Auburn Hills Marriott Pontiac — Hotel in Pontiac

Disappointing Experience at Pontiac/Auburn Hills Marriott

As someone who has a long history with Marriott, I’m truly disappointed by my recent experience at the Pontiac/Auburn Hills Marriott. I am not the Platinum Elite member—that is my wife, a Senior VP for a large healthcare company—but I’ve always advocated for Marriott properties. I was proud to work as the Chief Engineer for Marriott in Indianapolis during the onset of COVID-19. Although I ultimately left Marriott for a better offer when the company restructured pay during the pandemic, my respect for the brand remained strong, and my wife and I continue to stay at Marriott properties frequently as Platinum Elite customers.

Unfortunately, my recent stay has shaken my confidence in the Marriott brand. I was visiting family for the holidays and chose this location specifically because of its restaurant/lounge, where I planned to watch a hockey game with my family.

When I arrived at the bar at 7:30 pm on Friday evening, I politely asked the bartender, Joey (according to his name badge), to put on the Red Wings game. Joey claimed to be the General Manager and informed me that the bar/restaurant would be closing at 8 pm, despite it being a Friday evening. When I questioned the decision, I was told, “It has been slow for the past two weeks, and I do not intend to stay open for a couple of stragglers.”

This response was both shocking and offensive. When I mentioned that I was staying as a Platinum Elite customer through my wife and would have chosen another property had I known about the early closure, Joey’s dismissive response was, “Oh, that’s unfortunate.”

My family soon arrived, and one of them pointed out that there were at least nine other Marriott customers at and around the bar, clearly waiting to be served. Joey responded, “Well, I’m the GM, and I don’t care if 27 more people show up because I’m tired, and I’ve sent staff home.” Even more baffling, he questioned why I would come to the Marriott’s bar instead of going to another bar in the area—an utterly unacceptable response.

We left and had to find another establishment to enjoy the game, incurring additional costs for transportation—something I specifically wanted to avoid by staying at Marriott. To make matters worse, when I returned to the hotel at 10:10 pm, I noticed Joey was still behind the bar, serving patrons.

After further investigation, I’ve discovered that Joey is not, in fact, the General Manager, but rather the restaurant/bar manager. This revelation only adds to my disappointment, as it demonstrates a lack of professionalism and misrepresentation.

This experience was embarrassing, frustrating, and not at all reflective of the Marriott brand I’ve come to trust and promote. It has caused me to seriously reconsider my loyalty to Marriott properties. Moving forward, I will be exploring other brands, such as Hilton, and will no longer encourage others to choose Marriott.

This incident is a stark reminder that even high-profile brands must ensure consistency in service across properties. If this is the treatment Platinum Elite customers can expect, it leaves me wondering what the future holds for the...

As a Lifetime Platinum and current Titanium member, I hold Marriott properties to a certain standard (JUST the basics of hospitality), and unfortunately, my recent stay at this hotel fell far below expectations.||I arrived at the property around 8:40 PM and checked the Marriott app beforehand, noticing that suites were available. At check-in, there was no acknowledgment of my loyalty status—no “thank you for your loyalty,” just a brief question about points or market credit. When I asked about an upgrade, the front desk associate claimed there were none available, despite the app showing otherwise. I accepted the room assigned without argument.||Upon entering my room, I found it uncomfortably warm. I set the thermostat to the lowest setting and left for the concierge lounge. When I returned, the room was still warm, and the air conditioning wasn’t functioning. I called the front desk, and maintenance came up. The technician turned the fan from “auto” to “on” and insisted the air was blowing cool. However, it was only circulating the warm air in the room. After some back and forth, I requested to be moved to a room with a working unit. The front desk told me I could come down to retrieve the new keys, but I asked for them to be brought up. Throughout all of this, not a single apology was offered.||The new room was far below Marriott standards—filthy, with broken glass, hair, and significant buildup in the bathroom (photos available). Exhausted after a long drive, I decided to address the situation with management in the morning.||The front desk supervisor I spoke with was apologetic and horrified by my experience. She confirmed there was availability for upgrades at check-in and admitted I should have received one. She was equally shocked by the room’s lack of cleanliness and promised to escalate my concerns to the operations manager.||A few days later, I received a call from the manager, who was anything but genuine. Instead of resolving the issue, he shifted blame to me for not asking for a manager that night. He reminded me multiple times that upgrades are a courtesy, not mandatory, while simultaneously stating he would have provided one (contradictory, much?). He begrudgingly offered 17,000 points as compensation, though my stay had cost more than that. Attempts to reach the GM went unanswered, and I was left feeling dismissed.||This experience was frustrating on multiple levels—from poor communication and lack of basic hospitality to the dirty accommodations. As someone who has stayed at numerous Marriott properties, I expect better. This property needs significant improvement in both service and cleanliness before I would consider staying here again or...

As a Lifetime Platinum and current Titanium member, I hold Marriott properties to a certain standard (JUST the basics of hospitality), and unfortunately, my recent stay at this hotel fell far below expectations.||I arrived at the property around 8:40 PM and checked the Marriott app beforehand, noticing that suites were available. At check-in, there was no acknowledgment of my loyalty status—no “thank you for your loyalty,” just a brief question about points or market credit. When I asked about an upgrade, the front desk associate claimed there were none available, despite the app showing otherwise. I accepted the room assigned without argument.||Upon entering my room, I found it uncomfortably warm. I set the thermostat to the lowest setting and left for the concierge lounge. When I returned, the room was still warm, and the air conditioning wasn’t functioning. I called the front desk, and maintenance came up. The technician turned the fan from “auto” to “on” and insisted the air was blowing cool. However, it was only circulating the warm air in the room. After some back and forth, I requested to be moved to a room with a working unit. The front desk told me I could come down to retrieve the new keys, but I asked for them to be brought up. Throughout all of this, not a single apology was offered.||The new room was far below Marriott standards—filthy, with broken glass, hair, and significant buildup in the bathroom (photos available). Exhausted after a long drive, I decided to address the situation with management in the morning.||The front desk supervisor I spoke with was apologetic and horrified by my experience. She confirmed there was availability for upgrades at check-in and admitted I should have received one. She was equally shocked by the room’s lack of cleanliness and promised to escalate my concerns to the operations manager.||A few days later, I received a call from the manager, who was anything but genuine. Instead of resolving the issue, he shifted blame to me for not asking for a manager that night. He reminded me multiple times that upgrades are a courtesy, not mandatory, while simultaneously stating he would have provided one (contradictory, much?). He begrudgingly offered 17,000 points as compensation, though my stay had cost more than that. Attempts to reach the GM went unanswered, and I was left feeling dismissed.||This experience was frustrating on multiple levels—from poor communication and lack of basic hospitality to the dirty accommodations. As someone who has stayed at numerous Marriott properties, I expect better. This property needs significant improvement in both service and cleanliness before I would consider staying here again or...