Marriott Friends & Family Rates
by Neil McPherson
Originally published - 22 December 2021
You may also like to see the latest
Marriott Promotions
This guide is based upon Marriott Bonvoy Terms & Conditions dated June 2021 and Marriott QCC T&C's 2023
To save sifting through all the T&C's, for more information on Marriott's loyalty program, please refer to our Marriott Bonvoy guide.
Overview
Marriott offers exclusive discounts and rates for its employees, associates (past and present), their friends and their families. Its a valuable benefit, as eligible people can get up to 80% off on their stays and 50% off on F&B, when booking at a Marriott hotel.
The Marriott Associate Explore program provides a discount code that can only be used when booking online.
- MM4 - employee-only code. This code shows you only the hotels with the Marriott hotel employee discount rates which apply during peak holiday season only - from around mid November to mid January (northern hemisphere).
- MMP - associates and immediate family. Bookings with this code earn no points or tier status but qualify you for discounted room rates (50% discount) at the time of booking. The Marriott policy for this "immediate family" code is that:
- the associate/employee must make the booking online
- the traveller making the stay will need to provide proof (an Explore Rate Authorization Form with 60 day expiry provided by the associate) when checking-in.
- When occupancy is at 85% or more, employee MMP rates default to the MMF (explore friends) rate and the discount can vary by property.
- Associates giving out Explore Rate Authorization Forms "inappropriately" are reprimanded (or worse).
For friends and family of Marriott employees, there is a different discount code (MMF) for use under Marriott's "Friends and Family” program. Explore Friends can be used by an associate's extended family or friends.
Best of all, for (ex) employees with 25 years or more service, there is a special Quarter Century Club with many attractive benefits that reward them for their dedication to Marriott.
Let's dig a bit deeper...
Marriott Friends and Family Employee Rate: codes & discounts
Marriott offers exclusive discounts and rates for its employees, associates (past and present), their friends and their families. Its a valuable benefit, as eligible people can get up to 70% off on their stays and 50% off on F&B, when booking at a Marriott hotel.
Marriott’s Friends and Family rates and benefits are pretty similar to Hilton Go - Family and Friends program. However, Hilton is slightly easier to book. On the other hand, only members of Hilton Honors can participate, whereas being a Marriott Bonvoy member is not required to take advantage of these special rates..
There are 4 types of discounts offered by Marriott for its employees, their friends and families:
| Employee Dining Discounts | 20% | - | All Marriott employees |
| Explore Rate | Up to 70% | MMP | For employees and immediate family only |
| Explore Friends Rate | Up to 50% | MMF | For friends and family (broader definition) |
| Quarter Century Club | 100% off | - | For employees with 25+ years of service |
All discounts and availability vary from property to property and largely depend on the current occupancy, whether it’s peak or
off-peak season and some other criteria. Be prepared to spend some time researching before you find your perfect rate.
You earn Marriott Bonvoy points, elite qualifying nights and other loyalty benefits with Marriott Friends and Family (MMF) and Employee (MMP) rates as well.
The Gritti Place, Venice - a great destination at Friends & Family rates
Marriott Explore Rate (Code: MMP)
This is the primary discounted rate for current Marriott employees and associates.
We checked 10 properties and the general discount was a generous 70+ % on those properties.
Who is eligible for the Explore Rate?
- Current employees and associates of Marriott (for personal travel only) - You can book a maximum of 2 rooms per night.
- Spouses, domestic partners, parents, parents-in-law, brothers, sisters and children of Marriott associates (for personal travel only) - A maximum of 1 room per night.
- Total number of rooms booked by an associate cannot exceed 2 rooms at a property. e.g. you can’t book 2 for yourself and 1 for parents at the same hotel on the same dates.
- Note that this Marriott policy for immediate family code is strictly enforced.
How to book Marriott Explore Rate?
Like to know how to use the Marriott family code? The Marriott Explore Rate can be booked directly on Marriott’s website using the code "MMP" in the promotional code field.
However, you will be asked for photo ID and an authorisation form at check-in to confirm that you are eligible.
You can get the Marriott Explore Rate authorisation form from your MGS (Marriott Global Source) using your EID and print it from MyPDR. In some situations, you should be able to use a Marriott Discount Card instead.
Check with your HR for more details about the form and the discount card.
Marriott QCC - Quarter Century Club
Marriott QCC - Quarter Century Club
The Quarter Century Club (QCC) is a special case of the Marriott Explore: a long-term service reward program by Marriott.
QCC membership is available to all employees, current or former, who have completed 25 or more years of service at Marriott managed properties.
It’s a lifetime membership and a particularly valuable one.
The program rewards members with complimentary rooms or villas at participating Marriott managed locations and access to Explore Rates even after leaving the group (or perhaps retiring, in this case)
Marriott QCC Benefits
Eligible members can book 1 complimentary stay for 1 room up to 3 nights per property per year.
You can book one additional room at the available Explore rate or Explore Friends rate.
