I have spent a frankly embarrassing number of nights in Marriott hotels across the United States and abroad, from roadside Fairfield Inns to glossy JW Marriotts and Edition properties. I have also held and dropped Marriott Bonvoy elite status, juggled co-branded credit cards, and booked both paid and award stays.
Over time, the question that keeps coming up for me is simple: is Marriott still worth it, or am I hanging on out of habit more than value? What follows is my personal experience, not a promotional brochure. Marriott gets plenty right, but there are also frustrations, fine print and shifting benefits that you only really see once you have lived with the brand for a while.
What I Actually Get When I Book Marriott
When I book a Marriott, I am buying a mix of predictability and hope. Predictability in the sense that I have a rough idea of the room standard, the safety level, and the loyalty benefits I should receive. Hope in the sense that I might get a better room, a nicer lounge, a warmer welcome, or a memorable upgrade. In practice, that balance has been highly inconsistent across my stays.
On the positive side, checking into a Marriott in an unfamiliar city still gives me a certain baseline comfort. The front desk is usually staffed 24/7, the safety protocols are familiar, and the bed and linens tend to be reliably decent even at lower-tier brands like Courtyard and Fairfield. When I am arriving late after a flight delay, that matters more to me than a quirky boutique place that might be closed or minimally staffed.
Where the experience has diverged from my expectations is at the mid-scale and premium level. I have had supposedly full-service Marriotts that felt tired, with dated furniture, worn carpets and odd smells in the hallways, while a cheaper AC or Moxy a few blocks away felt fresher and more thoughtfully designed. The branding hierarchy looks clear on paper, but on the ground the quality overlaps in messy ways. Over time I stopped assuming that “Marriott” or “Sheraton” automatically meant a noticeably better stay than a newer Courtyard or Residence Inn.
The Loyalty Program: Bonvoyed Or Benefiting?
Marriott’s loyalty program, Bonvoy, used to be a big reason I stayed loyal. I remember when earning and redeeming points felt straightforward, and a free breakfast or lounge access was almost guaranteed once I had status. That is not my reality anymore. The program has moved to dynamic pricing, which means the number of points required for a room can change frequently, sometimes dramatically, and not always in ways that feel rational when you look at the cash rate.
As an elite member in some years and a regular guest in others, I have watched benefits become more conditional. Complimentary breakfast depends on the brand, the region and sometimes the specific property. At some hotels I received a full hot breakfast in the restaurant. At others I was given a few dollars in credit that did not even cover coffee and a pastry. The written rules and the way the hotel interprets them can be two different things, and I often found myself pushing back at check-in to get what I believed I was owed.
Upgrades have been another mixed bag. On a good day, I have been proactively moved into a suite with a view without even asking. On a bad day, my upgrade entitlement felt theoretical. The front desk would say there were no upgrades available, yet the app still showed multiple higher room categories bookable with cash. I eventually learned that availability and willingness are separate issues. Marriott repeats that upgrades are “subject to availability” and that wording gives properties a lot of wiggle room.
Redeeming points has become its own game. I have scored some excellent redemptions at expensive resorts where cash prices were eye-watering. I have also opened the app to see a basic airport hotel demanding far more points than felt justifiable. At that point, I might as well book independent or consider another chain. The emotional impact of those swings is real: it erodes my trust in the program, and I find myself checking competitor options more often than I used to.
Service On The Ground: Where Marriott Shines And Slips
If there is one thing I have learned, it is that Marriott as a brand is only as good as the individual team running each property. I have had front desk staff go out of their way to help me reheat food when room service was closed, expedite laundry on a tight schedule, or discreetly handle a noisy neighbor at 2 a.m. Those human touches are why I keep giving Marriott my business despite the irritations. When a manager remembers my name after a long day of travel or sends up a small amenity to recognize a special occasion, it still feels meaningful and appreciated.
