Ask Bonvoy: Marriott’s AI Hotel Search Tool
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Marriott unveiled Ask Bonvoy on June 16, 2026, a hotel search tool powered by artificial intelligence. Instead of filtering by dates and city, you describe your trip in natural language and the tool suggests properties across the group’s portfolio. The idea is handy, especially when you are looking for inspiration. Here is how to use it and what to know about its availability.
This announcement directly affects members of the Marriott Bonvoy program, one of the most popular among Canadian travellers. Here is what this AI really changes, and the features Marriott plans to add.
What is Ask Bonvoy?
Ask Bonvoy is a conversational search engine. You type a query such as « hotel with a spa and a good restaurant for a weekend as a couple, » and the AI interprets your travel intent. Then it points to matching properties among roughly 10,000 hotels across 146 countries and territories.
The tool considers the purpose of the stay, the destination’s attributes and the amenities you want, for example dining, spa or golf. You also keep the classic search by dates and location. Anthony Capuano, president and chief executive officer of Marriott, sees the tool as a step that brings conversational AI closer to trip planning.
How AI is changing hotel search
The main change is how you search. Today, you juggle filters and tabs. With Ask Bonvoy, you write one sentence and the tool does the sorting. For a busy traveller, that time saving has real value.
Marriott stresses one technical point. The answers rely only on verified data from its own hotels, not on open web content. When you want to check a hotel’s amenities, such as dining, spa or golf, you get answers based on verified data. This approach reduces the risk of errors or invented information. Results cover the Marriott portfolio, which is useful to know when you compare, as explained below.
Who is Ask Bonvoy for?
The tool mainly targets leisure planning and destination discovery. The vaguer your plan, the more the AI helps, and the broader the ideas it gives you. Conversely, if you already know your city and your dates, the classic filters are often faster.
- Families: a query like « Caribbean resorts with family suites and a kids’ club » quickly targets the right properties.
- Couples: for a getaway, you can ask for a « quiet hotel with a spa near the metro in Tokyo. »
- Themed trips: golf, dining or wellness, for example « golf resorts in Europe for a long weekend. »
- Business travellers: date and location search stays available, and the AI helps you target a specific amenity, for example a hotel with a fitness centre near the convention centre.
- Points optimizers: the tool helps you spot hotels, then you check the points cost in the regular search while you wait for the points search Marriott has announced.
Getting the most out of Ask Bonvoy
Ask Bonvoy saves time when you look for stay ideas across the Marriott portfolio. Three habits help a Bonvoy member get the most from it.
Points search: a feature on the way
Marriott plans to add a search for nights paid with points, a feature loyalty program optimizers look forward to. According to Marriott, it will arrive “over time,” with no firm date. Until then, the tool mainly helps you find the hotel and prepare a cash booking. For a points night, check the cost in the regular search on Marriott.com or in the app.
Answers grounded in Marriott data
Because the AI relies only on Marriott’s verified data, its answers about amenities are more reliable. Its suggestions therefore cover the group’s roughly 10,000 properties. To gauge the real value of your points against other hotels, round out your search with booking sites.
To compare, we recommend reading our article on the best hotel booking sites in 2026.
Compare before you book
Ask Bonvoy helps you discover the Marriott portfolio, then hands you off to booking on Marriott.com or in the app. Its suggestions are a good starting point: before you confirm, compare the cash rate, the points cost and the other options at your destination.
The AI race in hospitality
Marriott is part of a wider shift across the hotel industry. Hilton launched a generative AI concierge in March 2026. For their part, IHG and Wyndham rolled out apps inside ChatGPT. Marriott also works with Google and OpenAI on travel and advertising projects. This wave shows a deep trend. To measure the value of your points, comparing remains the best habit, whatever the tool.
Should you care right now?
If you mostly book with cash and your account is part of the beta, the tool can already save you time. The beta is available in U.S. English. Marriott plans a global rollout later in 2026 and, over time, a points search, so every member will be able to use it then.
