# Suite Night Awards



## LisaH (Apr 20, 2019)

i am going to request upgrades using SNAs for the first time and have some questions.
There are two hotels (JW and Westin) in the location of interest and I plan to make reservations for both. Since confirmation will be sent five days prior and reservation can be canceled one day before arrival, I should be able to cancel one that is not upgraded, right? In case both receive upgrades and I cancel one reservation with SNAs already attached, will the SNAs be returned to my account?


----------



## jme (Apr 20, 2019)

LisaH said:


> i am going to request upgrades using SNAs for the first time and have some questions.
> There are two hotels (JW and Westin) in the location of interest and I plan to make reservations for both. Since confirmation will be sent five days prior and reservation can be canceled one day before arrival, I should be able to cancel one that is not upgraded, right? In case both receive upgrades and I cancel one reservation with SNAs already attached, will the SNAs be returned to my account?



Yes, it will be returned to your account. 
If not sure in your case, call and confirm, but........
I just changed a reservation yesterday to add an additional night to an upcoming reservation, therefore requesting
another Suite Night Award (SNA), and asked that very question, and the representative said when a reservation is cancelled
the SNA is definitely returned to you. Just like the case in which a Rewards Points Stay is cancelled and those points are returned to your account.

By the way, Lisa, probably not applicable to you in this case, but always check to see if the hotel you chose has rooms or suites
that are indeed worthy of an upgrade, as many hotels don't have suites at all, or either have rooms so similar that an actual
upgrade would not even be noticed. In other words, don't waste it.


----------



## LisaH (Apr 20, 2019)

Thank you! I did check and both hotels have executive suites available for the duration


----------



## GetawaysRus (Apr 20, 2019)

Not sure exactly how important this is, but I dig through the hotel info on the Marriott website to find the # of suites compared to the total # of rooms.  I think that the higher the % of suites, the greater the chance of a successful upgrade.


----------



## mjkkb2 (Apr 20, 2019)

My last reservation using suite awards had language stating that once confirmed, the suite awards forfeit if the reservation is canceled.
Maybe it varies depending on brands.....


----------



## controller1 (Apr 20, 2019)

mjkkb2 said:


> My last reservation using suite awards had language stating that once confirmed, the suite awards forfeit if the reservation is canceled.
> Maybe it varies depending on brands.....



I'd love to see that language since that is incorrect and there is no difference in brand.  Per the Bonvoy T&C:

_4.3.c.iv.A.11(d) - Once Suite Night Awards have been confirmed, the Member must cancel the entire reservation to receive credit back for all Suite Night Awards.  Cancellation of a confirmed Suite Night Award reservation after 2 p.m. local time of the Participating Property one (1) day prior to arrival will result in the forfeiture of all Suite Night Awards applied to the entire reservation._


----------



## l0410z (Apr 21, 2019)

I had an SNA pending at a Marriott and the nights were not confirmed at the 5 night marker.  The next day I got an email.  

Please note that our suites sell out very quickly and this offer is based on availability

1 bedroom presidential resort view suite – one king bed, living room, kitchen, dining room and balcony overlooking the resort - $150 per night upgrade, plus 12.5% tax

1 bedroom presidential water view suite – one king bed, living room, kitchen, dining room and balcony overlooking the Gulf of Mexico - $250 per night upgrade, plus 12.5% tax

Thinking I might have done something wrong I looked at the reservation and realized the only suite upgrade option offered  was for a 2 bedroom suite.  Curious I called reservations and the hotel has 1,2 and 3 bedroom suites but only made the 2 bedroom available for upgrade.  2 days before checkin they still have 1 and 3 bedrooms available on their website. Will see what happens at checkin. 

I had an SNA request for the Marriott at 48th and Lex in NYC that was pending within 5 days  even though website reservations  had a 1 bedroom available and that was what my request was for.  

Currently I am in the JW in Nashville in a 1 bedroom upgrade using SNA on a 187 room rate using my Corp discount.  My batting average is 250 using SNA.  Being lifetime Platnium  with no option for lifetime Titanium, the SNA is a nice benefit but won’t drive unnatural behavior to get to 50 or 75 nights for it.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 23, 2019)

I requested suite night awards twice so far and have not gotten them.


----------



## mjkkb2 (Apr 23, 2019)

controller1 said:


> I'd love to see that language since that is incorrect and there is no difference in brand.  Per the Bonvoy T&C:
> 
> _._



I am 99% sure that's what it said.  I don't have any reservations currently ​with suite awards requested to compare...I am going by memory so I may be wrong.  
The brand difference comment was just my speculation, which turns out was inaccurate.


----------



## ArubaEileen (Apr 23, 2019)

I think the 5 night suite upgrade is a joke. I had a 5 night stay reserved at the Aruba Renaissance Marina and tried using the suite upgrade. (There were plenty of suites available for purchase on the Marriott website). I was told that they were not honoring the upgrade certificate, but could use it to upgrade to an ocean view room. (We had the lowest category room booked). So, we used the upgrade to get a room that we would typically be upgraded to since my husband is Lifetime Titanium Elite.


----------



## jeepie (Apr 23, 2019)

I’m 0 for 1 this year, and we’ll see about my June request. They were still selling (Jr.) Suites for my full 5 night stay, all the way up until my arrival, and even a couple of days into the stay for the remaining days. So, I at least hoped for a Titanium upgrade. Was given a nice corner room, but not to a junior suite. Oh well.
Btw, there is a good discussion (and note the first point in the wiki) on FlyerTalk:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mar...award-general-discussion-question-thread.html


----------



## l0410z (Apr 24, 2019)

l0410z said:


> I had an SNA pending at a Marriott and the nights were not confirmed at the 5 night marker.  The next day I got an email.
> 
> Please note that our suites sell out very quickly and this offer is based on availability
> 
> ...



I replied to the email above stating that a 2 bedroom would be wasteful for my SNA and would prefer a 1 bedroom if one is available.

Day before checkin I got the following email replay.

Thank  you for your reply and thank you for your loyalty! Unfortunately on our property only the 2 bedroom suites qualify for the Suite Night Awards. The one bedroom suites are privately owned and do not qualify. Even if your request is denied by Marriott due to the 2 bedrooms being sold out, we will complimentary upgrade you to the one bedroom suite if it’s available on your arrival day.

Regards,

So I checked in yesterday at the Key West  Marriott Beachside  with little expectation since the SNAs  were returned into my account the night before.  At checkin, the 3 bedroom was reserved for me.  Appreciated but wasteful for just my wife and I, I asked if it could be changed to a 1 bedroom.  The only options available were my original standard room reservation or the 3 bedroom. Wasteful it be.

Interesting comment by the hotel reservation  manager that the 1 bedrooms are privately owned.  I have no clue what this means.


----------



## mpizza (Apr 24, 2019)

For what it’s worth, SNAs were honored at the SIna Villa Medici in Florence.  Beautiful 2 room, 2 bath room.

