To the point
Marriott Bonvoy is now offering the opportunity to combine a free night certificate with up to 15,000 points. Here's how to do it.
Announced by Marriott Bonvoy in fall 2021, it is now possible to top up the Free Night Award with up to 15,000 points.
Thus, with the Free Night Award (35,000 points) topped up with points, you can book a room with a total value of 50,000 points.
This is also good news for Marriott Bonvoy Elite Titanium Status members. They can choose an annual benefit of one Free Night Award for hotels up to a value of 40,000 points.
With this change, they will also be able to use up to 15,000 points to get a free night. Therefore, they can book a room with this certificate + points combination, with a total value of up to 55,000 points.
And if you own the US credit card, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card (which offers a 50,000 points Free Night Award), you can top it off with up to 15,000 points to earn a free night’s stay worth a total of up to 65,000 points.
How to earn a Free Night Award
Two credit cards in Canada offer a Free Night Award upon annual renewal for use at Marriott Bonvoy hotels:
If you don’t have one and/or the other, don’t miss the offer that ends May 11, 2022:
This valuable certificate is a significant benefit, putting the cost of their annual membership fee in perspective when renewing.
If used correctly, you could get $300 or more out of it, especially when visiting large American or European cities.
How to use an Annual Free Night Award with points
When booking a room, you must choose the option to book with points.
Then, select a room with a maximum of 15,000 points more than your free night certificate allows.
In this example, at Moana Surfrider – A Westin Resort & Spa – Waikiki Beach, I have a 35,000 points Free Night Award Certificate. This way, I can book a room up to 50,000 points.
After selecting the room, the option appears to pay with a Free Night Award AND points!
Then, just before confirming the room, a summary allows us to see what will be deducted from our account.
There you go! In this example, this tip will have saved you $440 USD (including taxes) or $565 Canadian dollars.
This is more than enough to compensate for the annual fee of the card that allows you to have such an advantage, thanks to this Free Night Award and points!
As of this writing, the option was not yet appearing in the Marriott Bonvoy mobile app.
Conclusion
This is an option that many have been waiting for, especially in the Milesopedia community. It’s relatively easy to use and it allows you to use the Free Night Award at many more Marriott Bonvoy hotels now.
Come to discuss that topic in our Facebook Group!
