification so makes it easy for my to kayak. Smart move to get dual lifetime. Wish I had LT in both programs.

Don�t let the badges fool you. I was a lurker on FT for ages��.

If you stay at one property a lot they should hook you up. MR in general is pretty weak program and it�s hammering miles to a CC where you book award stays is the perk for me.

I think they should just scrap the entire NUA charade. I

I have found with Marriott so far, that my normal haunts are treating me exceptionally well, shockingly so even, and It has made me very much appreciate them over most of the Hilton branded properties I used to stay at in these same locations.

What scares me so far WRT NUA's - is the far flung trips - I am going to Paris in January for vacation with my spouse and a friend of ours, and that's where I currently have a room booked with Marriott on Points, and NUA applied, but also have a Hilton property booked for the same dates, about 400 meters away. If the NUA clears - great i cancel my Hilton booking and go on about my business. If the NUA doesn't clear, I cancel my Marriott booking and enjoy the SLH property that I am looking forward to trying.

I used to live in a Marriott hotel in China and even now I�m still in top 5 guest. If you have one or two higher end properties you stay at a lot you�ll get great perks. Unfortunately the manager I�m friends with to this day left Marriott so lost the back door nudges.

If you don�t already have it get the Marriott AMEX and I hope you�re able to invoice all your travel to your personal card to maximize your points.

Just realize waiting last minute you can get torched if rates shoot up. Chasing that little NUA of hope can cost you money when it fails and you want something better. Definitely an unreliable process but maybe with Ambassador you get more success.