You Can Now Track Select Airport Hotel Shuttles in the Marriott App
For anyone who frequents airport hotels, one of your biggest frustrations may be locating (or waiting for) the complimentary shuttle to a given property. You may frantically rush outside only to stand outside for 20 minutes — sweating or shivering — when you could've casually grabbed a snack or cup of coffee en route to your designated pick-up location. In some cases, travelers may forgo the free ride entirely and order an Uber or Lyft instead of attempting to deal with the headache.
Sensing these woes, one major program is moving in a direction to remove this confusion. As first reported by the Wall Street Journal, Marriott is now offering shuttle tracking at 15 of its hotels, with plans to roll out the availability to 200 total by year end. The new feature — which can be accessed via the Marriott app — offers patrons the ability to see exactly where a shuttle is located as well as its estimated arrival time and distance.
Unfortunately, this offer only extends to direct bookings, which is yet another blow in the battle between hotels and third-party booking sites. And much like the free breakfast offering at Hyatt Place, you must be a Marriott Bonvoy member in order to take advantage.
TPG reached out to Marriott for more information, and here's what a spokesperson said:
"Marriott International is rolling out the functionality to airport hotels after initially testing it last year at the Washington Dulles Marriott hotel near Washington DC's Dulles airport and the Atlanta Airport Marriott hotel near Atlanta's airport. The pilots generated positive feedback from hotel guests and staff."
Washington-Dulles (IAD) and Atlanta (ATL) — along with Baltimore (BWI) and Salt Lake City (SLC) — are the first four airports to offer this feature, though it sounds like Marriott has big plans for expanding this tracking capability. In addition to its eventual rollout to all its airport shuttles, the company added that guests should "expect to see the feature in the future being used beyond airport hotel shuttles — such as on-demand luxury car service, resort golf carts and shuttles to/from train/metro stations."
Those are some big plans but align with the trend we've seen of hotel programs leveraging technology to drive convenience for members and guests. If you're staying at one of the test properties, be sure to try this feature out on your next stay, as it just may save you that mad dash from baggage claim to the curb.
TPG featured card
at Bilt's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 1X | Choose to earn up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee |
| 2X | Earn 2X points + the option to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases |
Pros
- Choice to earn up to 1 Bilt Point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments
- Elevated everyday earnings with both Bilt Points and the option to earn Bilt Cash
- $400 Bilt Travel Portal hotel credit per year (up to $200 biannually)
- $200 Bilt Cash annually
- Priority Pass membership
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons
- Moderate annual fee
- Designed primarily for members seeking a premium, all-in-one card
- Earn points on housing with no transaction fee
- Choose to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend. Use Bilt Cash to unlock point earnings on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee, up to 1X.
- 2X points on everyday spend
- $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit. Applied twice a year, as $200 statement credits, for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
- $200 Bilt Cash (awarded annually). At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- Welcome bonus (subject to approval): 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 90 days + $300 of Bilt Cash.
- Priority Pass ($469/year value). See Guide to Benefits.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.