Club Marriott

[NZflygirl]

https://myclubmarriott.com/sites/de...ott_pacific_benefits_listing_pdf-032018_1.pdf

Just wondering if anyone has used this?

Most interested in the upgrade certificates clearing. I was thinking you'd have to use it on a room type say just one below a suite or similar to get great value. I don't think receiving a higher floor or a river instead of city view is worth much as an upgrade.

I'm guessing it's 'subject to availability' on arrival and not confirmed in advance?

Also thinking the longer the stay the less likely to obtain clearance. I figure one night they can upgrade you but if staying a week then it's more likely someone else will have paid cash for a suite on at least one night or someone with higher status will receive an upgrade so it would reduce the chances of an upgrade certificate clearing for longer stays?

Toying with the idea of trying it out for a year.

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Hi NZFlyGirl ..this program is a mixed bag as you can imagine. I have always been Platinum (SPG and Marriott) so never had to use the vouchers myself but earlier on I gave some away to a couple of people. 1 was a complete fail ..the other was a minor success (not upgraded to a suite but definitely to a better room). My recommendation - and I know it is an extra step - is to contact the property in advance telling them you would like to use the certificate. The fact is if you rock up to the hotel the day of 1 in 2 chance is you will get someone junior at the checkin that does not know about the program and by then to be honest the upgrades are likely all pre-processed so definitely a few days before reach out to the property. I am having trouble justifying enrollment in the program now (I am actually an additional card holder) ..primarily because a) the 50% dining benefit is gone and b) the 10% discount for rooms is now off the best flexible rate often making an entry level room 20-50$ more expensive than a prepaid non-refundable.. Great if you book flexible rates but I only do this once or twice a year.

 

[Daver6]

I purchased it purely for a holiday at Le Meridian Ile des Pins. The meal discount saved me a heap as well as some of the other meal vouchers.

The room upgrades are valid for either four or five nights. It worked for us and got us upgraded to a bungalow. Was also SPG gold via Amex charge card at the time. You're right though, it is subject to availability.

Keep in mind that membership includes a second card, so you can potentially share costs with someone else.

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Sharing the card is a unique benefit Daver6 ...and highly recommended (a kind soul on the forums here allowed me to to be the share for a small fee). One thing is for certain these 'affinity' programs seem to only be going up in price ..they are all headed north of 400$! ..and Daver6 is correct a well placed holiday in not too busy of a season will secure you a room upgrade that will immediately pay of the cost along with the dining discount (oh please bring back more 50% dining discount monthly offers though ...!! the best offers seem to be Gold Coast centric).

 

[NZflygirl]

Hi NZFlyGirl ..this program is a mixed bag as you can imagine. I have always been Platinum (SPG and Marriott) so never had to use the vouchers myself but earlier on I gave some away to a couple of people. 1 was a complete fail ..the other was a minor success (not upgraded to a suite but definitely to a better room). My recommendation - and I know it is an extra step - is to contact the property in advance telling them you would like to use the certificate. The fact is if you rock up to the hotel the day of 1 in 2 chance is you will get someone junior at the checkin that does not know about the program and by then to be honest the upgrades are likely all pre-processed so definitely a few days before reach out to the property. I am having trouble justifying enrollment in the program now (I am actually an additional card holder) ..primarily because a) the 50% dining benefit is gone and b) the 10% discount for rooms is now off the best flexible rate often making an entry level room 20-50$ more expensive than a prepaid non-refundable.. Great if you book flexible rates but I only do this once or twice a year.

Yes I've definitely been scratching my head over the program. The advanced enquiry sounds smart to increase chances of an upgrade clearing but at only a few days out, realistically I would have committed to staying at the property long before then (well generally).

I purchased it purely for a holiday at Le Meridian Ile des Pins. The meal discount saved me a heap as well as some of the other meal vouchers.

The room upgrades are valid for either four or five nights. It worked for us and got us upgraded to a bungalow. Was also SPG gold via Amex charge card at the time. You're right though, it is subject to availability.

Keep in mind that membership includes a second card, so you can potentially share costs with someone else.

I kicked myself when I discovered the star privilege program as New Caledonia is the one place I felt it was worth buying. We stayed at the Sheraton deva on the mainland and Le Meridian Ile des pins also. Little did I know..... At least I had signed up for SPG points.

Sharing the card is a unique benefit Daver6 ...and highly recommended (a kind soul on the forums here allowed me to to be the share for a small fee). One thing is for certain these 'affinity' programs seem to only be going up in price ..they are all headed north of 400$! ..and Daver6 is correct a well placed holiday in not too busy of a season will secure you a room upgrade that will immediately pay of the cost along with the dining discount (oh please bring back more 50% dining discount monthly offers though ...!! the best offers seem to be Gold Coast centric).