Unfortunately, I have also experienced the opposite. At a few properties, especially busy city hotels and resorts in peak season, service has felt rushed, transactional and occasionally indifferent. I have waited twenty minutes in line just to check in, watched one overwhelmed agent juggle multiple complaints, and sensed that elite status meant little when the hotel was running at full capacity. Housekeeping has also become more hit or miss, with reduced daily cleaning the default in many places unless I explicitly request it.
Communication about what is available and when can be poor. I arrived at some hotels expecting an open lounge or restaurant only to find it operating with reduced hours or closed certain days, with only a small sign near the elevator mentioning the change. The website and app did not always reflect those updated hours accurately. This matters when I rely on lounge access for breakfast or workspace, and suddenly those benefits disappear or are severely limited during my stay.
That said, I have noticed that when I calmly but firmly raise issues, many Marriott properties do try to make things right, whether through points, meal credits, or a late checkout. The catch is that I have to advocate for myself, which can be tiring when I am traveling frequently. If you are conflict-averse or do not like asking for adjustments, some of the value that is theoretically there on paper will simply slip through your fingers in practice.
Rooms, Facilities And The Reality Behind The Photos
Room quality has been one of the biggest sources of unevenness for me within Marriott. In newer or recently renovated properties, especially in brands like Westin, Renaissance, or some Autograph Collection hotels, the rooms can be genuinely comfortable and modern. Good lighting, plenty of outlets, effective blackout curtains and reasonably soundproof walls make a noticeable difference. I have had stays where I slept wonderfully and woke up actually refreshed, which is not something I take for granted on the road.
However, I have also been assigned rooms that felt stuck in another decade: popcorn ceilings, scuffed furniture, chipped tile, and bathrooms with poor ventilation. The official photos often highlight the few renovated rooms, but the inventory behind the scenes can still include many older units in need of serious attention. Occasionally, I have needed to return to the front desk and ask for a different room because of lingering odors or noisy mechanical systems. When a hotel is hosting a sports team or a convention, hallway noise can be a real problem even late at night.
Facilities such as gyms and pools vary just as widely. I have worked out in genuinely excellent fitness centers at some Marriott properties with modern equipment and thoughtful layouts. I have also opened the door to what looked like a converted storage room with two aging treadmills and a broken water cooler. Pools can range from resort-quality to “technically exists but not worth using.” Again, the gap between the promise and the reality is where frustration creeps in.
One area where I have noticed a quiet shift is housekeeping standards. Since the pandemic era, many Marriott hotels have moved away from automatic daily cleaning. On paper this is presented as an environmental or staffing consideration. In practice, it means I now need to call or use the app to request service, fresh towels or amenities, and even then timing can be variable. I understand the reasons, but I do miss the feeling of coming back to a fully refreshed room at the end of each day.
Pricing, Fees And The Question Of Real Value
For me, the biggest test of whether Marriott is “worth it” is not loyalty charts or brand marketing. It is the final bill and the feeling I have when I check out. Increasingly, that bill carries multiple layers: base rate, taxes, resort or destination fees, parking charges, and sometimes mandatory charges that cover things I did not use, such as bike rentals or fitness classes. Those extras add up quickly and can make a seemingly reasonable nightly rate far more expensive than expected.
At some resort properties, I have paid substantial resort fees only to find that many of the “included” amenities were either closed, heavily restricted, or something I would never reasonably use. It is difficult not to see that as padding. In urban hotels, destination fees sometimes include credits for drinks or local discounts that sound nice but require effort to redeem and can feel like a poor trade if I am only in town for a quick business trip.
Dynamic pricing also affects the cash side of things. I have seen the same Marriott hotel swing dramatically in price from one week to the next, not just based on demand but due to events or local changes that may or may not matter to me. That is market reality, but when combined with shifting point values, it leaves me constantly doing math instead of simply trusting that my loyalty will be rewarded fairly. On several occasions, an independent hotel or a different chain offered superior value for similar or better quality, and I took that option despite my Marriott points balance.
