# 135,000 points for stay eCertificate plus 3 upgrade certificates required per night



## live4life (Jul 31, 2014)

Folks: I am trying to make a reservation that requires the points mentioned in the title of this thread. I tried looking at the sticky to try to find an explanation to the additional requirements and did not see one.

Q. I've heard of AC certs in II, but what is an eCertificate when reserving a Marriott Room AND

how do you also obtain an upgrade certificate?


Please advise. thanks


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## dioxide45 (Jul 31, 2014)

If you are not using a current hotel certificate (from a travel package), I think you just book the room you want and it subtracts the appropriate number of points (including the 3x5000 for the upgrade certificates). If you have a travel package hotel cert, you may have to call Marriott Rewards (during normal business hours Mon-Fri) to add the upgrade certificates.

An eCertificiate is just that, in a lot of cases these are the 1 night cat 1-4 or 105 certificates that people get from the Chase Credit card or MegaBonus promotions. I think that perhaps a certificate from a travel package is also considered an eCertificate.


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## LUV2TRVL2HI (Aug 1, 2014)

We have found that when you make a reservation using Marriott Reward Points, the points are automatically deducted from your MR account, and an e-certificate for a certain number of nights in a standard room category is sent from Marriott Rewards directly to the hotel.  (You do not have to obtain the stay certificate yourself and take it with you to the hotel (as you had to do several years ago).  The up-grade certificate is usually required in addition to the standard e-certificate and is required if you upgrade from a hotel room to a suite, better view location, higher floor, etc., or to a Marriott Vacation Club resort .  The higher the upgrade, the more upgrade certificates required.  A night's stay in a 2-bedroom villa in a Vacation Club resort will take more upgrade certificates per night than a 1-bedroom villa; a 1-bedroom villa will require more upgrade certificates than a studio.  These are also automatically sent along with the e-certificate to the hotel.  Hope this helps a little.


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## live4life (Aug 1, 2014)

So am I understanding this correctly ... the certificates are added to my MRP account once I click what is required for the purchase of the room and the points are deducted- then the certificates will follow before I check in?

So in this case, it's only 135,000 points that is needed so that the certs and upgrade certs are included in this points allocation?


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## Fasttr (Aug 1, 2014)

live4life said:


> So am I understanding this correctly ... the certificates are added to my MRP account once I click what is required for the purchase of the room and the points are deducted- then the certificates will follow before I check in?
> 
> So in this case, it's only 135,000 points that is needed so that the certs and upgrade certs are included in this points allocation?



This is like a story problem without enough inputs.

I believe we need to know the Marriott hotel category and # of nights before we have enough info to fully answer your question.


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## SueDonJ (Aug 1, 2014)

It's hard to be specific without knowing what/when you're trying to book, but as you click through each of the available options at marriott.com the total amount of MRP's that you're seeing for a stay should eventually include the base rate plus whatever upgrade certs are required.

On marriott.com, input your desired dates/location and the page that comes up will show any available rooms/units with the base rates according to the hotel/resort category.  You must click "Continue" on each option to get the total MRP required for each option.  You can then click on "About this rate" for any of those options to get the breakdown.

For example, 1/12-16/15 at Barony Beach Club requires 180,000 MRP, which is 140,000 base (Category 7 at 35,000 per night for 4 nights) plus 40,000 (2 upgrade certs per night @ 5,000 ea.)

Like others have said, the system will deduct the total required MRP for your stay and the e-certs will be issued automatically.

Note the base rates for any Vacation Club properties are based on studio-size units and the hotel/resort category of the property.  Each additional bedroom will require one 5,000 MRP upgrade cert per night, even at the resorts which do not have studio units.


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## live4life (Aug 1, 2014)

It's a 3 Bedroom Townhouse at Marriott's Village d'lle-de-France. Specifically, June 10-13th 2015. Here's what it states before pressing the select button: 135,000 points for stay
eCertificate plus 3 upgrade certificates required per night"

Again, I am not interested in the debate about paying cash or not. I just want to find out what the terminology means and how to obtain them for future use using MRPs.


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## live4life (Aug 1, 2014)

Sue ... I did not see your post before I posted mine. I was responding to FASTR.


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## live4life (Aug 1, 2014)

So are certs and upgrade certs valued the same in the Marriott system?


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## SueDonJ (Aug 1, 2014)

live4life said:


> So are certs and upgrade certs valued the same in the Marriott system?



Yes, as far as each hotel/resort in the same Category requiring the same amount of MRP's, and each additional bedroom requiring the same upgrade amount, yes.

Is that what you mean?

(I'm sure there are other things throughout the whole portfolio that might require upgrade certs but none that I can think of that would apply to Vacation Club properties.  I don't know if those different upgrade certs require something other than 5,000 MRP.)


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## Fasttr (Aug 1, 2014)

live4life said:


> It's a 3 Bedroom Townhouse at Marriott's Village d'lle-de-France. Specifically, June 10-13th 2015. Here's what it states before pressing the select button: 135,000 points for stay
> eCertificate plus 3 upgrade certificates required per night"
> 
> Again, I am not interested in the debate about paying cash or not. I just want to find out what the terminology means and how to obtain them for future use using MRPs.



So category 6 hotel (for Studio room) at 30K MRP per night for 3 nights = 90K

+ 3 nights with 3 stepups each night (Studio to 1BR, to 2BR to 3BR) at 5K MR points each = 45K 

Total needed = 135K

Makes sense.


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## SueDonJ (Aug 1, 2014)

live4life said:


> It's a 3 Bedroom Townhouse at Marriott's Village d'lle-de-France. Specifically, June 10-13th 2015. Here's what it states before pressing the select button: 135,000 points for stay
> eCertificate plus 3 upgrade certificates required per night"
> 
> Again, I am not interested in the debate about paying cash or not. I just want to find out what the terminology means and how to obtain them for future use using MRPs.



That's a Category 6 property, so a base rate of 90,000 for the 3 nights (30,000 per,) plus 45,000 in upgrade certs (3 bedrooms X 3 nights = 9 certs X 5,000.)


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## Fasttr (Aug 1, 2014)

SueDonJ said:


> That's a Category 6 property, so a base rate of 90,000 for the 3 nights (30,000 per,) plus 45,000 in upgrade certs (3 bedrooms X 3 nights = 9 certs X 5,000.)



Look at your own paper....quit copying!!!


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## SueDonJ (Aug 1, 2014)

It's math.  And it's Friday.  Math on Friday should be outlawed.


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## GreenTea (Aug 1, 2014)

I booked 5 nights at the resort on points.  It said 120K points plus 2 upgrade certificates per night.  170K points were deducted.  Hope that helps.


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## Fasttr (Aug 1, 2014)

GreenTea said:


> I booked 5 nights at the resort on points.  It said 120K points plus 2 upgrade certificates per night.  170K points were deducted.  Hope that helps.



And you benefited from the "book 4 nights with MR, get the 5th night free" deal ....but they still hit you for the upgrade certs for the 5th night.


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## live4life (Aug 1, 2014)

You guys are the best!!! Thanks ...


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