Maria


----------



## DJensen (Apr 24, 2019)

I recently returned from JW Marriott - San Jose del Cabo. Not only used a 5 Night voucher, but also added the SNA. Beautiful resort and we were upgraded to an ocean front - guessing we were originally place in an ocean view. It was delightful to have the balcony on the ocean front and hear the CRASHING waves! The room itself was nice, 2 queen with super big bathroom area - not a suite, but for as little time in the room it was more than we needed.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 24, 2019)

SNAs have not been honored in Spain. I was rejected by Hotel Alfonso XIII in Seville and at St Regis Mallorca. The rejections were emailed to me well before the deadline. Those are the only two places where I have requested SNAs. So now I have 6 out of 10 SNAs redeposited. They will be useless since they expire this year. It is a useless benefit. Other than earning hotel points, Marriott Bonvoy is full of hot air.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 24, 2019)

This year we will have 74 nights and since we do not have hotel stays which suite nights can apply to for next year we will not squeeze in 1 more night for this year.


----------



## jme (Apr 24, 2019)

TravelTime said:


> SNAs have not been honored in Spain. I was rejected by Hotel Alfonso XIII in Seville and at St Regis Mallorca. The rejections were emailed to me well before the deadline. Those are the only two places where I have requested SNAs. So now I have 6 out of 10 SNAs redeposited. They will be useless since they expire this year. It is a useless benefit.



I used two of them this past October in Rome, Italy @ Palazzo Naiadi......two rooms for 3 nights each....great upgrade. 

The SNAs are only helpful obviously if you travel frequently to hotels that have upgradable rooms and there is availability. 
It's the same for any hotel upgrade, whether routine status upgrade or the new Suite Night Upgrades....but if it is available, 
it's nicer than a routine upgrade and carries more weight, I assure you. 

If a very fine hotel is usually at 100% capacity, it won't happen, but that's just how it works. 

I'll be using two in Boston this coming Fall, too. I get 10 per year, and probably can't use them all, but I'd rather have them and try. 
The other awards to me are rather worthless.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 24, 2019)

I got a suite upgrade without a SNA in Madrid (due to Titanium status) but no suite upgrades where I requested SNAs. However, I did get a regular room upgrade even though SNA was denied. I will be in Edinburgh next week but not bothering with SNAs. I have some SNAs requested for BVI and Costa Rica. Let's see if I get those.


----------



## tomvc (Apr 24, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> This year we will have 74 nights and since we do not have hotel stays which suite nights can apply to for next year we will not squeeze in 1 more night for this year.



You can elect 5 Elite nights credit when you reach 50 nights.  This will push your total to 79 to achieve Titanium status and to qualify for another bonus award.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 24, 2019)

tomvc said:


> You can elect 5 Elite nights credit when you reach 50 nights.  This will push your total to 79 to achieve Titanium status and to qualify for another bonus award.


I am already Titanium through MVC ownership.


----------



## jeepie (Apr 24, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> I am already Titanium through MVC ownership.


But Titanium thru MVC status alone doesn’t earn the 50 or 75 night SNA’s or other choices. Cheers.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 25, 2019)

jeepie said:


> But Titanium thru MVC status alone doesn’t earn the 50 or 75 night SNA’s or other choices. Cheers.


I will be at 74 nights this year.  But since I have no plans to stay at a hotel where suite nights can be applied for next year, I am not going to stress over staying for 1 more night.


----------



## bazzap (Apr 25, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> I will be at 74 nights this year.  But since I have no plans to stay at a hotel where suite nights can be applied for next year, I am not going to stress over staying for 1 more night.


We used our 50 night bonus award for 5 SNAs, although we are unlikely to be able to use them all, but we used our 75 night bonus award for a free night so the benefits can be useful.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 25, 2019)

I wonder if I did not get the suite night award upgrade in some hotels because I was staying on points. I was upgraded to a suite in the hotel I paid for but did not use a SNA.


----------



## jtp1947 (Apr 25, 2019)

We just had a five night stay on points in Dublin, Ireland.  Since it was a point reservation the smallest room was our only option.  I requested a 1 bedroom Heritage suite overlooking St. Stephens's Green using 5 SNA's.  My request came through and the room was beautiful and spacious. Regular price for that room starts at 1350 Euros a night. Shelbourne Renaissance hotel, cat7.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 25, 2019)

bazzap said:


> We used our 50 night bonus award for 5 SNAs, although we are unlikely to be able to use them all, but we used our 75 night bonus award for a free night so the benefits can be useful.


I forgot about a free night option for 75 nights.  I may want to book a cheap room either using points or cash to get an additional night to get us to 75 nights to get a free night for next year.


----------



## bazzap (Apr 25, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> I forgot about a free night option for 75 nights.  I may want to book a cheap room either using points or cash to get an additional night to get us to 75 nights to get a free night for next year.


That is what we thought, we are using our free night at the Renaissance Heathrow before an early morning flight to Phuket.
We have also requested to use one of our SNAs for at least a better view, as I don’t believe they have suites there.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 25, 2019)

I am excited to report that I will be getting a nice upgrade at the St Regis Mallorca and I booked it on MB points. They denied the SNA but they are giving me a nice upgrade without the SNA. I just checked and saw this on my reservation for Saturday: Junior Suite, 1 Double, Seafront, Main Building, Away from elevator, Balcony. Member price for my 3N is 2,484.30 EUR / $2766 USD.


----------



## bazzap (Apr 25, 2019)

TravelTime said:


> I am excited to report that I will be getting a nice upgrade at the St Regis Mallorca and I booked it on MB points. They denied the SNA but they are giving me a nice upgrade without the SNA. I just checked and saw this on my reservation for Saturday: Junior Suite, 1 Double, Seafront, Main Building, Away from elevator, Balcony. Member price for my 3N is 2,484.30 EUR / $2766 USD.


That is great.
We will have to drive over and check it out when we are at Club Son Antem in June.
In the past, the only Marriott hotel options on the island were the Marriott at Son Antem (no longer a Marriott) and the AC by Marriott in Palma (convenient and practical, if fairly basic)
The recent additions, especially the St Regis are very welcome.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 25, 2019)

bazzap said:


> That is great.
> We will have to drive over and check it out when we are at Club Son Antem in June.
> In the past, the only Marriott hotel options on the island were the Marriott at Son Antem (no longer a Marriott) and the AC by Marriott in Palma (convenient and practical, if fairly basic)
> The recent additions, especially the St Regis are very welcome.



I am also excited because St Regis Mallorca just went up in points from 60K to 85K. I booked it before the point increase.


----------



## frank808 (Apr 25, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> I forgot about a free night option for 75 nights.  I may want to book a cheap room either using points or cash to get an additional night to get us to 75 nights to get a free night for next year.