There are still sweet spots. When I can stack a discounted rate, a promotions-based points bonus, and a co-branded card earning multiplier, I can extract good value out of a Marriott stay. However, it takes deliberate planning. If I book Marriott casually without thinking, I am more likely to overpay relative to what I could get with more flexible searching. For casual travelers who do not want to micromanage their bookings, that complexity is a real downside.
Technology, App Experience And Booking Practicalities
I rely heavily on Marriott’s app to manage my stays. In many ways, it is one of the better hotel apps I use. Mobile check-in, digital room keys at many properties, the ability to chat with the front desk and see my folio are all genuinely useful. When everything works, I can arrive late, go straight to my room, and handle minor requests without picking up the phone, which suits my travel style.
The cracks appear when the digital promises do not line up with hotel practices. I have checked in on the app, received a notification that my room was ready, and then arrived to find a line at the desk because mobile keys were not being issued at that particular property that day. I have sent messages through the app that went unanswered for hours, then had to call anyway. The app sometimes lists lounge hours, restaurant offerings or benefits that do not match what is actually happening on property.
Booking award stays through the app can be clunky too. Availability that shows up on the website may not appear correctly in the app, and vice versa. When I try to use Suite Night Awards or apply specific upgrade instruments, the rules and restrictions are not always obvious. That back-and-forth erodes some of the convenience that technology is supposed to provide.
On the other hand, when the digital experience works, it does make Marriott feel a bit more modern and cohesive than some competitors. Being able to see my full stay history, receipts and upcoming reservations in one place is genuinely helpful for organizing travel. I just wish the information about on-the-ground services was more accurate and current, because that has real implications for things like meal planning and workspace needs.
Who Marriott Works Best For (And When It Let Me Down)
Reflecting on my own stays, I see a clear pattern in when Marriott has been worth it for me and when it has not. It has been most valuable on trips where reliability, coverage and status benefits matter more than personality or maximum savings. In other words, frequent business travel, conferences, one-night airport layovers, or trips where I am moving between cities quickly and do not want to reinvent the wheel with each hotel choice.
On those trips, having the safety net of a large chain with 24/7 support, a familiar check-in process, and a reasonable chance at an upgrade or late checkout has justified the occasional disappointment. I have lost count of the times a late checkout at a Marriott let me shower and regroup after a long morning of meetings, or a lounge provided a quiet spot to get work done with coffee and snacks. For that lifestyle, sticking with one major chain does pay off, at least to a point.
Where Marriott consistently underwhelmed me was on trips where I cared about character, local feel or a more premium experience matching the price tag. At higher-end resorts and urban luxury hotels, I have sometimes walked away thinking that I could have had a more genuinely special stay at an independent hotel or another brand for the same money. A generic lobby, standardized room, and a busy lounge full of status elites all chasing the same limited perks is not my idea of luxury, even if the logo says otherwise.
If I could redo some of my own travel planning, I would be more selective. Instead of reflexively looking for a Marriott first, I would reserve Marriott for places where its scale and infrastructure are an advantage, and be more willing to book outside the ecosystem for vacations, special occasions or destinations with strong independent options. That balance would give me the best of both worlds instead of trying to force Marriott to be all things all the time.
The Takeaway
So is Marriott worth it? For me, the answer is “sometimes, and only if I play it smart.” Marriott still offers meaningful value if I travel frequently, pay attention to promotions, and stay enough nights to reach a tier of status where upgrades, late checkout and bonus points actually materialize with some regularity. The network is vast, which means I can usually find a Marriott-branded option almost anywhere I go, and that coverage has rescued me more than once in unfamiliar places or tight booking windows.
At the same time, I have had to let go of the idea that loyalty automatically equals the best experience or the best price. The loyalty program has become more complex, rewards feel less predictable, and the gap between marketing and on-property reality can be surprisingly wide. I have experienced lackluster rooms, uneven service and disappointing redemptions enough times that I no longer give Marriott a free pass.
Where Marriott is still worth it, in my experience, is for travelers who value consistency over charm, who stay often enough to earn and use status, and who do not mind comparing cash and points each time to find the real sweet spots. If you are an occasional traveler, or if you place a premium on distinctive, local experiences, you might find that slavish loyalty to any one chain, including Marriott, is more limiting than rewarding.