Our advice stays the same. Use the AI to scout, then always check the cost in points against the cash rate. To pick the right card tied to this program, see our best Marriott Bonvoy cards, as well as our best credit cards page in Canada.
And the one we recommend most in this case? The Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card.
Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card
The Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card is one of the best credit cards in Canada for earning free hotel nights.
New Cardmembers can earn up to 70,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points with the current offer:
- Earn 60,000 points after you charge a total of $3,000 to your Card in your first 3 months of Cardmembership.
- Plus, earn 10,000 points when you spend $500 on your Card in your 13th month of Cardmembership.
The annual fee is $120, and Additional Cards have no annual fee, so you can add your partner or a family member at no extra cost.
Every year after your first Cardmembership anniversary, you receive an Annual Free Night Award redeemable for a stay worth up to 35,000 points at participating hotels and resorts around the world. At a value of 0.9¢ per Marriott Bonvoy point, this certificate is worth about $315, which on its own easily covers the $120 annual fee. It's the main reason to keep this Card year after year rather than cancel it.
To get the most out of it, aim for a night priced close to the 35,000-point cap.
The Card also gives you 15 Elite Night Credits each calendar year and complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status. These nights count toward the next Elite tier, so you start every year 15 nights ahead.
You're automatically upgraded to Gold Elite status when you reach $30,000 in purchases on the Card in a year, or when you combine 10 qualifying paid nights in the same calendar year with the 15 Elite Night Credits from your Card.
Marriott Bonvoy points are generally valued at 0.9¢ each. On that basis, the 70,000-point welcome offer is worth about $630, and an annual certificate used at its 35,000-point cap is worth about $315.
Marriott Bonvoy points deliver their full value on free nights rather than on gift cards or merchandise, so this Card should be judged on the stays it helps you book.
You earn 5 points per dollar on eligible purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels and 2 points per dollar on all other purchases. Points can be redeemed for free nights, with no blackout dates, at more than 7,000 hotels around the world.
The Card comes with a solid insurance package: $500,000 travel accident insurance, flight delay, baggage delay, lost or stolen baggage and hotel/motel burglary coverage of $500 each, car rental theft and damage coverage of up to $85,000 for rentals of up to 48 days, 90-day Purchase Protection and a one-year Extended Warranty.
Two things to plan for: the 2.5% foreign exchange fee on purchases made in foreign currencies, and the 21.99% interest rate on purchases, which make this a Card to pay in full every month. As with all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement, and you can check whether you would be approved before you apply, with no impact on your credit score.
- Annual fee
- $120
- Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$600Total$600Plus $100 of bonus paid after the first year, not counted in this total.Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
- $600
- Welcome offerAfter $3,000 in 3 months
- Up to 70,000 points
Apply Now
on American Express's website
Apply with confidenceCheck whether your application will be approved before you submit it, with no impact on your credit score*When you apply for a personal American Express Credit Card, we will tell you whether you are eligible without affecting your credit score. So you can apply with confidence.*Instant decisions are only available for consumer Card applications (also called “personal Cards”).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Ask Bonvoy?
Ask Bonvoy is an AI-powered hotel search tool launched by Marriott on June 16, 2026. You describe your trip in natural language and the AI suggests properties across the group’s portfolio.
Is Ask Bonvoy available in Canada?
It will be widely available with the global rollout planned for later in 2026. Until then, the U.S. English beta is open to a subset of members on Marriott.com and in the iOS and Android apps.
Can you search for nights in points?
Marriott plans to add a points search over time, with no date announced. Until then, the tool mainly helps with cash bookings, and you check the points cost in the regular search.
Does the AI suggest competing hotels?
Ask Bonvoy relies only on Marriott’s verified hotel data, so its suggestions cover the group’s properties. To compare with other hotels, check booking sites alongside it.
How many hotels does the tool cover?
Ask Bonvoy covers roughly 10,000 hotels across 146 countries and territories. The Marriott Bonvoy program has close to 283 million members worldwide.
Which card should you choose for Marriott Bonvoy?
It depends on your travel habits. Check our comparison of the best Marriott Bonvoy cards to find the most rewarding option for your spending.