Dear Ms. Gandhi,
Thank you for your e-mail regarding the payment issues I have faced during my stays at three of four Marriott hotels in India.
First of all, please ensure to double check your accounting / banking process for all Marriott hotels in India, as charging your guests in different
currencies against their will does really cause an inconvenience for them and make them feeling like being a victim of purposed fraud or scam.
I truly felt let down and betrayed and I could not grasp why three of four Indian Marriott hotels did let it happen.
Allegedly, all of you claim it to be a mistake, and I really want to believe that it was none of your intention...however I really feel
bad for all other foreign visitors or guests who did not notice what financial loss your "mistakes" make them suffer.
From my point of view, it is really unfair and does not comply with my expectations and diminish the trust I have come to
the brand of Marriott in order to become a platinum member of the Bonvoy Loyalty Program.
During my recent trip across India I have stayed at four Marriott hotels:
1. JW Marriott New Delhi Aero City:
No issues faced, the transaction was settled in Indian Rupees, as requested at the reception during my check out.
2. Le Meridien Goa:
The transaction was authorized in Indian currency, however the final settlement has been done, against my wish in Euros
with a very unfavorable exchange rate due to DCC. My loss estimated to nearly 150 Euros.
As per today, the transaction is still to be recaptured / redone by Le Meridien Goa.
3. JW Marriott Jaipur:
This was the most bizarre one. The prepayment has been done nearly two weeks ahead of my
arrival. I noticed straight away that also the payment amount was way too high (INR->EUR) so I reached out to the hotel by mail.
There is a thread of 11 e-mails. JW Marriott Jaipur claimed until the very end to have charged only the correct booking
amount in Indian currency, which was not the truth at all. I almost missed my flight to Mumbai, as it took me nearly
half an hour at the reception to find out that they unfortunately booked the transaction in Euros using DCC against my will.
There is an online form that I filled out for the prepayment, it has a clear remark of my wish to be charged solely in Indian Rupees.
Meanwhile, JW Marriott Jaipur managed as the first of three hotels to recapture the transaction and charged the due
amounts yesterday in the correct way. My loss from this stay estimated to approx. 160 Euros.
4. St. Regis Mumbai:
Due to my bad experiences from other previous hotels, I asked your reception to charge the due amount during my check in and
charge my card in INR. It was only theoretically the case, but sadly only for the authorization of this payment.
I am sure that you recognized it clearly by the screenshots I provided you. The final settlement has been done again against
my will in Euros using DCC and causing a loss at my side of approx. 40 Euros.
As per today, the transaction is still to be recaptured / redone by St. Regis Mumbai.
Summarizing, your three hotels caused me financial loss of roughly €350 that is equal more or less ₹ 28,000.
My struggles with the negative experiences during my stay in India bring you into bad repute.
It is such a shame, as it seems to have a negative influence on my opinion and does not support my vision of visiting the
country again in the near future.
The refund / recapturing of transaction made by Le Meridien Goa and St. Regis Mumbai is still yet to be processed as per current status.
I really hope that there will be a fair and transparent way of charging for your foreign visitors at your hotels
across the country. I am not asking you to refrain from offering the DCC (even though, it is such a bad tool
for foreign currency cards, due to very unfavorable exchange rates for your guests), but only to guarantee respecting the
will of your visitors, when it comes to selected currency for the payments being made at Marriott hotels in India.
Thank you for your assistance and willingness to solve the issues in the possibly best and fastest way.
Best regards from Germany.
