An Update from Marriott CEO, Arne Sorenson

It’s been three weeks since I last communicated with you about the dramatic impact of COVID-19 on our business. Sadly, since that time, we’ve all borne witness to how this insidious virus is impacting our families, our communities and our very way of life. What we’re facing is daunting, but I am heartened by the moments of triumph in everyday acts of courage, humanity and love. Although these are trying times for us all, I remain optimistic that our world will thrive once again.

Today, I want to let you know how we’re focused on supporting the communities where our associates live and work. I also want to provide you with an update on our room cancellation policy and Marriott Bonvoy status and points expiration dates.

In the Community

Marriott understands that the pulse of the world beats as one to overcome COVID-19 and its devastating impact around the globe. As we all watch the news unfold about this unprecedented event, it’s clear that there is a need to assist and bolster healthcare workers and community caregivers who are on the frontlines working to contain this disease. To that end, we have established the following programs to aid in the urgent fight against the pandemic.

With support from our credit card partners, American Express and JPMorgan Chase, Marriott has committed to provide $10 million worth of hotel stays for healthcare professionals leading the fight against COVID-19 in the United States. The initiative, called Rooms for Responders, will provide free rooms in some of the areas most impacted including New York City, New Orleans, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Washington, D.C. and Newark, N.J. To implement this initiative, we collaborated with the American College of Emergency Physicians and the Emergency Nurses Association to match doctors and nurses with free accommodations at participating hotels.

Community Caregiver Program. This initiative, available in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America, provides significantly discounted rates for first responders and healthcare professionals who want to book rooms at hotels in close proximity to the hospitals where they’re working. The rate is available on Marriott.com at nearly 2,500 hotels.

With both initiatives, our goal is simple – we want to support the frontline heroes who are selflessly supporting us.

Given the unprecedented disruption to the travel industry, a number of our hotels have, unfortunately, had to close temporarily. Even as the hotels were shutting their doors, associates from New Delhi, India to Santos, Brazil, have found multiple ways to support the communities in which the hotels are located. The Riviera Marriott Hotel La Porte de Monaco and AC Hotel Nice, for example, donated all of their unused produce and food products to a local children’s charity, which provides housing and other services for endangered children. Many of our properties have contributed by providing food, pre-packed and cooked meals to crisis relief efforts and much-needed supplies like cleaning products, masks, gloves, anti-microbial wipes, sanitizers and shower caps for medical and other frontline workers. And in a beautiful sign of solidarity among us all, many of our teams have illuminated their hotel windows with symbols of love and messages of hope (some of these images are shown below).