In this article
One expected, one less so…
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card
First, the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa Signature Credit Card has increased the welcome offer from 75,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points to 100,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points when you spend $5,000 in 3 months.
I fully expected this increase for the card to be able to compete with the 100,000 point offers available for the American Express Bonvoy cards.
Remember that you can only get this card if you don’t have any of the Marriott Bonvoy American Express cards, don’t already have this card (which the Marriott Rewards Premier Plus converted to) and if you aren’t over 5/24.
This card comes with an annual free night of up to 35,000 points in exchange for the $95 annual fee, which is not waived the first year. It also comes with 15 annual elite night credits, though if you have any other Marriott Bonvoy card note that you’ll only get one tranche of 15 elite nights total.
If you have any questions about this card, ask me in the comments below.
IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
The IHG card has probably seen fewer signups since the annual free night got capped, but this is a really nice offer. I’ve actually never seen a better offer for this card. Although also subject to the 5/24 restriction, you can now earn up to 120,000 bonus points on this card as follows:
80,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 within the first 3 months, and then 40,000 more points after spending $5,000 total within 6 months.
The annual fee of $89 is not waived.
The card also includes a capped (meaning only at hotels up to 40,000 IHG points a night) annual free night and unlocks the ability to get the 4th night free on an award night. It also earns 10x points at IHG brands, though a subpar 2 points per $1 spent on purchases at gas stations, grocery stores, and restaurants and just 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. Note that I value IHG points at half a cent each.
Between the welcome bonus, 4th night free on awards, and the annual free night, it’s not a bad choice, though I certainly wouldn’t be getting either of these cards if I was new to the circuit and planning my 5/24 strategy.
IHG also made news here recently for a decision to test dynamic award pricing. This should be a long term concern, but you could have spend these 120,000 points long before then…
If you have any questions about either offer or card, ask me here, on Twitter, or in the private MilesTalk Facebook group.
New to all of this? My “introduction to miles and points” book, MilesTalk: Live Your Wildest Travel Dreams Using Miles and Points is available now.