Trying to pick which hotels are best to apply the program to is difficult although I have been told SOTP is good for dining. I'm not really a fan of the Gold Coast. I was thinking the stay 7 pay 5 might be good as well. It would claw back a reasonable amount of value and I'm sure we'd use the dining vouchers during that time.

Sadly I think I'll leave it...until I find a place it might be worth applying to.

Thanks for the input.

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Greetings all, I have had the good fortune to share a Club Marriott membership with a fellow AFFer over the last year but this person is no longer interested in participating in the Club Marriott membership at the end of March when it expires. So, I need a new 'sharing' partner as the cost of the membership has gone up so much and I am a Marriott Platinum Premier so many of the benefits and vouchers don't help me I want access to only certain parts of the program (namely the discount card to get 10% off and meal discounts and some of the paper vouchers but not all).

Any forum member interested in sharing with me can you direct message please.

I would buy the membership (or you could whatever your preference) and I would put you as the secondary card holder (which is actually no different than the primary) ..would also agree on an amiable split of the certificates with you as well.

Let me know if you are interested it would be starting I think in the April 1st time frame as my membership runs out end of March. This 'sharing' is a common feature of the program and is entirely 'legit' (in case you were wondering!). It would be for the Australian membership (good at hotels all ove the Asia region). It will likely be 400$ or around that (so 200$ each) + the vouchers.

Cheers

 

[blacksultan]

Greetings all, I have had the good fortune to share a Club Marriott membership with a fellow AFFer over the last year but this person is no longer interested in participating in the Club Marriott membership at the end of March when it expires. So, I need a new 'sharing' partner as the cost of the membership has gone up so much and I am a Marriott Platinum Premier so many of the benefits and vouchers don't help me I want access to only certain parts of the program (namely the discount card to get 10% off and meal discounts and some of the paper vouchers but not all).

Any forum member interested in sharing with me can you direct message please.

I would buy the membership (or you could whatever your preference) and I would put you as the secondary card holder (which is actually no different than the primary) ..would also agree on an amiable split of the certificates with you as well.

Let me know if you are interested it would be starting I think in the April 1st time frame as my membership runs out end of March. This 'sharing' is a common feature of the program and is entirely 'legit' (in case you were wondering!).

Cheers

Is that the Australian membership? I had the Indian membership.

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Yes Australian membership is what I am after. It will likely be 400$ or around that (so 200$ each) + the vouchers.

Is that the Australian membership? I had the Indian membership.

 

[Daver6]

Greetings all, I have had the good fortune to share a Club Marriott membership with a fellow AFFer over the last year but this person is no longer interested in participating in the Club Marriott membership at the end of March when it expires. So, I need a new 'sharing' partner as the cost of the membership has gone up so much and I am a Marriott Platinum Premier so many of the benefits and vouchers don't help me I want access to only certain parts of the program (namely the discount card to get 10% off and meal discounts and some of the paper vouchers but not all).

Any forum member interested in sharing with me can you direct message please.

I would buy the membership (or you could whatever your preference) and I would put you as the secondary card holder (which is actually no different than the primary) ..would also agree on an amiable split of the certificates with you as well.

Let me know if you are interested it would be starting I think in the April 1st time frame as my membership runs out end of March. This 'sharing' is a common feature of the program and is entirely 'legit' (in case you were wondering!). It would be for the Australian membership (good at hotels all ove the Asia region). It will likely be 400$ or around that (so 200$ each) + the vouchers.

Cheers

And I'll happily vouch for @thatsthatmattressman Last year I purchased and shared the membership with him. Payment was prompt and all round nice guy

I was interested in the membership last year as I had 5 nights at Le Meridian on Ile des Pins and only needed it for that reason. Hence not renewing.

 

[Andz]

a bit pricey, IHG is cheaper and upgrades are on any booking not just 4.

A good first step....

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Hi Andz,

What IHG program are you referring to - Ambassador? If so, this is a very different program (Club Marriott that is). Ambassador as you know only applies to Intercontinental properties; does not have a dining component per se and does not run regular offers (monthly). It would be better to compare it to Accor Plus in some ways ...it is definitely not for everyone but it would benefit mostly those who frequent Marriott/Starwood properties particularly if they are lower status like Silver and Gold and tend to dine at these properties as well. Different strokes for different folks. Regarding the 4 Upgrade certificates I would not use them so whomever wants to pair up would get all 4 of them (assuming that is what the 19-20 subscription offers).

cheers

a bit pricey, IHG is cheaper and upgrades are on any booking not just 4.

A good first step....

 

[Daver6]

IMHO the biggest benefit is the 25% off off dining including alcohol. When staying in an expensive location, this benefit alone pays for the membership.

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Good point Daver6

I like to work the 50% off monthly bonuses (have used twice at Sheraton Grand Sydney in the month of January) ..brought a party of 8; big savings!

