Of course I’m not in any way surprised by this experience. Instead, I think it so perfectly sums up the typical Marriott elite experience within the United States, in a nutshell.

Predictable, frustrating Marriott check-in experience

Let me start by saying that I don’t actually stay at hotels within the United States very often. While I frequently travel internationally with the desire to stay at certain hotels, I just find hospitality in the United States to be non-existent with so many brands, and I don’t enjoy overpaying, getting nickel-and-dimed, and honestly, just being frustrated by the lack of customer service.

But sometimes I actually have to stay somewhere, which brings me to a stay I had at a Marriott recently (the exact hotel doesn’t even matter, because this is just sort of what I’ve come to expect).

I have Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador status, which is rather hard to earn. Prior to check-in at this Marriott, I saw that I was pre-upgraded to a room with a view, which retails for $9 per night more than the room I booked. This is a hotel with a bunch of room categories, and there were over a dozen higher room categories available and still for sale. The hotel was also nowhere close to full, best I could tell.

Admittedly I don’t necessarily expect very much from Marriott’s upgrade policy, and also realize there are lots of elite members. So I don’t even usually bother asking about upgrades at check-in, especially when I’m staying alone, and don’t really care much about the room.

However, as I arrived at check-in, I saw that the front desk agent was actually training someone else (who was standing behind him), and was explaining all the processes to him. So I figured in the name of giving him a good training opportunity, I’d ask about an upgrade. Let me say upfront that I wasn’t a fan of the guy’s attitude, and he came across as sort of casual and dismissive, in an obnoxious way (maybe that’s just my perception, though). Here’s how the brief conversation went:

Him: “Thanks for being an Ambassador member, we’ve upgraded you to a partial view room.”
Me: “Thank you! Do you by any chance have any suites or better rooms available for an upgrade?”
Him: “Let me see what I can do…” *literally two seconds later, so obviously didn’t actually look* “we’re looking a little tight on suites, here’s a thank you for your loyalty.”

He handed me a bag of honey roasted peanuts with a Marriott Bonvoy sticker on them. Bonvoy!

I also couldn’t help but chuckle about how he explained the daily destination fee. “So you’re gonna pay $35 per day, and you’re going to get $18 in credits to use in the restaurant for that.” What a deal!

Many Marriotts don’t even pretend to try with upgrades

The above was my first time in a long time actually asking about upgrades at a Marriott property in the United States. That’s because:

• I’m not looking to get into some argument that involves the front office manager, etc.
• Unless you’re willing to argue (which I’m not), just casually inquiring about upgrades is unlikely to get you anywhere
• I also recognize how many elite members there are, and that it’s hard for hotels to manage expectations

So a couple of things stand out about this experience. First of all, I know Marriott recently rolled out a new front desk AI tool that’s supposed to assign elite upgrades. While I didn’t think it would be the case, I quietly hoped that maybe automating this process would actually lead to improvements. But nope, I’m not actually finding that’s the case, and that clearly shows that the system isn’t being programmed to deliver on providing the best possible upgrades.

Second of all, as much as I wish it were otherwise, I’ve gotta say, I’ve found very little difference in terms of upgrades for being an Ambassador member vs. being a Platinum or Titanium member. Most of my good upgrades have been at properties where I used a Nightly Upgrade Award (NUA), and those are tied to Choice Benefits, and not status. But for most of my stays, I’ve found upgrades to be really marginal. My Ambassador is absolutely awesome, but it’s not like he’s on-property with me, so…

I’m not actually surprised any of this is the case, though it’s disappointing how little Marriott tries to do to differentiate Ambassador status, despite the much higher qualification requirements. But really I’m just the moron for earning the status, and staying on the hamster wheel…

Bottom line

In an experience that should surprise no one, Marriott properties (particularly in the United States) are pretty lousy about trying to upgrade elite members. I rarely stay at Marriotts in the United States, and my recent stay reminded me of why.

As an Ambassador member, I was upgraded to a room with a partial view, which retails for $9 more than the room I booked. When I asked about a further upgrade, I was told they’re “looking a little tight on suites,” and was instead given a bag of nuts. The joys of Bonvoy!