New Marriott, Int'l 48-hours Cancellation Policy

[SueDonJ]

It was announced late last week that Marriott, Int'l changed the cancellation policy effective with reservations booked on or after 6/15/17. There's no official notice on news.marriott.com but several articles including this from money.cnn.com reference an official statement: Marriott cancels its 24-hour cancellation policy

Highlites:

... "Guests will now be required to cancel their room reservation by midnight 48 hours prior to arrival in order to avoid a fee," Marriott International (MAR) said in a statement. The new policy applies to hotels in the United States, Canada, Caribbean and Latin America. Marriott added that the change will not apply to Design Hotels, which are independently owned, and Marriott Vacation Worldwide hotels.

A handful of Marriott hotels already had a 48-hour or 72-hour cancellation policy in place prior to the company-wide decision, according to Allison Sitch, a Marriott spokeswoman. She said that some of those hotels with a 72-hour cancellation policy will continue that practice, and some that had previously maintained a 48-hour policy have switched to a 72-hour cancellation policy.

The new rule will impact guests staying at hotels that are a part of the Starwood network, which was acquired by Marriott in 2016. Marriott International includes W Hotels, St. Regis, Westin, Sheraton and Courtyard hotels, among others. ...

Despite not finding the official article online, on both MarriottInsiders and Flyertalk there are reports that the new cancellation policy is being reflected on reservations booked after the announcement.

 

[Fasttr]

Its seems that it wasn't too long ago that they changed from allowing day of cancellations and moved to the day before policy.

 

[Marykate77]

I just booked Grande Vista for cash over the weekend and it says the new policy. Obviously I prefer the old policy but seems standard for the industry

Not a big deal for me.

 

[dioxide45]

Not surprising. As with any industry when we see consolidation and decreased competition, policies become less and less consumer friendly.

 

[Fairwinds]

Seems fair. But I anticipate kicking myself one day.

 

[mdurette]

I have actually started seeing this for a couple years with Marriott cash reservations for different reservations. One of my hurricane/blizzard/bad storm back up plans is to book a reservation at a local Residence Inn in case we lose power. For years, it was cancel the same day by 6pm which worked out great. Then a couple years ago they started with cancel day before.

 

[ljmiii]

I think that more than anything else it's a response to the ever increasing popularity of 'last minute' hotel apps. And people's willingness to make reservations and then cancel them if they can get a better 'last minute' deal.

 

[dioxide45]

The main people this will impact is business travelers. Those that make a reservation thinking they will be somewhere, but when they end up somewhere else, they have to now pay for that room that sits empty instead of being able to cancel last minute.

 

[GreenTea]

I'm planning a long cross country(countries) drive this summer. I like to plan stops out ahead and boom in advance. One mishap from my plan and I could be out a couple of night's fee.

 

[jerseyfinn]

Slightly worrisome if you're a frequent traveler, as sooner or later, you're going to have some sort of issue pop up that could cause a cancellation. That said, if your reason for cancellation is an illness or another verifiable problem, does the Marriott travel insurance kick in? If so, then the impact is mostly nil.

 

[dioxide45]

Slightly worrisome if you're a frequent traveler, as sooner or later, you're going to have some sort of issue pop up that could cause a cancellation. That said, if your reason for cancellation is an illness or another verifiable problem, does the Marriott travel insurance kick in? If so, then the impact is mostly nil.

The insurance sold through Marriott Vacation Club wouldn't probably cover such an incident as that only covers Marriott timeshare stays. I don't think Marriott International sells any type of insurance.

 

[GreenTea]

Does the Marriotts Reward Visa have travel benefits/protections, like the Chase Sapphire Reserve? The Sapphire is so good, I didn't buy insurance for upcoming big trips.

 

[MOXJO7282]

I'm planning a long cross country(countries) drive this summer. I like to plan stops out ahead and boom in advance. One mishap from my plan and I could be out a couple of night's fee.

Yes I can imagine that this affects quite a few in the same boat.

 

[pwrshift]

You pay and when you cancel another guest pays...double dipping. Two days is not fair to customers.

 

[sparty]

You pay and when you cancel another guest pays...double dipping. Two days is not fair to customers.

Or if you read the fine print, you arrive at the hotels check-in desk 1000 miles from home, with a "guaranteed reservation", and they (Marriott/Franchisee) due to circumstances beyond their control (ie someone pays a lot more for your suite you got a year in advance for one of the biggest weekends the location has) and then you're left packing for another hotel.

 

[pwrshift]

If that happened they'd have to drag me out of the place like a passenger on United. Air.

 

[KathyPet]

WHen I was traveling on my job I was a dedicated Marriott customer. However there were many times when a planned Marriott stay on a businesss trip had to be cancelled last minute due to flight problems, clients cancelling at the last moment etc. If this new policy had been in effect then it would have cost my employer money. I think had that new policy been in effect I would have had to look for a more business friendly hotel chain.

 

[AlmostRetired]

This past Friday, I was flying Islip to Charleston through BWI when BWI weather delayed the first leg of the trip to BWI and cancelled the second leg to Charleston. I called up Marriott and they waived the one day charge. They did not ask for proof. Also, if you have the Chase Reserve, it would cover it. They do require proof.