trekkie

there is a way for william or others at spg to check if standard suites were available for platinum upgrades on the night you are in. William has done that before. and sometimes it results in the hotel being fined and "disciplined".

i have however noticed that between me and my friends, we have had to push for upgrades for vene room upgrades, not suites lately at busy hotels. The four points by darling harbour in sydney being one of them.

christianj

After contacting Customer Service I received the following from the Sheraton FRA:

Dear Mr. christianj,

I would like to refer to your comments, which we received via our Central Corporate service regarding to your recent stay on September 05, 2006 at our premises.

Indeed, we are encountering some relevant problems in the issue of upgrading our valuable Platinum guests. As directed by our headquarters in Brussels, the Platinum Upgrade policy itself allows us with only a one-category higher upgrade implication. We have noticed the impact of this issue on our valuable Platinum guests, which we accordingly forwarded this matter to our headquarters. I assure you that we are dealing with it internally in the hope of a positive resolution for our dear Platinum guests.

For this time, I kindly reassure you that we will definitely accommodate you with a free upgrade to our suites on your future stay at our premises. I have noted down this matter in your existing profile for all associates in the Reception to read upon your arrivals. In this way, I trust to reach to your expectations of us and fade away this negative experience. Please accept my deepest apologies for the inconvenience you had to encounter on this stay. Unfortunately, we cannot bring back time and revise the situation but at least, we will certainly apply our very best to gain your faith and trust back to our property on your future stays by displaying our professional service for you.

I hope to have assisted you to my very best means. I thank you in advance for your reconsideration and certainly look forward to welcome you back at the Sheraton Frankfurt Hotel & Towers.

With Kind Regards,

XXXXXXX

Evidently Brussels is still not resolving or actually still creating this "one-category" problem. I was under the impression that something had been done about this from *W Corporate after Lurker got involved in this. I thought maybe the hotel was still not getting the T&C of the SPG program but it clearly is Brussels or the Sheraton FRA is passing the buck here.

Kagehitokiri

disturbing... arbitrary reduction of benefits and not only is there no action from Corporate, but "Brussels HQ" is allegedly the one behind it....

have Plats tried taking in printouts of the T&C?

Northbrook60065

I absolutely agree with you Christianj!!! When I'm working with my own clients and associates I'm always careful to make certain that I'm giving them my best service, advice and answers to their questions. And I'm always cognizant of providing a smile so that they know I appreciate and enjoy doing business with them. And I'm not even in the hospitality industry.

I've also always figured that it's not merely enough to be fair and honest with the people with whom you do business: you have to be perceived by them as being fair and honest. Inasmuch as I bust a gut to give everyone what they can reasonably expect and deserve of me, I have no problem insisting on being offered what I've been promised. Maybe it's just the way I'm wired, but it's easier for me to stand at the Front Desk and politely, yet firmly, explain to a clerk why I'm entitled to a suite upgrade (even when I don't need or especially want one) than to beat myself up for the rest of the day knowing that I've allowed myself to be wrongly denied something to which I'm entitled.

Northbrook60065

Sorry...I replied to your earlier post before seeing the above: since when does any licensor of a trademark allow its licensees to play a bait and switch with T&C?

McDonald's, for example, would NEVER allow any of its licensees to change the recipe or presentation of a BigMac or Quarter Pounder. Nor would Radio Shack allow one of its licensees to horse around with warranties and return policies. The broadcast networks (in the USA) insist that their affiliates run programming and commercials at the precise times promised to their advertisers. These promises are always rigidly enforced so that customers, clients and everyone else knows exactly what they can expect: no surprises!

The very integrity of SPG is based on THEM (not us!) enforcing their own rules. For me to now hear that Brussels has unilaterally altered it's own version of SPG Platinum benefits, and that Starwood has countenanced this conduct, tells me that I have no quarrel with Front Desk clerks. I now have a problem with SPG!

Starwood Lurker

While this was a nice letter, I think the hotel has missed the mark and misunderstands the directive from Brussels. Brussels contacted SPG in regard to Towers-related benefits (including upgrades thereto) and receive our approval for this project because SPG does not promise upgrades to Towers unless you book Towers accommodations originally. As the OP, you stated that you weren't looking for a Towers level upgrade, just an upgrade to a suite off-Towers. Were any of these suites available? Were they indeed standard suites? If not, then club level would have been the best room available.

