I don’t generally ever advise that someone buys miles or points during promotional sales (or otherwise) unless they plan to immediately redeem them in a way that they are all but guaranteed a positive return on their investment – since miles and points are declining value currencies. They will generally be worth less 5 years from now (or one year from now) as airline and hotel loyalty programs tend to consistently devalue the value of a mile or point.
In this article
Get 20% Off Marriott Gift Cards – Any Value
The same thinking doesn’t apply here. Marriott is offering 20% off gift cards from May 11th to 17th (earlier if supplies are exhausted) so that you can buy now and stay later with 20% off any rate except for prepaid rates.
Marriott is one of the largest hotel companies in the world and, as much as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is affecting their revenue, I don’t see much risk of Marriott going away from it.
And while Marriott can (and consistently has) make a Marriott Bonvoy point worth less, they can’t make the value of cash worth less.
If you buy a $1,000 gift card for $800 now, you’ll get $1,000 worth of hotel rooms for it. I’ll probably buy a $500 or a $1,000 card myself – knowing that I’ll use it once we get started traveling again. 20% off on top of a AAA rate or similar will make for a nice deal. Don’t forget that until occupancy rates get back near normal, rates are likely to be lower than normal as well. Any discounted rates still work to our advantage here (unlike using points which don’t present very good value on nights that are already cheap for cash).
Here’s the link to the offer page.
Terms and Conditions for the 20% Of Gift Card Deal
- Cards are in US Dollars but can be used globally
- Cards will never expire
- Must buy online; this deal won’t work to purchase cards at hotels
- You can use any part of a card anytime and use the rest later.
- Marriott GiftCards / eGiftCards can be used at any participating Marriott hotel at these brands, including AC Hotels by Marriott®, Aloft®, Autograph Collection® Hotels, Courtyard®, Delta Hotels and Resorts®, EDITION®, Element®, Fairfield Inn & Suites®, Four Points® by Sheraton, Gaylord Hotels®, JW Marriott®, Le Méridien®, Marriott Executive Apartments®, Marriott Hotels®, Marriott Vacation Club®, Moxy Hotels , Protea Hotels by Marriott®, Renaissance® Hotels, Residence Inn®, Sheraton®, SpringHill Suites®, St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, The Ritz-Carlton, The Ritz-Carlton Reserve® hotels, TownePlace Suites®, Tribute Portfolio™, W®, Westin®
-
- The following Marriott Hotel Brands DO NOT accept Marriott GiftCards: Bvlgari Hotels, Design Hotels™, Homes & Villas by Marriott International Marriott™, The Ritz-Carlton Destination Club®,
-
See the FAQ for all terms and conditions as well as frequently asked questions.
Will you Earn 6X Points Using a Marriott Bonvoy Credit Card?
The official @MBonvotAssist on Twitter told me no:
“Should not qualify for the 6x Points earning opportunity because it is not a purchase from a property. We see there are some folks on other channels who are stating this is a confirmed yes, their mileage may vary.”
(I’d already thought the answer was no but looped in the official Marriott team to double check.)
A Smart Move for Marriott
This offer allows Marriott to collect your money now (while they desperately need revenue) for stays in the future. They are essentially getting a long-term loan on your money for that fixed 20% rate, no matter how long it takes you to spend it.
And they know that some percentage of buyers will never actually spend the entire amount purchased.
And we know there is an appetite for travel as the Air Canada Aeroplan promotion last week knocked their servers down for the first 5-10 minutes of the promo as thousands of members tried all at once to buy Aeroplan miles for a penny each.
60% Bonus if You Buy Marriott Bonvoy Points
As well, from May 18th, Marriott will be offering a 60% bonus on buying Bonvoy points. Like I said above, I don’t advise it unless you have a way to spend them right now.
If you do, it can make sense but please don’t buy speculatively. If you are booking a room that is $750 and you can buy 50,000 points to “pay” for it (and don’t mind the risk that whatever trip you are booking could be cancelled due to a new COVID-19 wave, then go for it.
Will you buy any 20% off Gift Cards for Marriott?
Let me know here, on Twitter, or in the private MilesTalk Facebook group.
You can find credit cards that best match your spending habits and bonus categories at Your Best Credit Cards.
New to all of this? My “introduction to miles and points” book, MilesTalk: Live Your Wildest Travel Dreams Using Miles and Points is available on Amazon and at major booksellers.