Remember that the room is up to 40k points. For the 50 night award wife and I take the 5 SNA.  For he 75 night award, we take the 40k  free night certificate.  These 2 nights at 40k plus our 2 nights at 50k for carrying the spg luxury card makes it worthwhile for us before or after a mvc stay on the mainland.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk


----------



## TheTimeTraveler (Apr 25, 2019)

Suite Night Award question;   Is there an expiration date on the SNA's ?   I currently have a few and would like to know if they can be carried over year after to year until such time as they are used?

Anyone know ?



.


----------



## Fasttr (Apr 25, 2019)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> Suite Night Award question;   Is there an expiration date on the SNA's ?   I currently have a few and would like to know if they can be carried over year after to year until such time as they are used?
> 
> Anyone know ?


Expire at end of the year after the year earned.


----------



## Eli Mairs (Apr 27, 2019)

I have suite night awards pending for two nights at the Gritti Palace in Venice next month. I’m using points for the reservation.
I’ll be very surprised if it comes through, even though there are several suites available. It is an incredibly expensive hotel.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 27, 2019)

Eli Mairs said:


> I have suite night awards pending for two nights at the Gritti Palace in Venice next month. I’m using points for the reservation.
> I’ll be very surprised if it comes through, even though there are several suites available. It is an incredibly expensive hotel.


We stayed at Gritti Palace last year and while there were no suite night awards then, we were platinum (equivalent of the now Titanium) and we had a nice upgrade to a larger unit with more luxurious bathrooom.  It was not a suite but it was a good upgrade.


----------



## TravelTime (Apr 28, 2019)

I had to re-route my trip. Marriott is not very generous with suite night upgrades. It is such a bummer. In one hotel, they are not honoring the free breakfast that I thought was part of Titanium level. I am finding a lot of inconsistency across the hotels.


----------



## LisaH (Apr 28, 2019)

TravelTime said:


> I had to re-route my trip. Marriott is not very generous with suite night upgrades. It is such a bummer. In one hotel, they are not honoring the free breakfast that I thought was part of Titanium level. I am finding a lot of inconsistency across the hotels.


Which hotel does not honor Titanium breakfast? The exceptions that I know of are resorts that are part of the Marriott vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton and Gaylord Hotels


----------



## pedro47 (Apr 28, 2019)

What are the best practices to used suite nights awards?


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 28, 2019)

LisaH said:


> i am going to request upgrades using SNAs for the first time and have some questions.
> There are two hotels (JW and Westin) in the location of interest and I plan to make reservations for both. Since confirmation will be sent five days prior and reservation can be canceled one day before arrival, I should be able to cancel one that is not upgraded, right? In case both receive upgrades and I cancel one reservation with SNAs already attached, will the SNAs be returned to my account?



very bad experience for us with suitenights and westin.... we reserved with points and must have been  awarded our requested suite upgrade, because client services then promptly canceled our reservation because in their opinion we paid too little. too little, exactly what they said in email and our res was gone


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 28, 2019)

LisaH said:


> Which hotel does not honor Titanium breakfast? The exceptions that I know of are resorts that are part of the Marriott vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton and Gaylord Hotels



most marriotts honor it, if you stay westin or starwood unlikely, in my experience, especially since the merger. before the merger as lifetime platinum we got free breakfast, free parking, AND free arrival gift. now as titanium, we get a choice of ONE at Marriotts and nothing anywhere else. period. and we stay 100+ a year.


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 28, 2019)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> Suite Night Award question;   Is there an expiration date on the SNA's ?   I currently have a few and would like to know if they can be carried over year after to year until such time as they are used?
> 
> Anyone know ?
> 
> ...


yes, they expire, 1-year after the award year in which they were granted.


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 28, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> We stayed at Gritti Palace last year and while there were no suite night awards then, we were platinum (equivalent of the now Titanium) and we had a nice upgrade to a larger unit with more luxurious bathrooom.  It was not a suite but it was a good upgrade.


so far suite nights seem to be a way to take away room upgrade perk for elites while seemingly offering a benefit. we have 1500+ nights w marriott, titanium. before the merger we got automatic upgrades almost every stay. since merger? we have gotten ZERO


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 28, 2019)

4Sunsets said:


> very bad experience for us with suitenights and westin.... we reserved with points and must have been  awarded our requested suite upgrade, because client services then promptly canceled our reservation because in their opinion we paid too little. too little, exactly what they said in email and our res was gone


Will you please elaborate?  Did you escalate up the Marriott chain?


----------



## LisaH (Apr 29, 2019)

4Sunsets said:


> most marriotts honor it, if you stay westin or starwood unlikely, in my experience, especially since the merger. before the merger as lifetime platinum we got free breakfast, free parking, AND free arrival gift. now as titanium, we get a choice of ONE at Marriotts and nothing anywhere else. period. and we stay 100+ a year.


We received free arrival gift or Points in  every stay we made this year, and lounge access at Westin, Marriott and Renaissance. Not sure if Marriott has ever offered free breakfast at hotels that normally charge, Except those that do not have a lounge or lounges do not open.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 29, 2019)

Marriott at Tang Plaza in Singapore offers platinum and above both lounge access which has good hot breakfast and also full amazing  buffet breakfast with about 100 selections of food in their restaurant.


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 29, 2019)

LisaH said:


> We received free arrival gift or Points in  every stay we made this year, and lounge access at Westin, Marriott and Renaissance. Not sure if Marriott has ever offered free breakfast at hotels that normally charge, Except those that do not have a lounge or lounges do not open.



It's the ORs that are the problem. You get this OR that now. Previously, we'd always get free parking AND arrival gift AND free breakfast, whether lounge or not. We'd also get automatic room upgrade, not a suite-night credit to use or not use.


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 29, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> Will you please elaborate?  Did you escalate up the Marriott chain?



We absolutely escalated. Marriot's new fine print allows hotels to cancel reservations where a "supposed or actual" pricing error occurred. In other words, we were inadvertently awarded too nice a suite by the system/a person, and so our entire reservation was canceled before we could stay, with only an email from guest services at the hotel. Good thing we checked prior, or we'd have been hundreds of miles away from home with no choice but to pay the exorbitant walk-in rates in a very expensive city, which btw was ~$600 a night!!


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 29, 2019)

4Sunsets said:


> We absolutely escalated. Marriot's new fine print allows hotels to cancel reservations where a "supposed or actual" pricing error occurred. In other words, we were inadvertently awarded too nice a suite by the system/a person, and so our entire reservation was canceled before we could stay, with only an email from guest services at the hotel. Good thing we checked prior, or we'd have been hundreds of miles away from home with no choice but to pay the exorbitant walk-in rates in a very expensive city, which btw was ~$600 a night!!


Which hotel property was this? We want to avoid booking at such a place. Thanks.


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 29, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> Which hotel property was this? We want to avoid booking at such a place. Thanks.



This is hotel policy for all Marriotts, unfortunately. This particular incident occurred at a Westin in Canada.


----------



## VacationForever (Apr 29, 2019)

4Sunsets said:


> This is hotel policy for all Marriotts, unfortunately. This particular incident occurred at a Westin in Canada.


Thanks.  I am applying my suite award nights to our upcoming 5-night stay using points at Newport Beach which a standard room at rack rate is > $600 per night.  We hope to not have our reservation be cancelled!


----------



## 4Sunsets (Apr 30, 2019)

VacationForever said:


> Thanks.  I am applying my suite award nights to our upcoming 5-night stay using points at Newport Beach which a standard room at rack rate is > $600 per night.  We hope to not have our reservation be cancelled!



Good luck! Hopefully this is just something that is just getting enforced outside the US. Weve experienced problems outside the US before as well, but nothing like this. (Probably because US has better consumer protection laws than other countries)


----------



## controller1 (Apr 30, 2019)

I just applied my first Suite Night Awards to an upcoming 5-night stay at St. Regis NYC.  The two choices available were the Deluxe Suite and the Astor Suite.  Keeping my fingers crossed!


----------



## LisaH (May 4, 2019)

A quick update: my upgrade request for Westin Chongqing Liberation Square has been confirmed and I will be in a 1 BR Executive Suite with 2BAs. Fantastic! This is a point reservation so I am very pleased with receiving the upgrade.


----------



## Dean (May 4, 2019)

LisaH said:


> Which hotel does not honor Titanium breakfast? The exceptions that I know of are resorts that are part of the Marriott vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton and Gaylord Hotels


My experience with some of the Autograph collection is that they either don't honor breakfast or limit it such that it's often not worth using.  Sometimes they will let you apply the value of the continental breakfast toward a better option.  We did have a good experience at the Autograph Collection in Williamsburg.  I recently canceled an Autograph Collection reservation for Savannah in part related to their response to this very question.  

Let me add on a question here.  Anyone had any luck applying SNA to a Priceline reservation that can be pulled up under the Marriott.com account?


----------



## Pamplemousse (May 4, 2019)

LisaH said:


> A quick update: my upgrade request for Westin Chongqing Liberation Square has been confirmed and I will be in a 1 BR Executive Suite with 2BAs. Fantastic! This is a point reservation so I am very pleased with receiving the upgrade.



LisaH,
Following back through this thread—was this a suite night request and did you request SN on 2 different reservations and cancel one and get your nights back on the cancellation?  How far in advance did your SN confirmation come?  Thanks


----------



## Quilter (May 4, 2019)

We’re both lifetime titanium.  Hubby has 88 nights and 20 SNA this year.  I only have 24 nights so far.

We recently stayed at 2 Westin’s.  I was surprised at the first one (Jekyll Island) that I had a choice of 1000 pt. Arrival gift or continental breakfast.  Not both.  No auto upgrade although the hotel didn’t seem very full.

Next was a tired Westin in Columbus OH.  No auto upgrade but breakfast came from the lounge.   

Do these SNA take the place of auto upgrade?


----------



## TheTimeTraveler (May 4, 2019)

bazzap said:


> We used our 50 night bonus award for 5 SNAs, although we are unlikely to be able to use them all, but we used our 75 night bonus award for a free night so the benefits can be useful.





I understand you can use 50 night bonus award for 5 SNA's, but what's the criteria for earning Suite Night Awards ?    A better way of putting is what are all the exact ways in which one can earn SNA's ?

I just checked my account and I now have ten.  Not exactly sure how I qualified for every one of them......




.


----------



## bazzap (May 5, 2019)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> I understand you can use 50 night bonus award for 5 SNA's, but what's the criteria for earning Suite Night Awards ?    A better way of putting is what are all the exact ways in which one can earn SNA's ?
> 
> I just checked my account and I now have ten.  Not exactly sure how I qualified for every one of them......
> 
> ...


I am not aware of any ways other than the 50 and 75 night stay triggers.
Perhaps someone else may know differently?


----------



## jtp1947 (May 5, 2019)

Your earn 5 with 50 elite nights and another 5 with 95 elite night credits.


----------



## Fasttr (May 5, 2019)

bazzap said:


> I am not aware of any ways other than the 50 and 70 night stay triggers.





jtp1947 said:


> Your earn 5 with 50 elite nights and another 5 with 95 elite night credits.


You have the ability to chose them at 50 and 75 nights.


----------



## bazzap (May 5, 2019)

Fasttr said:


> You have the ability to chose them at 50 and 75 nights.


Some of the options though are more limited, so you can only claim a free night at 75 nights not at 50 nights.


----------



## LisaH (May 5, 2019)

Pamplemousse said:


> LisaH,
> Following back through this thread—was this a suite night request and did you request SN on 2 different reservations and cancel one and get your nights back on the cancellation?  How far in advance did your SN confirmation come?  Thanks


I did make reservations at both JW Marriott and Westin. At five days prior to check in, I received emails that they were still working on my upgrade requests. Westin came through the next day and I immediately canceled booking at JW Marriott. It was a cash reservation so SNAs were returned to my account right away and no money was charged.


----------



## jtp1947 (May 11, 2019)

My mistake, yes, 75 nights, not 95.


----------



## Saintsfanfl (May 11, 2019)

controller1 said:


> I just applied my first Suite Night Awards to an upcoming 5-night stay at St. Regis NYC.  The two choices available were the Deluxe Suite and the Astor Suite.  Keeping my fingers crossed!



One thing you can do if you really want one Suite over another is initially only choose the one you prefer. Then if it doesn’t match at the 5 day mark you can add the other. You can always see if the upgrade is even possible by trying to book the suites 6 days out. If the one you prefer isn’t available then there is no drawback to adding the other.


----------



## controller1 (May 11, 2019)

Saintsfanfl said:


> One thing you can do if you really want one Suite over another is initially only choose the one you prefer. Then if it doesn’t match at the 5 day mark you can add the other. You can always see if the upgrade is even possible by trying to book the suites 6 days out. If the one you prefer isn’t available then there is no drawback to adding the other.



I'm going to have to be really lucky to get a suite.  The hotel is sold out of all rooms on the fifth night of our stay!  Oh, well......


----------



## Saintsfanfl (May 11, 2019)

controller1 said:


> I'm going to have to be really lucky to get a suite.  The hotel is sold out of all rooms on the fifth night of our stay!  Oh, well......



That’s the problem with trying to use SNAs with a long reservation. You could book the first 4 nights separately and then place a request for the 4 and another for the last night. Might be more trouble than it’s worth.


----------



## controller1 (May 11, 2019)

Saintsfanfl said:


> That’s the problem with trying to use SNAs with a long reservation. You could book the first 4 nights separately and then place a request for the 4 and another for the last night. Might be more trouble than it’s worth.



This is an award stay with the fifth night free and it was made prior to the introduction of the new Category 8.  Therefore, I've got the five nights for 240,000 points vs the current rate of 340,000 points.  Additionally, as I said the fifth night is completely sold out so I would only be able to stay four nights.  Regardless, we'll be happy with the Superior Room.


----------



## Safti (May 12, 2019)

Would those 50 nights count towards status and therefore do you get another 5 suite nights ?


----------



## frank808 (May 12, 2019)

Safti said:


> Would those 50 nights count towards status and therefore do you get another 5 suite nights ?


Every calendar year, when you hit 50 nights you can choose the 5 SNA as your award.  Right now, I have 5 SNA from last year that expire 12/19 and 5 more SNA that expire 12/20.  I chose 5 SNA for this years 50 night award. I still havent been able to choose my 75 night award yet for this year.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk


----------



## Eli Mairs (May 19, 2019)

This is an update to my request for two suite night awards at the Gritti Palace in Venice. The request was denied yesterday - the day before check in.
We received a slight upgrade from a superior room @1,256 euros/ night to a Venetian room @1,336 euros/night. Luckily, we are staying on points.
The room was ready when we checked in at 10 am, which was nice after a long overnight flight.
We chose breakfast rather than 1,000 points. That was a no brainer.
Room service came by with a nice bottle of wine and two wine glasses.
The suites that we were able to request for the SNA were going for 2,856 and 4,356 euros. I’m not complaining. The room is lovely, and we have been treated very well. I just don’t know why the Gritti Palace participates in this program. I can’t imagine SNAs ever being granted due to the high cost of these suites.


----------



## LisaH (May 19, 2019)

Good for you! So this is a free upgrade and no SNA is used?
When we stayed in Westin Chongqing last week in the upgraded executive suite, we received both free breakfast (plus lounge access) and 1000 points, which was very generous.


----------



## Eli Mairs (May 19, 2019)

Yes, a free upgrade. The SNAs were deposited back into our account, but doubt we’ll be able to use them as we will be staying in a few lower end Marriott’s while driving to and from Florida later this year. We do have one requested for New Orleans in October. Fingers crossed.
Gritti Palace does not have a lounge.
I was happy to be offered the breakfast. The last time we stayed here we had the most expensive breakfast ever, and had to pay for it!


----------



## Saintsfanfl (May 20, 2019)

Eli Mairs said:


> This is an update to my request for two suite night awards at the Gritti Palace in Venice. The request was denied yesterday - the day before check in.
> We received a slight upgrade from a superior room @1,256 euros/ night to a Venetian room @1,336 euros/night. Luckily, we are staying on points.
> The room was ready when we checked in at 10 am, which was nice after a long overnight flight.
> We chose breakfast rather than 1,000 points. That was a no brainer.
> ...



I do not believe the terms of an SNA allow it to be denied. They auto-cancel the day prior if the selected suite is not available. If the room you are able to choose is available then the upgrade is guaranteed. You can check this by seeing if the exact room type is available to book. If you believe that somehow someone blocked the upgrade due to the price then you should contact Marriott rewards and complain.


----------



## Dean (May 20, 2019)

Saintsfanfl said:


> I do not believe the terms of an SNA allow it to be denied. They auto-cancel the day prior if the selected suite is not available. If the room you are able to choose is available then the upgrade is guaranteed. You can check this by seeing if the exact room type is available to book. If you believe that somehow someone blocked the upgrade due to the price then you should contact Marriott rewards and complain.


There was a previous report of someone getting an upgrade that was "too much" and having the entire reservation canceled due to this.  I haven't looked at the wording but they stated the fine print allowed them to do this.


----------



## Steve Fatula (May 23, 2019)

My SNA worked in Fiji. Got upgraded to a over water bure. Not bad since I used a cat5 cert there, so ending up with a $700/nt over water villa for free! In this case, well worth it and very pleased.


----------



## 4Sunsets (May 24, 2019)

Steve Fatula said:


> My SNA worked in Fiji. Got upgraded to a over water bure. Not bad since I used a cat5 cert there, so ending up with a $700/nt over water villa for free! In this case, well worth it and very pleased.



Congrats! I'd be over the moon with that result!


----------



## Davey54321 (Dec 11, 2019)

@Eli Mairs you said “We do have one requested for New Orleans in October. Fingers crossed” do you mind if i ask if you if you got the requested upgrade for New Orleans and regardless, which hotel in Nola that was for? We are going to New Orleans ourselves in a few weeks and have had an upgrade request in for the past 4 (or 5?) months...


----------



## jpc763 (Dec 11, 2019)

Just got back from a trip to Coronado at the Coronado Marriott and was upgraded to a City View room  It was a great room over the water with a view of the San Diego skyline.  Well worth the certificates!


----------



## jtp1947 (Dec 12, 2019)

We love the Coronado Marriott but the $40 resort fee is a bit much.


----------



## GetawaysRus (Dec 12, 2019)

jtp1947 said:


> We love the Coronado Marriott but the $40 resort fee is a bit much.



It does seem that Marriott has learned from the airlines.  The resort fees and the parking fees are getting irritating.  

We used a Chase reward night to stay at a cat 5 Springhill Suites about 2 weeks ago.  It was only because my wife had an early medical appointment and we didn't want to fight the traffic for several hours early in the morning.  So it was a "free night stay" with an $18 overnight parking fee.  (That's for self parking, not valet parking.)  I suppose I was lucky that it wasn't a resort property.

I've seen many big city Marriotts with parking fees in the range of $35-40 daily.


----------



## MOXJO7282 (Dec 12, 2019)

I just got a great suite night upgrade for my daughter and her boyfriend in Italy at the Westin Rome Excelsior earlier this month. Used a 5 night cert and then the suite award and they got a crazy upgrade to a grandluxe room that had a living room and huge bedroom and wraparound balcony. I was so happy they let my daughter use the cert and the suite award. She has my last name so I'm sure that helped.


----------



## LisaH (Dec 13, 2019)

MOXJO7282 said:


> I just got a great suite night upgrade for my daughter and her boyfriend in Italy at the Westin Rome Excelsior earlier this month. Used a 5 night cert and then the suite award and they got a crazy upgrade to a grandluxe room that had a living room and huge bedroom and wraparound balcony. I was so happy they let my daughter use the cert and the suite award. She has my last name so I'm sure that helped.


Was the reservation under her name? I thought the certificates can only be used for the account holder.


----------



## ilene13 (Dec 13, 2019)

LisaH said:


> Was the reservation under her name? I thought the certificates can only be used for the account holder.


Me too, they wouldn’t let us use one for our son!


----------



## MOXJO7282 (Dec 13, 2019)

ilene13 said:


> Me too, they wouldn’t let us use one for our son!


I'm surprised because I've done this a number of times for wife and daughter previously.  I just add their names.


----------



## LisaH (Dec 13, 2019)

MOXJO7282 said:


> I'm surprised because I've done this a number of times for wife and daughter previously.  I just add their names.



I see. So the reservation is under your name, and you add your daughter or wife’s name to the reservation even though you do not check in yourself?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## StevenTing (Dec 13, 2019)

I’ve added names to certificate reservations.  No issues there.  However the SNA was denied since I wasn’t present at check in.


----------



## LisaH (Dec 13, 2019)

StevenTing said:


> I’ve added names to certificate reservations.  No issues there.  However the SNA was denied since I wasn’t present at check in.



That’s what I thought to be the case...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## SueDonJ (Dec 13, 2019)

StevenTing said:


> I’ve added names to certificate reservations.  No issues there.  However the SNA was denied since I wasn’t present at check in.



That's been my experience, too. We've never had a problem with booking rooms for our adult kids to stay without us, leaving Don's name on the reservations and adding guest's names. They've never questioned that's it's not him checking in, even when they were booked on certs or Bonvoy Points, and they've been generous with upgrades and Lounge access more often than not, but they've refused every time to allow SNA's to be attached.

I had a Renaissance Times Square trip with my sisters and our daughters a few weeks ago (go see To Kill A Mockingbird on Broadway - it was fabulous!) using four rooms, two on cash and two on Points. This was the first time I'd ever been denied access to the Lounge, for even one of the rooms, and SNA's weren't an option. I know that's the rules but honestly, it was the first time in all these years that we came up against them being so rigidly followed, the first time that Don's status wasn't considered for a room booked in his account. The guy at check-in told me it was probably because while I was checking in to the four rooms in NYC, Don was already checked in to the JW in Bangalore. <shrug>


----------



## MOXJO7282 (Dec 13, 2019)

I was concerned that they wouldn't honor the upgrade because I was actually at the Frenchman's Cove at the time but they did.


----------



## Ann in CA (Dec 14, 2019)

TravelTime said:


> I got a suite upgrade without a SNA in Madrid (due to Titanium status) but no suite upgrades where I requested SNAs. However, I did get a regular room upgrade even though SNA was denied. I will be in Edinburgh next week but not bothering with SNAs. I have some SNAs requested for BVI and Costa Rica. Let's see if I get those.


We'll be in Edinburgh in July for a granddaughter's wedding. Right now I have 5 days at the Courtyard booked, but Glass House looks more interesting and the Residence Inn has better reviews.  Do you have a favorite in Edinburgh?  The wedding is at Castle Campbell so we will be in a village near there later, but the location of the Courtyard sounded good. Any favorite restaurants in Edinburgh?  Haven't been there since the 1970s, so hoping to get back to Isle of Skye and that spectacular West Coast of Scotland. Thanks for any opinions. We'll have 5 suite upgrades, but I have never used them before so am trying to learn all the ins and outs.  Very helpful, and I'll check the link to Flyertalk!


----------



## ilene13 (Dec 16, 2019)

We are going to Boca Raton for 2 nights 1/3-1/5.  We are using MR.  I just called to request a suite night and I was told that I couldn’t get it for the property that we are going to.  The MR representative said that it if it was available I would have been asked on the website if I wanted to request it.  I’ve never been able to use them.  Why have the free ones?  I’d love to hear some other experiences.


----------



## jme (Dec 16, 2019)

ilene13 said:


> We are going to Boca Raton for 2 nights 1/3-1/5.  We are using MR.  I just called to request a suite night and I was told that I couldn’t get it for the property that we are going to.  The MR representative said that it if it was available I would have been asked on the website if I wanted to request it.  I’ve never been able to use them.  Why have the free ones?  I’d love to hear some other experiences.



I have gotten several upgrades using these, and I have also been denied, but there were valid reasons.
These are the reasons they may not always be available, in my experience:
All hotels are different---some have larger or better "regular" rooms (views, location, layout, etc which are often more expensive ),
some have suites, but some hotels have all the same type rooms.

You must be booked at a hotel that has upgradable rooms in the first place to have a shot at them.
If a suite or "better" upgrade is there, you might get it.
If the higher level rooms ARE available, ie, nobody has already purchased them by the time you arrive, you will get it.
They say call the week before----that's because they're holding out for someone to purchase them. Makes financial sense for them.
It's an award, not something you paid for necessarily, so the chance at getting a great upgrade is still possible,
and when you do get it it's quite nice, but is totally a toss of the coin.

Recent Examples: I got a fabulous upgrade at Boston's Long Wharf Hotel in October (> nice large suite),
but did NOT get one two weeks ago at Charleston SC's Renaissance Hotel in the historic district
(hotel always sold out and higher level rooms had been purchased).
In October of 2018 we got awesome upgrades for TWO rooms for three nights (two couples) at Rome's Palazzo Naiadi.
I have twice elected the Suite Night Upgrade Rewards even knowing they may not always be available, only because when you do get them,
they're generally fabulous and perhaps cost prohibitive otherwise.
It's worth the chance, imho....and far better than a free night (or the other awards).


----------



## Steve Fatula (Dec 16, 2019)

Yep, at Springhill Suites in Zion national park, there are no better rooms, they are all the same. So, you never get any upgrade there.


----------



## TheTimeTraveler (Dec 16, 2019)

Just doing some out loud thinking about the "Suite Night Award" upgrade............Since the upgrade points expire at the end of each calendar year then doesn't it make sense that there is good availability at all locations for the first few months of each year ?

I am making the presumption that all eligible members are competing with each other, and the competition is far greater later in the year when many members reach the 50 night usage which triggers the SNA.

Basically, NO members can realistically qualify for SNA until at least February 20th, and then that assumes they've been away from home and qualifying for 50 straight nights.   In reality, most members won't qualify until later in the year.

In essence there should be 100% upgrade availability of rooms during January, and most of February each year with fewer and fewer SNA rooms as the year progresses.....

Just a few interesting things to think about.





.


----------



## jme (Dec 16, 2019)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> Just doing some out loud thinking about the "Suite Night Award" upgrade............Since the upgrade points expire at the end of each calendar year then doesn't it make sense that there is good availability at all locations for the first few months of each year ?
> 
> I am making the presumption that all eligible members are competing with each other, and the competition is far greater later in the year when many members reach the 50 night usage which triggers the SNA.
> 
> ...



Mine go over into the following year whenever I elect them, so no.
For instance I elected them this past year when I went over 50 & 75 nights, and they are good for 2020.
I reached that level of 50 & 75 about mid-year, and saw that I immediately qualified for the awards, so I went in and elected those.
You're actually not competing with those others who have the awards too, but you're competing with those who have already booked
the higher-level rooms and suites. That is, who paid cash (or whatever other means) for those best rooms. If they're all sold, no one will get an upgrade.
And people paying cash definitely book those for the following Jan, Feb, Mar, April, and so on.....


