Ouch: Marriott Bonvoy Downgrades Elite Suite Upgrade Benefit

Marriott Bonvoy has made a subtle but significant change to its terms & conditions, as flagged by View from the Wing. I suspect this won’t have many practical implications, but it’s worth covering nonetheless, in terms of managing expectations.

Marriott no longer promises suite upgrades if available

Historically, Marriott Bonvoy Platinum members and above have (at least in theory) been entitled to upgrades to the best available rooms at check-in, up to standard suites. That’s no longer officially the case.

Recently, the program’s terms & conditions have been updated. Here’s what the terms stated before the change:

Platinum Elite Members and above receive a complimentary upgrade to the best available room, subject to availability upon arrival, for the entire length of stay. Complimentary upgrade includes suites, rooms with desirable views, rooms on high floors, corner rooms, rooms with special amenities or rooms on Executive Floors.

Here’s what the terms stated after the change:

Platinum Elite Members and above receive a complimentary upgrade, subject to availability upon arrival, for the entire length of stay. Complimentary upgrade includes suites, rooms with desirable views, rooms on high floors, corner rooms, rooms with special amenities or rooms on Executive Floors.

Do you notice the difference? Yes, previously the terms stated you received an upgrade to the best available room subject to availability, up to a standard suite. Now the terms state that you receive an upgrade subject to availability, and that could include a standard suite (or another room type).

This is now in line with the vague way that Marriott markets its Platinum upgrade perk, which is that “we’ll do our best to upgrade your room (including Select Suites), subject to availability upon arrival.”

Is this upgrade policy change a big deal?

Technically speaking, Marriott Bonvoy’s upgrade policy is now aligned with that of Hilton Honors, rather than that of World of Hyatt. That’s to say that suite upgrades are both subject to availability and at the discretion of the hotel, rather than being subject to availability and “guaranteed” (as much as anything can be guaranteed in this industry).

Is Marriott changing the verbiage negative? Well, of course, since Marriott is promising less. Do I think this will actually change the way that hotels upgrade people? No, I don’t think so, because I don’t think there’s actually a change here in terms of intent to deliver upgrades.

The challenge with Marriott Bonvoy is the huge amount of elite inflation we’ve seen, which limits the value of benefits that are “subject to availability.” At a vast majority of hotels, there are way more elite members eligible for suite upgrades than actual available suites. That’s why Marriott has a secret way that it prioritizes upgrades.

So Marriott Bonvoy’s updated terms are also just more accurate. The truth is that even under the old policy, elite members didn’t necessarily receive upgrades subject to availability at check-in. This is a technicality, but my point is that upgrades were typically assigned before check-in, based on some hierarchy.

With this change, there’s even less basis for anyone to show up at a Marriott and claim “oh but you’re still selling suites for tonight, so you need to upgrade me to it,” since hotels now officially have no obligation to address that.

I think this might also explain why Marriott recently stopped excluding Platinum members from the Ritz-Carlton suite upgrade benefit. With Marriott no longer promising suite upgrades, there’s no need for Ritz-Carlton to be excluded!

Bottom line

Marriott Bonvoy has updated its upgrade benefit for Platinum members and above. While members were previously promised the best available room subject to availability, up to a standard suite, that’s no longer the case. Instead, upgrades are now at the discretion of hotels, and those upgrades could include standard suites.

This now means that Marriott Bonvoy’s upgrade benefit is in line with the policy of Hilton Honors, rather than the policy of World of Hyatt.

What do you make of this update to the Marriott Bonvoy terms & conditions?