Your stay can be at Marriott-managed properties participating in the Explore Program or Marriott Vacations Worldwide properties participating in the Explore Program (with limited exceptions).
Complimentary stay IS NOT available at the following brands:
- Bulgari
- Design Hotels
- The Luxury Collection
- The Ritz-Carlton
- St. Regis.
Any other costs, such as meals, recreational activities, or parking are not discounted and must be paid for by the QCC member, unless the QCC member is eligible for another discount under the Explore Rate Discount Program. At all-Inclusive hotels only the room portion of the rate is complimentary.
How to book Marriott QCC Rate?
- Decide where you wish to book using the list of Participating QCC Properties. Most, but not all properties offering Explore rates also participate in the QCC program (eg franchised properties).
- Make a Marriott reservation in your preferred manner (eg) login to the Marriott site or use the Marriott Bonvoy™ App.
- Select your preferred destination and dates at the top of the booking page.
- Under the "special rates" dropdown box (below destination and dates), select Corporate/Promo and then enter the code "MMP".
- Complete your booking for your preferred room type.
- Up to this point the process is almost identical to that for current employees. The difference is that you do not need to obtain a Marriott Explore Rate authorisation form but instead must present your QCC member card (and valid photo ID) when you check-in.
- After completing your booking in step 5 above, you next request that your rate be changed from MMP to the QCC complimentary rate by contacting the QCC Customer Engagement Center at: .
- +1 (800) 826-1882 (in the U.S.); or
- (402) 390-1600 ext. 2281578 (outside the U.S.); or perhaps best of all
- via email at SalesServices@marriott.com).
Note that you can email the QCC Customer Engagement Center before making your booking. Marriott QCC rates can be booked up to 90 days in advance.
Marriott Explore Friends Rate (Code: MMF)
The Explore Friends Rate has a broader eligibility net but much lesser discount. This rate can be good at times, however it’s rare. Having said that, it’s always (mostly) better than regular rates. You should check rates and then decide if it’s worth going through the hassle of obtaining the authorisation forms / approvals etc.
Who is eligible for the Explore Friends Rate?
- Everyone eligible for Explore rate - i.e. employees, associates, family etc. can also book this rate.
- Any friends and family you would like to nominate. You just need the form.
- Stay should be for personal travel only.
- There is no limit on the number of nights booked through this rate.
How to book Marriott Explore Friends Rate?
Like to know how to use Marriott code MMF (Marriott Explore Friends Rate) ? It is easily able to be booked directly on Marriott’s website using the code "MMF" in the promotional code field.
However, you will still be asked for an authorisation form at check-in to confirm that you are eligible. Just like the Explore rate, the Marriott team member can get the Marriott Explore Friends Rate authorization form from their MGS (Marriott Global Source) using their EID and print it from MyPDR (check with HR for more details). The form generally is valid for 2 months from date of issue.
The Ritz-Carlton, Barcelona - possibly the city's most instagrammable hotel
How To Book A Room Using the Marriott Employee Discount ?
The process is very similar for each of the three rates.
- Make a Marriott reservation in your preferred manner (eg) login to the Marriott site
- Select your desired destination and dates on the page
- Enter the relevant code under "special rates" (below dates):
- MMP if you qualify for the Explore rate (employees, associates and their direct family).
- MMF if a Marriott employee or associate is nominating you.
- MMP if you qualify for the QCC rate. You additionally need to contact QCC Customer Engagement Center (call at +1 (800) 826-1882 or via email at SalesServices@marriott.com) to request that it be changed to the QCC complimentary rate. Alternatively, email them before making your booking. Marriott QCC rates can be booked up to 90 days in advance.
- Complete the booking.
- Subsequently produce the relevant authorisation form at check-in (with some photo-id).
Can you use the Friends and Family rate without a form?
It might be tempting to book online using the code for the discount, then try your luck at the check-in.
But, don’t !
Marriott Hotels are not only strict about the authorisation form, if you cannot provide the form, they will ask you to pay the full-price, which is higher than most online rates. Remember, they have your card on record and they can charge it if you accepted the conditions while booking.
At the same time, by blocking the availability, you are also denying a room to someone wanting to use one of their employee benefits.
Don't overlook...
... the regular Bonvoy promotions and offers made to all Bonvoy members. You may find that:
- you can buy discounted points to top up your balance enough to be able to redeem for a free night;
-
some promotions may be very competitively priced and/or be available for destinations that do not have a plentiful supply of rooms under the Marriott Family & Friends program.
Conclusion
Marriott offers its team-members and associates generous discounts for stays made at Marriott hotels by themselves, their family and their friends.
It is an employee benefit, so participants should not "rock the boat" in any way as this will reflect badly on the relevant employee or associate.
The Explore program is an attractive one and long-serving employees are well-recognised under the QCC benefits.
We earlier looked at Hilton's equivalent program and the process of obtaining signed authorisation, while necessary to prevent abuse, does seem clunky by comparison to the online version of Hilton.
Nevertheless, a good program for Marriott's hard-working members of the hospitality industry.