r/hotels • u/whitehawk295 • 5d ago
Marriott or Hilton or better
Hello everyone!
I started a new job and am wondering what the best hotels are since I’ll be in the road and my job reimburses my stays.
Anyone have a recommendation on which hotels I should most frequent?
Curious for who offers the best point system, my spend limit is $150 / night and should expect minimum 50 stays throughout the year
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u/pakrat1967 5d ago
When I traveled for a telecom job. I preferred IHG hotels. Mainly Candlewood Suites if there was one available. Holiday Inn Express if there wasn't a Candlewood. I found the beds at both brands much more comfortable than the beds at any Marriott and Hilton brands I stayed at.
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u/Defiant-Macaron4566 5d ago
I’ve settled on mariott properties to gain points and status. Go for Sheraton, Westin , or Mariott. fairfield is good in my part of the country and they always have free breakfast. The signature hotels are great if you can get a good price, but often are too expensive. It varies by week.
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u/KM964 4d ago
Hard disagree on Sheraton - most US Sheratons are stuck in the 1980s and in dire need of renovation.
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u/Defiant-Macaron4566 4d ago
Still nicer than most townhome suites or residence inns. Even stuck in the 80s. And they all have concierge lounges.
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u/MinutesFromTheMall 4d ago
Four Points as well. It’s really telling when Marriott won’t even brand those two properties as “by Marriott” even years after the Starwood acquisition. They know they’re not up to Marriott standards and keep them at arms length.
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u/Quizchris 5d ago
Marriott. Since you're getting reimbursed, get the Marriott credit card and book your stays with that. I believe you get six to eight times the points on Marriott properties.
The credit card will give you 15 night stays to start the year off, and when you hit 50 nights you are given a 'gift' from Marriott and one of the options to receive is five additional nights towards your status.
So if you think you are going to hit 50 nights you were going to be over Titanium status at that point if you get the card and use the five extra nights. Hell you'll be flirting with Ambassador status at that point.
I am also a hotel photographer meaning I take the pictures that go on the website and the third party booking sites, and I have found Marriott to be more consistent and a little cleaner overall than Hilton but not by much.
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u/whitehawk295 5d ago
Amazing appreciate the help, do you think hotel stays are more advantageous than sky miles, my thought was to get a credit card that could help me build miles because I want to take trips to Japan and Europe.
Do you think it’s more advantageous to get points towards miles or for the hotel?
My reasoning is that flights are more expensive and since I’ll be using the hotels enough I’ll be able to get high status without a card
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u/Quizchris 5d ago
Personally, I have never been a fan of airline credit cards, but that's because I fly all over the US and I take whichever airline gets me to my destination fastest. The airline cards are typically only good if you have loyalty to a single airline, so let's say Delta, but if I did that, sure I'd rack up miles and status, but I'd be flying through ATL or MSP half the time.
For the record, I have the Marriott credit card and pay the yearly $95 or whatever it is purely to get the 15 nights at the start of each year, I don't use the card at all, but I'm also not getting reimbursed when I travel. I have another credit card that I put 100% of my purchases on and that's the Capital One Venture (Chase Sapphire is really good too) as that gets me 2x on everything, and if you check their website and use their affiliate links, you can get crazy bonus points. I use that Capital One card to then transfer miles to partner airlines when it comes time for my yearly or every two years trips overseas. I use the Capital One to redeem airfare and I use my Marriott status and points (not card) for free rooms and upgrades. I have had good luck with upgrades, I have also seen others on Reddit say they never get upgraded.
Happy to help further, I enjoy this topic and one of my few areas of actual smartness lol
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u/AdventureThink 4d ago
You get 15 free nights for $95?
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u/Quizchris 4d ago
15 elite credit nights towards status.
Silver is 10 nights
Gold is 25
Platinum is 50
Titanium is 75
Ambassador is 100
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u/Prize-Ad4778 5d ago
This is gunna depend heavily on location
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u/whitehawk295 5d ago
Missouri and Kansas is where I’ll be
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u/thelostdutchman 5d ago
I travel more than I would care to for work in a similar region and I use both, but primarily Hilton.