Personally, I will continue to stay with Marriott, but with more intention and less blind loyalty. I will book Marriott when its strengths line up with my needs for that particular trip, and I will not hesitate to walk away when the value is not there. For me, that measured, selective approach is the only way Marriott remains worth it.
FAQ
Q1: Is Marriott Bonvoy still worth joining if I only travel a few times a year?
For occasional travelers, joining is free and you might as well earn points on the stays you do have, but I would not shape my hotel choices solely around Marriott if you only travel a handful of nights a year. You are unlikely to reach meaningful elite status, and independent hotels or other chains might offer better value or experiences on a case-by-case basis.
Q2: As an elite member, do I reliably get room upgrades at Marriott hotels?
In my experience, upgrades are inconsistent. I have enjoyed some great complimentary upgrades, but I have also had stays where nothing materialized, even when higher-category rooms were still for sale. The official promise is “subject to availability,” and individual hotels interpret that generously or stingily depending on the day, occupancy and management attitude.
Q3: How good is Marriott compared to other major hotel chains for business travel?
For business travel, Marriott’s global footprint and relatively strong app make it competitive. I find its consistency better than some chains and worse than others, depending on region. If your company prefers Marriott or you stay often enough to build elite status, it can be a very practical choice. If you are starting from scratch, it is worth comparing Marriott’s coverage and benefits to at least one or two other big chains before committing.
Q4: Are resort and destination fees a big issue at Marriott properties?
Yes, they can be. I have paid resort or destination fees that significantly increased the effective nightly cost, sometimes for amenities I barely used. These fees are common in certain markets and not unique to Marriott, but they still affect value. I now look carefully at the full cost breakdown before booking and mentally add those fees to the room rate when comparing options.
Q5: Is Marriott a good choice for family vacations?
It can be, especially if you value connecting rooms, predictable standards, kids eating free promotions at some brands, and access to pools and basic amenities. However, family-friendly does not always mean great value. Some resort properties felt crowded and generic despite high prices. For family trips, I weigh Marriott against vacation rentals and independent resorts instead of defaulting to the brand.
Q6: How reliable is the Marriott app for check-in and digital keys?
When it works, it is very convenient. I have used mobile check-in and digital keys successfully at many properties and appreciated skipping the front desk. That said, I have also encountered properties where digital keys were advertised but not actually functioning, or where messages sent through the app went unanswered. I treat the app as a helpful tool, not a guarantee.
Q7: Do Marriott hotels still offer daily housekeeping as standard?
Not consistently. Many of my recent stays have operated on an opt-in basis where daily housekeeping only happens if I specifically request it. Some hotels offer a reduced schedule by default. If a freshly made room every day is important to you, it is worth confirming the current policy at the specific property before you arrive or at check-in.
Q8: Is it still possible to get good value redeeming Marriott points?
Yes, but it takes more effort than it used to. With dynamic pricing, some redemptions are excellent, especially at high cash rates, while others are poor value. I now compare the points cost with the real cash rate every time and only redeem when the math clearly favors using points. Otherwise, I pay cash and save the points for better opportunities.
Q9: Should I get a Marriott co-branded credit card based on your experience?
If you stay at Marriotts regularly and can make use of the free night certificates and bonus earning, a co-branded card can enhance the value you get from the ecosystem. In my case, the card made sense during heavy travel years and less so when my patterns changed. I would not get one purely for aspirational redemptions without a realistic plan to stay often enough to justify the annual fee.
Q10: Who, in your view, is Marriott really worth it for today?
From my experience, Marriott is most worth it for frequent travelers who value a broad global footprint, are willing to track promotions and benefits, and can realistically earn at least mid-tier elite status. It is less compelling if you travel rarely, strongly prefer unique boutique stays, or do not want to think about loyalty mechanics. For those travelers, cherry-picking the best hotel for each trip, whether Marriott or not, is likely to be more satisfying.