Marriott Hotels is the biggest hotel chain in the world. With over 7,000 properties, including The Ritz-Carlton, there are often promotions to buy Marriott points. With Marriott Bonvoy points, you can use them for hotel stays or transfer them to a huge range of airline transfer partners.
Note that hotels are now dynamically priced, meaning it’s wise only to buy points with a specific redemption in mind when you’re also ready to book. This guide looks at regular Marriott Bonvoy ‘buy points’ offers and is continuously updated as new offers are announced.
Current offer
Get up to 40% bonus points when you buy 2,000+ points
| Expiry: 11:59 pm 23 December 2024 (EDT in the US) |
This isn’t a tiered offer. Just buy more than 2,000 points to get the bonus.
- 40% bonus: buy 2,000 to 150,000 points
When buying the maximum, you’ll be spending 0.89 US cents per point, which is ~1.37 AU cents. We currently value Marriott Points at 0.70 cents (AU), for comparison. Before buying, you’ll want to make sure your desired redemption will offer a relative value that’s more than what you’re paying for the points.
This could be a good opportunity to buy points in advance, but, it’s always best if you have a specific reward in mind. Remember, Marriott Points are extremely flexible and can be transferred to the most frequent flyer programs, including Qantas and Velocity.
The transfer rate for most airlines is 3:1, with 5,000 points added for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points you transfer. For example, if you buy 60,200 Marriott Bonvoy points for US$537.5 after the bonus, that could transfer to 25,000 frequent flyer points in many other programs (ignoring the extra 200 points).
The annual points purchase limit for this offer is 150,000 points. This isn’t one of the lowest prices we have seen on Bonvoy points, so you might consider waiting for a better offer if you don’t need to buy points right now.
Offer history
| Date | Bonus (%) | Price per point (US cents) |
|---|---|---|
| November 2024 | 40 | 0.89 |
| August 2024 | 40 | 0.89 |
| May 2024 | 50 | 0.83 |
| February 2024 | 40 | 0.89 |
| November 2023 | 30 | 0.96 |
| November 2023 | 40 | 0.89 |
| August 2023 | 35 | 0.93 |
| Average | 39.29 | 0.90 |
Important things to keep in mind
- Allow 24-48 hours for the transaction to be completed and the points to land in your account.
- A new member may purchase points 30 days after enrolment if their Marriott Bonvoy account has some earn activity. If not, a new member is eligible to purchase points after one year, regardless of their account activity.
Summing up
The Marriott Bonvoy program devalued in 2018. However, the flexibility of Marriott Bonvoy points means that they continue to be a valuable arsenal in your points plan, especially if you can grab them during a promotion.
If you need more than the 150,000 points you can buy at once, consider having a friend or family member buy a chunk and then transfer it to you for free. Learn more about how to buy, gift or transfer Marriott Bonvoy points.
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The same night costs 35,000 points.
It costs A$419 (USD275 @0.655c) for 35,200 points (22,000 + 13,200 bonus).
What am I missing?
There will be cases, such as your example above, where purchasing the hotel outright is the better option. But the cost-benefit relationship changes based on a number of variables, including the hotel brand, destination, time of year you’re flying and the associated demand, and so forth.
If you transfer from ascent points to Marriot do you still get the bonus?