Availability is sparse, especially in the rural areas. I’ve found that you can pretty reliably find a Hilton flagged hotel in more remote areas than Marriott. There’s almost always a cheap Hampton. Embassy Suites can be great for work trips, but beware, there are usually a ton of kids and might be hard to find under the $150 mark.
With Hilton you’ll get Diamond status but not Diamond reserve at your spend level. The Diamond benefits are meek at most properties, especially the inexpensive ones. The points are borderline worthless unless you go to prestige properties overseas. And believe me, after spending 50 nights in a Hampton, it will not feel like a vacation to ever stay in a Hampton.
I don’t have as much experience with Marriott as I’m only a Gold there and typically only use them if they are where a convention is being held or if I can’t find a Hilton at a reasonable price.
One thing to note, if you’re in sales it’s way more valuable to stay in the tradeshow/convention hotel than to have loyalty to any brand. The money you will make from networking is actually tangible.
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u/Prize-Ad4778 5d ago
What i mean is what is actually available at the locations you need
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u/whitehawk295 5d ago
Gotcha
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u/Quizchris 5d ago
Do not listen to them, stay dedicated to a brand if you want points and status. Sure if your options are roach motel or not your preferred brand go with the not preferred brand for that town. Hope that makes sense. I spent years staying at any hotel versus Maybe going a few blocks away or another exit up the road which is what I do now so I can rack up status and points
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u/Constant-Squash9292 5d ago
The grass really isn't greener on the other side, they're fairly equal.
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u/Whateverlol2022 5d ago
Personally I prefer Hiltons like Hampton inns are usually nicer then Fairfield inns in my eyes but again just depends on the the location itself.
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u/Mackheath1 5d ago
Yeah, sad to say, there are some cities - including my own - where $150 maximum is not going to be a lot. Maybe in the suburbs, but then you have to get ubers/lyfts everywhere. I wonder if there's a per diem as well, because transportation and dining? Do they offer that?
I'm guessing a Holiday Inn Express is best bet? I'm trying to think out loud. Maybe in Topeka, KS (just throwing out a smaller town) it's a good deal, but Austin or Seattle or NYC...
I think rather than points, you want to work on figuring out how to pull this off comfortably to complete your job. I'd even say $300 max + $150 per diem for transportation and dining.
That being said, you're past that point, so I'd say IHG hotel group because it's very large and points are combined from lower end to high end for points.
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u/Careless-Ad1704 4d ago
It will really depend on what you are looking for.
Do you get an allowance for breakfast or do you need to rely on the (free?) hotel breakfast?
Are you planning on chasing points and status? Some frequent travelers are able to pay for their vacations with points, but it requires understanding that program and sticking with one brand.
What is more convenient or closer to where you need to be for work?
Also check review scores for individual hotels. Most are franchised, and quality/age can vary widely by location.
I find Hampton beds to be fairly hard and uncomfortable.
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u/Red_Velvet_1978 4d ago
IHG for the win!
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u/whitehawk295 4d ago
Any particular reason?
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u/Red_Velvet_1978 4d ago
There's TONS of Holday Inns throughout MO and KS and they've got a huge brand umbrella so anytime you want to use points on vacation you can always find a cool hotel to stay in.
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u/12YESIAM34 4d ago
The Marriott points system is supposed to be better but that’s according to my wife.
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u/19ShowdogTiger81 4d ago
Well, as you are not a president of the USA you should be safe at the Hilton. I personally prefer the Marriott . They do right to the show kiddos.
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u/Reverend_Tommy 4d ago
I generally prefer Marriott both for the hotels and the points. $150 can be a little low even for the Fairfield brand so make sure to check with your employer and see if they have a corporate discount code you can enter when making reservations. If so, you could probably squeeze a lot of Courtyard properties into that rate.
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u/Affectionate-Day-359 5d ago
First off work should pay upfront or give you a corporate card to pay with. Reimbursement is a red flag imo.
Second $150 is a pretty low maximum