50% Off Group Dining at Feast Restaurant | Club Marriott

 

[woodborer]

I'll investigate a bit before committing. Is this essentially what came from SPG? Marriott used to be so thin on the ground in Aust, it may not have been useful!

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

It is a merging of Club Marriott with the 'old' Starwood dining program implemented in Australasia called 'Star Privilege'. That program ran in many countries in Asia. It was great and offered 50% dining with 2 members all of the time. Marriott has had theirs for some time now too; in joining the program they got rid of the 2 for 1 dining (but run monthly promotions that give it some time up to 8 guests) but have added complimentary 2 drinks voucher on arrival. Best to do the math and see if it is a goer for you. As you can imagine there are a lot more properties and restaurants participating now under 1 umbrella given Marriott's reach across Asia/Middle East.

I'll investigate a bit before committing. Is this essentially what came from SPG? Marriott used to be so thin on the ground in Aust, it may not have been useful!

 

[hossein_au]

It is a merging of Club Marriott with the 'old' Starwood dining program implemented in Australasia called 'Star Privilege'. That program ran in many countries in Asia. It was great and offered 50% dining with 2 members all of the time. Marriott has had theirs for some time now too; in joining the program they got rid of the 2 for 1 dining (but run monthly promotions that give it some time up to 8 guests) but have added complimentary 2 drinks voucher on arrival. Best to do the math and see if it is a goer for you. As you can imagine there are a lot more properties and restaurants participating now under 1 umbrella given Marriott's reach across Asia/Middle East.

Sorry for the lazy question but I am not across this new 'Club Mariott'. Is there any site that lists the benefits in simple lay-man terms? All I could find are superficial marking material. Even the 'horse's mouth', under the heading "Member Benefits" simply says "Exclusive Benefits Local Experiences Club Marriott, your local hotel club offers exclusive experience, access to facilities and enriching value across all participating hotels." I am not quote sure what this actually mean... gotta love marketing gurus; they put politicians to shame!

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Hi mate, I will inquire about the 2019-20 offering (assuming there is one) until then this gives you an idea of last year's inclusions.

2 x CARDS (Primary and an Additional) 25% off all food and beverage for up to 15 people at ALL properties in the Marriott portfolio.

2 x GROUP DINING Certificate to be used in the main dining restaurant of your choice…..8 people dining for 50% off the food bill….add your card to get the 25% off your tables drinks bill.

2 x $75 CASH BACK VOUCHERS = $150 straight back to you. $75 Off the top of your dining bill …then produce your card to get 25% OFF the remainder.

Monthly Birthday offers

UNLIMITED 7 day stays built into your card…go anywhere for 7 days….GET 2 NIGHTS FOR FREE

4 Room UPGRADE VOUCHERS

MONTHLY SPECIALS EMAILED ...I find some of the best deals for these emails. This gives you a sample across the region of what is on offer this month: Member Offers | Club Marriott


COMPLIMENTRY BREAKFAST FOR 2 AT THE PROPERTY OF YOUR CHOICE.(must be staying in house)

2 X 50% OFF DINING FOR 2 PEOPLE at SHERATON MIRAGE GOLD COAST

2 X 50% OFF DINING FOR 2 PEOPLE at SHERATON ON THE PARK SYDNEY

2 X 50% OFF DINING FOR 2 PEOPLE at SHERATON MELBOURNE.

You can only use 1 card 1 voucher per sitting. So no stacking cards.

CLUB MARRIOTT PACIFIC MEMBERS RECEIVE 2 X DRINK VOUCHER EVERY TIME THEY CHECKIN TO ONE OF OUR PROPERTIES

Sorry for the lazy question but I am not across this new 'Club Mariott'. Is there any site that lists the benefits in simple lay-man terms? All I could find are superficial marking material. Even the 'horse's mouth', under the heading "Member Benefits" simply says "Exclusive Benefits Local Experiences Club Marriott, your local hotel club offers exclusive experience, access to facilities and enriching value across all participating hotels." I am not quote sure what this actually mean... gotta love marketing gurus; they put politicians to shame!

 

[Jacques Vert]

And 20% off best available rate at participating hotels in Asia: saved heaps on a 5 night stay at the JW in Kolkata.

 

[hossein_au]

Hi mate, I will inquire about the 2019-20 offering (assuming there is one) until then this gives you an idea of last year's inclusions.

2 x CARDS (Primary and an Additional) 25% off all food and beverage for up to 15 people at ALL properties in the Marriott portfolio.

2 x GROUP DINING Certificate to be used in the main dining restaurant of your choice…..8 people dining for 50% off the food bill….add your card to get the 25% off your tables drinks bill...

Wow, that is a fantastic deal for only $200. I'll soon be going almost offline for about 6 months (for work), otherwise I would jump on the opportunity straight away. Would you pencil me down for next year if the same opportunity presents itself? Thanks.

 

[thatsthatmattressman]

Will do ..as an aside many may be interested in what line of work u are in to be offline that long!