----------



## frank808 (Dec 16, 2019)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> Just doing some out loud thinking about the "Suite Night Award" upgrade............Since the upgrade points expire at the end of each calendar year then doesn't it make sense that there is good availability at all locations for the first few months of each year ?
> 
> I am making the presumption that all eligible members are competing with each other, and the competition is far greater later in the year when many members reach the 50 night usage which triggers the SNA.
> 
> ...


The SNA awards I earned in 2019 are good till 12/31/2020.  

Sent from my SM-T377P using Tapatalk


----------



## jme (Dec 16, 2019)

frank808 said:


> The SNA awards I earned in 2019 are good till 12/31/2020.
> 
> Sent from my SM-T377P using Tapatalk



Exactly, otherwise they would be difficult if not impossible to use.
In general for those who elect them, they'll be good for the remainder of the current year in which they were elected, 
and for the full following year, or at least that's what I understand from the Rewards people at Marriott, and also that's how it's listed in my account.


----------



## frank808 (Dec 16, 2019)

jme said:


> Exactly, otherwise they would be difficult if not impossible to use.
> In general for those who elect them, they'll be good for the remainder of the current year in which they were elected, and for the full following year, or at least that's what I understand from the Rewards people at Marriott.


That has been my experience with SNA expirations these past 2 years.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk


----------



## jabberwocky (Dec 16, 2019)

I have four expiring this year (12/31/19) I hit Titanium in June this year and thought I could use more of them but was only able to use one this past weekend. 

Most properties I was at gave a free upgrade or were already essentially all-suite properties.  I also shifted a lot of my stays to Hyatt to get status with them as I actually prefer staying there even though I don’t have Globalist status.


----------



## ilene13 (Dec 16, 2019)

jme said:


> I have gotten several upgrades using these, and I have also been denied, but there were valid reasons.
> These are the reasons they may not always be available, in my experience:
> All hotels are different---some have larger or better "regular" rooms (views, location, layout, etc which are often more expensive ),
> some have suites, but some hotels have all the same type rooms.
> ...


Thank you.  I called the hotel directly and they said that they do participate in the SNA.  She connected me to someone at Bonvoy who submitted my request.  I am sick of representatives who are not all on the same page!


----------



## jmhpsu93 (Jan 7, 2020)

I'm 2 for 2 now, just got upgraded from 1 BR to 2 BR at a Residence Inn in Baltimore Saturday night (we're going to the Ravens game).  20K points for a 2BR dowtown - pretty good ROI $386 cash rate) though this is certainly off peak here in the mid-Atlantic.


----------



## frank808 (Jan 7, 2020)

Got upgraded yesterday on a one night stay at WESTIN Ft Lauderdale this Thursday. Got upgraded to 1br corner ocean view suite . 

FIRST match of SNA since Marriott started this program. Glad we got to use one SNA. Maybe will be lucky this year and use at least 3 of 10 SNA. 

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk


----------



## LisaH (Jan 14, 2020)

I don’t see any SNA in my account. Called Marriott and was told they will be awarded on Jan 28. Does that mean no reservation can be upgraded using SNAs between Jan 1-27? If so, how come the two previous posts both got upgraded?


----------



## Fasttr (Jan 14, 2020)

LisaH said:


> I don’t see any SNA in my account. Called Marriott and was told they will be awarded on Jan 28. Does that mean no reservation can be upgraded using SNAs between Jan 1-27? If so, how come the two previous posts both got upgraded?


You can elect (but you need to do it) SNA's as your benefit of choice (among others) as soon as you reach 50 nights, and again at 75 nights.  Are they just assigning you SNA's because you did not make a selection on your own???


----------



## LisaH (Jan 14, 2020)

Thank you. I obviously didn’t understand the rule. 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Eli Mairs (Jan 14, 2020)

I reached 50 nights in November. I don’t remember receiving an email, but looking back, it was in my email account. Apparently I chose 5 elite night awards, instead of suite night awards, which would have been my choice.
I only had 53 nights at the time, so it would serve no purpose to choose the elite night awards in November.
When I called a Bonvoy, they said there was nothing they could do to change it to suite night awards.
I’m annoyed, but not too upset, as most of my suite night requests in 2019 were denied - for Venice and New Orleans, and I had two left at the end of the year, which were unused. 
I guess I can relax and not stress about not getting the suite night award.


----------



## Carlsbadguy (Jan 14, 2020)

Do people think at 75 nights the 5 SNAs or the free night certificate is a better option? This past year used 4 of my 5 SNAs and had great upgrades but not as much travel planned this year.


----------



## jonmaiman (Jan 15, 2020)

It is a very personal decision.   For me, I'd rather have the free night.   We were able to use 3 of 5 SNA's last year and of those, I used one for work since they were going to expire soon.   So for me, 5 SNA's is more than sufficient for a year.   For other folks, if their travel patterns are such that they are better able to use the SNA's than 5 nights in a suite might be better than one standard room night free.   

For your situation, I'd probably go for the free night since your travel will be down for the year.   So less chances to even try to use an SNA.  Good luck with whatever you choose.   Make sure you do it today or the decision will default to SNA.  1/15 is the last day to select your annual choice benefit.

--Jon


----------



## Carlsbadguy (Jan 15, 2020)

I decided on the free night as planing a night in downtown Los Angeles in March and could use it at a couple of hotels there.


----------



## bazzap (Jan 15, 2020)

Carlsbadguy said:


> Do people think at 75 nights the 5 SNAs or the free night certificate is a better option? This past year used 4 of my 5 SNAs and had great upgrades but not as much travel planned this year.


I choose the 5x SNAs at 50 nights and the free night at 75 nights.
My SNA requests were not accepted last year, but I received upgrades anyway.
I would choose the free night at 50 nights too, if that had been an option.


----------



## Colt Seavers (Jan 16, 2020)

My Suite Night Award dreams were recently dashed against the craggy rocks of the cliffs of Bonvoy.  We normally get around 30 nights but reached 50 on December 30 and began checking for the award choice notification.  A few days later I was informed that credit card reward nights do not count toward the 50 night bonus, meaning it is once again out of reach for the foreseeable future.


----------



## Pamplemousse (Jan 16, 2020)

Are you sure about that?
I would never ever hit the 50 nights without my cc spend nights and I earned the reward last year.
Maybe its new this year but I have not read a notification.


----------



## MichaelColey (Jan 16, 2020)

I've had over 75 nights each of the past two years, and selected 5 SNA for both 50 and 75 nights.  I've been very hit and miss on the upgrades, and it's frustrating.

On one, I got confirmed for the upgrade, then when I got to the hotel they tried to tell me that the upgraded room wasn't available.  After about an hour talking with them, talking with Marriott CS, and talking to the manager, they "found" a room.

On another, the upgraded room showed as available 6 days before check-in, 5 days before (when it should have confirmed), and 4 days before.  But I never got my upgrade.  It disappeared at 3 days out.  I cancelled and rebooked at a different hotel and was able to get an upgrade (without having to use my SNA).

