Every year, I do a recap of where we actually stayed — not which hotel program we think we like best, not which one has the most valuable elite benefits, but where we actually put our heads in beds.
And one hotel group almost always ends up in the story.
I’m not ashamed to admit that we often choose to stay at Marriott-branded properties. That’s not because I think Marriott Bonvoy is the best loyalty program. I don’t. We’ve been Bonvoyed enough times to know better. I’ve also mentioned before how IHG points have worked surprisingly well for us, and we’ve really come around on Hyatt. It turns out the Hyatt stans were right, especially when we can find their hotels in the right places.
That doesn’t mean Marriott always comes out on top when looking at total nights. In our 2025 hotel recap, Hyatt led the traditional hotel chains, Hilton was right behind, and Marriott came in just behind them. However, if you look at how often Marriott brands show up in our travels, and how different those stays can be from one another, the pattern is hard to ignore.
Our recent trip was a perfect example of why Marriott keeps working for us.
On one trip, we stayed at the St. Pancras London, Autograph Collection, the Hotel Goldener Hirsch in Salzburg, and a Moxy in Hamburg. Those three hotels could hardly be more different, yet they all sit under the Marriott umbrella.
And that’s really the point.
It’s Not Always About The Most Nights
Hotel loyalty doesn’t always work cleanly in real life. Sometimes we need a practical airport hotel. Sometimes we want a historic property that feels like part of the trip. Sometimes we just need a place that works for one night before moving on.
That’s where Marriott keeps fitting into our travels. It’s not always the brand we spend the most nights with, but it’s often the one that offers something useful in most situations.
Interesting Hotels In Their Portfolio
Marriott has more than 30 brands under its umbrella, so there’s going to be some variation in hotel styles. That can be a negative if you’re expecting every stay to feel the same, but for us, it’s one of the reasons Marriott keeps working for us.
We’ve stayed at plenty of standard Marriott properties where the goal was simple: get a clean room, a comfortable bed, and a place that makes sense for the trip. But Marriott also has enough interesting hotels in its portfolio that some stays become part of the trip instead of just a place to sleep.
That was definitely the case on our recent trip. The St. Pancras London, Autograph Collection is not just another hotel in London. It’s a historic building that feels like a destination by itself. The same goes for the Hotel Goldener Hirsch in Salzburg, which remains one of our favorite hotels anywhere.
And those aren’t isolated examples. From boutique properties like The Epicurean in Tampa, FL, to iconic hotels in major cities and unique properties in places we actually want to visit, Marriott has enough variety that we can usually find something that fits the trip.
Consistency Still Matters
As much as I enjoy the memorable hotels, sometimes consistency matters more than character.
If you’re staying at a Courtyard by Marriott, you can usually be somewhat confident about what you’re going to get. Sure, there are some below-average outliers, but there are also some charming Courtyards out there.
We’ve found the same to be true with brands like Residence Inn and Fairfield Inn. They’re not usually the hotels we’re excited to write about afterward, but they’re useful. And when you travel enough, useful counts for a lot.
That’s part of Marriott’s advantage. The same hotel group can give us a historic splurge, a reliable road-trip stop, an airport-adjacent room, or a practical place for one night before moving on.
We Even Like Their Quirky Brands
You also have to give Marriott credit for taking some big swings.
Despite not being their core demographic, we liked our stay at the Moxy in New York, though it might not be everyone’s cup of tea.
Our stay at the Moxy Hamburg City reinforced that feeling. Moxy is not trying to be a full-service luxury hotel. It’s compact, design-focused, and built around the lobby more than the room. That won’t work for everyone, and it won’t work for every trip. But when the price and location make sense, it can be exactly what we need.
The same goes for our stays at Element, AC Hotels, and Aloft. We might not be the target audience for every one of these brands, but we’ve liked them enough to stay again.
The only brand we’re still avoiding is W Hotels, as our stays haven’t been great.
Free Nights Still Play A Role
I can’t ignore the fact that we have multiple Marriott co-brand credit cards, each of which awards a free night certificate on the account anniversary. That alone nudges us toward Marriott properties several times a year.
On top of that, we earn Marriott Bonvoy points when readers use our links to sign up for credit cards. So yes, Marriott has some built-in advantages for us.
But I look at it this way: if we truly disliked our Marriott stays, we wouldn’t keep finding ways to use those certificates. We definitely wouldn’t keep the cards just because a free night exists on paper. There still has to be a hotel where we want to redeem it, in a place where we want or need to stay.
That’s where Marriott’s footprint matters. The certificates are useful because Marriott has enough hotels across enough brands that we can usually find a reasonable use for them.
Marriott Bonvoy Is Still The Catch
Of course, it’s impossible to separate the hotels from the Marriott Bonvoy program entirely.
I’m not wearing rose-colored glasses. I’m well aware of Marriott’s shortcomings, especially when it comes to loyalty benefits and customer service resolution. We’ve been Bonvoyed. We’ve dealt with inconsistent elite treatment. We’ve had situations where the program made something more complicated than it needed to be.
That’s why I’m careful about how I say this.
I’m not saying Marriott Bonvoy is my favorite hotel loyalty program. I’m saying Marriott, as a hotel company, often fits the way we travel better than I want to admit.
Those are two different things.
Final Thought
When I think about our Marriott stays, I’m not pretending every one has been memorable. Plenty have been average, and average is all we’re really looking for most of the time. We’ve also had a few bad stays, but that can happen with any brand.
What keeps standing out is the range.
On one trip, Marriott gave us a historic hotel in London, one of our favorite hotels in Salzburg, and a practical Moxy in Hamburg. On other trips, it might be a Courtyard, a Residence Inn, an Aloft, an AC Hotel, or a property that feels nothing like any of those.
That’s why Marriott keeps showing up in our travels. Not because Bonvoy is perfect. Not because Marriott always wins the annual nights count. And not because we’re blindly loyal to the brand.
It’s because, more often than not, Marriott has something that fits the trip we’re actually taking.
And for us, that matters more than I’d like to admit.
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