Marriott Bonvoy News

April 22 - Increased Sign-Up Bonuses on Marriott Cards

Chase announced some boosted sign-up bonuses that are available for a limited time on two of their co-branded Marriott cards.

• Marriott Bonvoy Bold™ Credit Card: Limited Time Offer! Earn 50,000 Bonus Points after spending $1,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. That's 20,000 points more than their previous offer.

• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card: Limited Time Offer! Earn 100,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Cardholders who apply now will get an extra 25,000 bonus points compared to the last offer.

NerdWallet values Marriott points at 0.9 cent each, so these increased offers are worth about $450 and $900 respectively. For ideas on how to spend the points from these offers, check out how to maximize the 100,000-point offer and 10 great ways to use 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

April 14 - Travelers Can Earn Marriott Points on Uber Rides and UberEats

Marriott members can now earn points whenever they use Uber when they link their Marriott Bonvoy account to their Uber app. The earning rate is:

• 6 points per dollar spent on Uber Eats orders delivered to Marriott properties (minimum $25 purchase).

• 3 points per dollar spent on Uber XL, Uber Comfort, Uber Black and Premium rides.

• 2 points per dollar spent on all other Uber Eats orders (minimum $25 purchase).

For a limited time, when members link their account and make at least one of the qualifying purchases to earn points, they'll earn an additional 2,000 bonus points. This bonus points promotion ends May 31, 2021.

Feb. 23 - Marriott Offers Complimentary COVID-19 Testing at Mexico and Caribbean Resorts

Following Hyatt's lead, Marriott has also introduced complimentary COVID-19 testing for guests at their resorts in Mexico and the Caribbean. Testing is available for up to two guests per room who stay three nights or longer and are heading back to the U.S. Here are the participating hotels:

Mexico

• JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa.

• Marriott Cancun Resort.

• The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun.

• Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa.

• W Punta de Mita.

• The Westin Resort & Spa, Puerto Vallarta.

• The St. Regis Punta Mita Resort.

• Solaz, a Luxury Collection Resort, Los Cabos.

• Zadun, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve.

Caribbean

• Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino.

• The Ritz-Carlton, Aruba.

For travelers who may not be able to travel following the results of their COVID-19 test, guests can extend their stay with a up to 50% discount off of the flexible rate.

Jan. 11 - Marriott Rolls Out Several Bonvoy Changes for 2021

Marriott is making life a little bit better for Bonvoy members in 2021 with several updates to the program, making earning and redeeming points easier. These program updates include:

• Members will get a 50% Elite Night Credit (ENC) deposit based on their 2020 elite level to get a head start on re-qualifying in 2021. The ENC deposits will be: 50 for Ambassador, 38 for Titanium, 25 for Platinum, 13 for Gold, and five for Silver.

• The spending threshold for Ambassador status has been reduced to $14,000.

• Off peak redemption rates have been reduced by 10% for reservations through Sept. 30 (book by Feb. 21).

Read our full breakdown of these changes.

Oct. 26 - Marriott Extends Free Night Award Expiration Dates, Again

Good news for Bonvoy members today as Marriott announced that customers who have a Free Night Award (FNA) will get an extension on those expiration dates again.

Earlier this year, Marriott announced that the expiration date on these FNAs would be extended until Jan. 31, 2021. Now, FNAs set to expire before the end of July will automatically have the expiration date extended to Aug. 1, 2021. This would include previously extended awards with one exception: Any FNAs "with an original expiration date prior to 2020 will not be eligible for the additional extension."

No action is needed by customers, and the updates are expected to take place Dec. 11, 2020.

Aug. 27 - Marriott Rolls Out Status Match Challenge

For a limited time, Marriott is rolling out a status match opportunity for those who already hold elite status with Hilton, Hyatt, Accor or IHG. Once enrolled in the challenge, customers will get either Gold or Platinum status with Marriott and will need to log at least five nights (for Gold) or 15 nights (for Platinum) within 90 days to keep the status through February 2022.

The status match is outlined as follows:

• Hilton Gold/Diamond = Marriott Platinum

• Hyatt Explorist = Marriott Gold

• Hyatt Globalist = Marriott Platinum

• Accor Gold = Marriott Gold

• Accor Platinum/Diamond = Marriott Platinum

• IHG Platinum or Spire = Marriott Platinum

Interested customers can learn more and register at Marriott’s website.

Aug. 3 - Get 10X Points on Restaurants, Gas and Hotels

Now, cardholders of the Marriott Bonvoy American Express, Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, and Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card will receive the following bonuses on up to $7,500 in eligible purchases in each category:

• 10x points on U.S. gas stations.

• 10x points on U.S. restaurants.

• 10x points at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels.

Terms apply.

» Learn More:  Limited Time Offer: Marriott Cardholders Get 10X Points on Restaurants, Gas and Hotels

June 15 - Marriott Adds 2 New Benefits for Bonvoy Members

Marriott introduced two new benefits in an email to members today. For all members, over 5,500 properties around the world will be offering strictly off-peak award redemption rates between now and June 30 for stays booked through July 31. Marriott award pricing typically works dynamically, with dates varying between off-peak, standard and peak pricing.

Marriott also announced a benefit boost for Elite members in the form of a 50% bonus of Elite Night Credits (ENCs). Based on the status tier earned in 2019, this bonus will accelerate the ability to achieve the next status level for the remainder of 2020 as well as all of 2021. The bonus deposits are as follows and should be in accounts in late July:

Ambassador = 50 ENCs

Titanium = 38 ENCs

Platinum = 25 ENCs

Gold = 13 ENCs

Silver = 5 ENCs

Photo courtesy of Marriott.

How to Maximize Your Rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2021, including those best for: