Update: the Marriott status challenge is apparently no longer available.
In one of my earlier posts I mentioned , that on August 1st I was supposed to receive a free category 1-5 certificate from my Marriott Chase Visa. . It was earmarked for our short wedding anniversary getaway, the only thing we do without the kids at this point. I am a firm believer, that all couples need occasional time away from kids, even if just for 1 night. Plus after you stay at home with kids for 5 years, you start going cuckoo for cocoa puffs. Well, the certificate promptly showed up on schedule in my e-mail inbox. So far, so good.
Since I had the reservation made several months prior, I just had to call and attach the certificate. One thing, that concerned me, was that hotel had changed categories in the meantime. But the nice thing about Marriott program and unique as far as I know, is that you can make an award reservation, even if you don’t have enough points in your account. You just have to make sure you get them at least 1 week , before your reward stay occurs.
So I called the number, listed on the website. The agent lady was very nice but said , that she had to connect me to Marriott rewards line. Than the call dropped… So I called again. Same thing happened. Third time, I told the agent to please get this taken care of, I did not want to get “connected” to the right department.
She was polite and put me on hold. After a few minutes she said, that everything was taken care off and they honored the old requirement in points. I don’t know if it’s just a fluke with the phone line disconnecting, but it’s something Marriott can correct in the future hopefully.
One thing I will say, is that all the agents were extremely friendly and professional, which I appreciate. In the end I got a very nice hotel to stay at, so I am happy. We will be living it up with all the fancy folks at the Renaissance Vinoy St. Petersburg (that’s in Florida) , even if just for 1 night. Sometimes I think I am a rich woman, stuck in a middle class woman’s body!
I was actually planning to do Marriott status match challenge , click on this link to find out more:
http://boardingarea.com/mommypoints/2012/02/12/my-experience-getting-a-status-matchchallenge-with-marriott/#sthash.Cen7uNLY.dpbs
The above picture is an “Anchorman” movie reference to Marriott status challenge, in case I confused you! The only hotel status I hold is at IHG chain through their co- branded credit card, so I planned to leverage it here. I mostly wanted to do it in order to get Vinoy’s expensive breakfast for free. But my husband felt it was unethical, since we don’t have many paid Marriott reservations coming up. So we will be going to IHOP instead, sigh. He truly is the better half!
Author: Leana
Leana is the founder of Miles For Family. She enjoys beach vacations and visiting her family in Europe. Originally from Belarus, Leana resides in central Florida with her husband and two children.
Very true! I rarely do status matches. Actually, I think I did it maybe just once or twice and usually for 1 hotel stay. This particular challenge with Marriott doesn’t even work anymore per Frequent Miler.
Status matches are a great tool to get elite benefits quickly. However keep in mind that you can usually only do it once per loyalty account. So you have to qualify on your own the year after and it gets really easy to get used to elite treatment 🙂