There are lots of questions that still need to be answered here, but now that you have made an attempt to get it straightened out through Corporate Customer Service, I can now set about clarifying a few things on my end. However, I need you to send me the file number you were given from CCS.

Not to say that this will resolve your original complaint, but it will help us to define to Brussels and the hotels involved in this project just exactly what they were given permission to do. That, along with a little better message delivery at the front desk, might help to alleviate these problems going forward.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

[email protected]

bseller

Sorry, not correct. In fact there are several situations in which McD's does PRECISELY this. (India comes to mind)

I am in agreement that SPG should be diligent in enforcing the rules across their chain, but an assumption that differing regions don't or 'can't' have differing rules is a bit naieve, IMO.

Best, Dave

Kagehitokiri

http://flyertalk.com/forum/showpost....05&postcount=6

So FRA should be upgrading people from hotel room to hotel suite and tower room to tower suite.

A one-category upgrade is far from room > suite. And I'll bet that they will not allow you to do a one-category upgrade from whatever is below the Presidential Suite to the Presidential Suite, so they're not even fully offering that.

Starwood Lurker

Maybe, maybe not. It all depends upon what kind of rooms are available at check-in and not every hotel has the same room-type configuration as another.

What AJ posted in that thread concerns the Sheraton Hong Kong specifically. It does not apply to even every Sheraton hotel, much less every Starwood property.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

[email protected]

emuyshondt

William:

Just FYI, in case you haven't been to this property. This hotel has two separate areas. One is the SPG tower and the other the "normal" rooms. These are indeed separate towers. You walk in different directions to get to either one and they have their separate elevators.

All rooms look pretty much the same. Even the Towers room are the same configuration but perhaps offer different sheets on the beds. The desk, TV, decor, etc. are the same as the other rooms. SPG membership gets you into the SPG tower. They call them club rooms. They consider this a one category upgrade and from what I can tell it doesn't matter whether you are Platinum or not. SPG membership gets you one of the rooms in the lower floors and there is nothing special for Platinums. The higher floors are called Premium rooms with the Towers rooms on the top (9th) floor.

If you don't get lounge access or free internet, there's really not much benefit to the so-called upgrades to club level.

Henry

Starwood Lurker

No, I haven't had the pleasure. But, this would fit what I've heard and what I am able to see in the system.

If a Platinum member books a classic room, then I would expect them to get a standard suite (provided there are any) off the Towers section, provided one is available at check-in. I would not expect this member to be upgraded to a Towers room or suite, however.

From what I can tell, club level rooms get free breakfast and free lounge access, although this is probably for the club level lounge rather than the Towers lounge. Are there two lounges - one club level and one towers?

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

[email protected]

emuyshondt

I only know of one lounge and it is in the SPG Tower. The lounge is very nice. Not all rooms get lounge access. I think you have to be in floors 7 or above. You get free internet access in the suites and in the Towers rooms (which are really the rooms on the 9th floor, not in a different Towers part of the building).

What I have been told by management in Frnakfurt is that you get a one category room upgrade, period. No upgrade to suites, even in the standard section. I have also been told like the other poster here that my folio has been noted and that they will honor a suite upgrade (if available), but this is on a case by case basis.

Starwood Lurker

Well, they don't have to grant access to the Towers lounge if you don't book the Towers; however, if there are club level rooms off the Towers, then there must be some accommodation for breakfast and lounge access somewhere. If anyone knows where that might be, it would help.

As for the second statement, that does not entirely match what we agreed to. I have no idea at this point who is confused about what that was - this hotel or Brussels - but I hope to find out soon. They should not be doing this as a one-off situation. Otherwise, it could get very expensive for them.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

[email protected]

emuyshondt

All SPG rooms are in the same building with the Towers lounge and the one floor of Towers rooms. You could have breakfast in the normal restaurant downstairs and some rates do include breakfast there. I believe (but I'm not 100% sure) that whether you get it for free or not depnds on what rate you booked. They also serve breakfast in the Towers Lounge. There is no other lounge in this hotel.

Before this whole thread started I was usually upgraded into one of the SPG rooms in the lower floors of the SPG Tower. Those did not include lounge access or breakfast. Lately I've gotten better upgrades that do include lounge access. It seems the hotel is trying to do the best it can whithin the rules set by Starwood Europe. As I mentioned in a previous post, even the GM has called me upon arrival to talk about the situation. I am very happy with the hotel right now. Hopefully the overall istuation will be cleared up soon.

stimpy

There is one Club and every Platinum guest has access to it no matter what room they are in.