Most of my others went through.  For some that didn't, I booked a second room.

The SNA awards are a huge perk for me, and it keeps me fairly loyal to Marriott.  (The fact that I'm lifetime Platinum helps, too, but I've been staying enough to hit Titanium.)  With a family of 5, used to staying in timeshares, a 2BR is almost a necessity.  Most of my travel is without the family, but when I travel with them, we want plenty of room.


----------



## VacationForever (Jan 16, 2020)

Colt Seavers said:


> My Suite Night Award dreams were recently dashed against the craggy rocks of the cliffs of Bonvoy.  We normally get around 30 nights but reached 50 on December 30 and began checking for the award choice notification.  A few days later I was informed that credit card reward nights do not count toward the 50 night bonus, meaning it is once again out of reach for the foreseeable future.


If you are referring to the 15 nights for credit card membership, they do count towards elite nights stay.  They only award 1 15 nights even if you have more than one Marriott Bonvoy credit card.  If you see 50 nights, they are real.  You need to call them to get your award choice for 50 nights.


----------



## jeff76543 (Jan 18, 2020)

VacationForever said:


> If you are referring to the 15 nights for credit card membership, they do count towards elite nights stay.  They only award 1 15 nights even if you have more than one Marriott Bonvoy credit card.  If you see 50 nights, they are real.  You need to call them to get your award choice for 50 nights.


I had exactly 50 elite nights this year and 15 of them were from the credit card bonus. I did receive the award choice and choose (and received) the 5 nights suite award.


----------



## hangloose (Jan 19, 2020)

Looking to grab a few nights in Charleston, SC soon. Anyone know which Marriott hotels might accept or have the best chance to use a SNA there?


----------



## TheTimeTraveler (Jan 19, 2020)

hangloose said:


> Looking to grab a few nights in Charleston, SC soon. Anyone know which Marriott hotels might accept or have the best chance to use a SNA there?




At this time of year it shouldn't be a problem as it is not prime time.  Take your pick of any Charleston location.



.


----------



## wackymother (Jan 19, 2020)

Carlsbadguy said:


> Do people think at 75 nights the 5 SNAs or the free night certificate is a better option? This past year used 4 of my 5 SNAs and had great upgrades but not as much travel planned this year.



I took the SNAs at 50, and the free night at 75. 

We used the SNAs at the Sheraton Centre in Toronto last year, and got a nice 1br suite. We were happy to have the extra room.


----------



## Dean (Jan 19, 2020)

hangloose said:


> Looking to grab a few nights in Charleston, SC soon. Anyone know which Marriott hotels might accept or have the best chance to use a SNA there?


I can't speak to that issue though we're headed there this summer for a week staying at Bluegreen's Lodge Alley Inn.  If you're looking at the historic district as your main option you might be better off reserving something close and just hoping for the upgrade.  Of the 4 closest I suspect the Renaissance will be the most likely to upgrade but again, I have no direct experience with the hotels there.  You might also call and speak to a manager at the ones you're looking at.


----------



## Wahoo Josh (Jan 19, 2020)

I applied for SNA for a 5-day business stay (early November) in Columbus OH at a Courtyard near downtown and got it.  Over 700 sq ft - very nice.  I'm now Titanium Elite, and had a couple of one-night stays at  Fairfield Inns (Jacksonville and Savannah) bumped up into suites during our trip to the Orange Bowl.


----------



## Colt Seavers (Jan 21, 2020)

VacationForever said:


> If you are referring to the 15 nights for credit card membership, they do count towards elite nights stay.  They only award 1 15 nights even if you have more than one Marriott Bonvoy credit card.  If you see 50 nights, they are real.  You need to call them to get your award choice for 50 nights.



You are exactly right and I called back and the agent fixed it for me with no problem.  They were worried that the link to make the choice would not work since it was past the selection deadline but it let me choose the award with no issues.  I think the problem was that the last stay was on December 30 and it did not show in my account until after the new year.

I suppose I should insert the standard rant about the declining quality of the Marriott phone support staff.  Even more disappointing that the first representative even checked with a supervisor before coming back with the wrong information.

Now on to my next dilemma as the hotel I was hoping to use only offers a slightly bigger non-suite room (worth around $25 more per night) for the award selection even though they have several types of suites listed.  Almost seems they should stop calling them "suite" awards if they do not have at least the remote possibility of getting a suite at any hotel that has them available.


----------



## BarbmC (Jan 22, 2020)

pedro47 said:


> What are the best practices to used suite nights awards?


We were told during a sales presentation to look at the hotels that came from the SPG merger.  SPG hotels tend to have many more suites than Marriott hotels.


----------



## mjkkb2 (Jan 22, 2020)

I found that getting an agent on the phone gets you a better chance of having the SNA confirmed.  We always use the app for our bookings.  My last one was in Nov 2019 at Key largo Beach Resort.  Had the request not filled and decided to call 4 days before check-in because suites were available for cash.  Agent cancelled my reservation and rebooked while on the phone, and automatically confirmed my upgrade.  It was the Thanksgiving weekend too.  It's worth a try, especially if you see that the suites are available for your dates....


----------



## controller1 (Jan 22, 2020)

mjkkb2 said:


> I found that getting an agent on the phone gets you a better chance of having the SNA confirmed.  We always use the app for our bookings.  My last one was in Nov 2019 at Key largo Beach Resort.  Had the request not filled and decided to call 4 days before check-in because suites were available for cash.  Agent cancelled my reservation and rebooked while on the phone, and automatically confirmed my upgrade.  It was the Thanksgiving weekend too.  It's worth a try, especially if you see that the suites are available for your dates....



SNAs are completely automated by corporate and getting an agent on the phone does not change the chance of having an SNA confirmed. There may have been a problem with your SNA but the agent was not able to do anything you could not have done yourself.


----------



## mjkkb2 (Jan 23, 2020)

I don't doubt what you are saying, however my last experience was just like I described.  Coincidence, quite possible, but I will definitely try calling next time my SNA are not getting confirmed....


----------



## ljmiii (Feb 2, 2020)

mjkkb2 said:


> I found that getting an agent on the phone gets you a better chance of having the SNA confirmed....


Another data point...though I'm not sure what it means. Yesterday (5 days out) I got an email saying my SNA request is pending. So I logged in to check the SNA status and to see which suites were still available and it cancelled my SNA request before I could do anything else. So I submitted another SNA request (for a lesser suite) and it 'took'. Today I got another "We're Working on Your Upgrade Request" email and called as you suggested.

The customer service rep had no idea why it would cancel my previous request and was equally of no help in understanding how to 'rerequest' my original SNA nor the status of my current request beyond reiterating that 'the computer randomly chooses to fulfill SNA requests'.  From our what it's worth department there is cash availability for both my original request and my 'new' SNA. I think I'll try again Monday 9-5 in hopes of getting a more clueful CSR.


----------

