No Upgrades, Thin Walls, And $400 Rates: Marriott’s The Alexandrian Epitomizes Bonvoy’s Biggest Failures
No Upgrades, Skinny Partitions, And $400 Fees: Marriott’s The Alexandrian Epitomizes Bonvoy’s Biggest Failures
I spent only a few nights this earlier week at Marriott’s The Alexandrian Autograph Assortment lodge in Outdated Metropolis Alexandria (Northern Virginia). And it really stood out merely how quite a bit Marriott, and the property, thinks it may really get away with.
At check-in I was suggested that as a Platinum member I was upgraded “to a king room.” That’s what was booked, and had confirmed in my account for a month. I requested whether or not or not there have been one other upgrades on the market, and the agent on the desk didn’t even look, didn’t even let me finish the (transient) sentence. He abruptly interrupted, “no, no upgrades, nothing.” He’s been clearly educated. Experiences from Ambassador members are that upgrades aren’t provided even when the lodge is empty.
Platinums can’t really anticipate upgrades. Marriott markets Platinum as if it’s a kind of elevated standing. In reality, it’s like Hilton Gold. It comes with a financial institution card, and really is lounge entry at these resorts that even have lounges and 4 p.m. late check-out at non-resort properties.
The lodge does present a cheerful hour with free drinks. Properly, it’s not going a cheerful hour. It is for a strict interval of half-hour.
The lodge’s restaurant is certainly subsequent door, though it might be reached by the use of the once more of the lobby. Elite breakfast proper right here is $15 per particular person, as a lot as $30 for two of us. That’s not adequate to cowl essentially the most inexpensive merchandise on the menu (yogurt) and a espresso in order that they’re clearly not complying with Bonvoy program phrases. It doesn’t matter, they’ve apparently been doing this for years and getting away with merely offering a restaurant low value to encourage paid enterprise, like they may with a free appetizer.
That’s moreover one different property that doesn’t understand the excellence between a Welcome Current and the benefits various in lieu of a lounge.
- Marriott requires Autograph Assortment resorts to provide 750 elements or breakfast as a various when there’s no lounge. This lodge does that, nonetheless their breakfast is not going to be compliant as a result of the $15 credit score rating doesn’t cowl the worth of a continental breakfast.
- Marriott individually requires a Welcome Current of “1,000 elements per hold or $10 USD Meals & Beverage (“F&B”) credit score rating per hold” nonetheless this lodge would not do this. They take care of the 750 elements or breakfast as a result of the welcome various.
- Platinums and above are entitled to $100 compensation for each of those failures. Since I was on property for an event, and didn’t have to create friction for my host, I did not declare it (which can absolutely have entailed an argument).
My room was small, and the lodge feels extraordinarily dated. It’s the earlier Kimpton Lodge Monaco property, nonetheless sooner than that it was a Trip Inn Select. Partitions listed under are skinny. I heard each factor from the hallway whereas inside the room.
The lavatory take care of sticks inside the bathroom, so each time I flushed I wanted to manually put the take care of once more inside the upright place to stop water stream inside the tank.
It is a should to crawl beneath the desk to realize an outlet. There are no complimentary bottles of water inside the room – not even for the in-room espresso maker.
The lodge does current every day housekeeping, though I’m not sure it leaves the property tidier.
There’s a pleasing inside courtyard, though too chilly and overcast whereas I was there for anyone to be taking advantage of it.
In some way fees proper right here run from the mid-$200s to mid-$400s. There’s actually one different Autograph Assortment property only some blocks away. You’d possibly identical to the Morrison Residence considerably higher.
Marriott CEO Jim Capuano as quickly as said, “After I die, they’ll put the net-rooms growth amount on my tombstone.” Marriott will seemingly take a cost from any lodge, of any top quality, diluting their producers inside the course of.
On the end of the hold I did talk with a supervisor on the lodge about their benefits. They acknowledged that $15 would not cowl breakfast, nonetheless expressed no actual curiosity in addressing this. They did understand my stage about separate breakfast versus check-in amenity benefits, however.
Additional From View from the Wing
