Hotel loyalty programs are a great way to reduce the cost of travel. Redeeming points can cut the cost of your next stay significantly. While points are typically earned through staying at affiliated brands or via credit card spending, these programs utilize other tools to build brand loyalty and customer retention as well.
Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, and World of Hyatt all offer a variation of free night awards or free night certificates, rewarding their members with additional stays for no cost. These free night awards are granted through various means and are used to reward members for their loyalty to the brand.
Let’s take a look at Marriott free night awards and how you can earn and redeem them for maximum value.
What are Marriott Bonvoy Free Night Awards?
As part of the Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program, members can earn “Free Night Awards” which are certificates or vouchers that allow them to stay for free at Marriott properties around the world.
Marriott Bonvoy free night awards come in four different denominations: 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, 40,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, and 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. Each free night award is good for a one-night stay and the stay must be completed by the expiration date on the free night award.
While all Marriott Bonvoy free night awards can be redeemed for a one-night stay costing up to the amount of Marriott Bonvoy points outlined on the award, members can add a ‘top up’ of up to 15,000 Marriott Bonvoy points to make their redemption. This means that if you have a 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy free night award and wish to redeem it for a stay that costs 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, members can add 15,000 of their points to make the redemption. If you earn miles and points with a partner, consider combining Marriott Bonvoy points for your next redemption.
While Marriott Bonvoy does offer a “Stay for 5, Pay for 4” benefit, which means that members can make a five-night points redemption and only pay for four nights, it is important to note that Marriott Bonvoy free night awards do not count towards this feature. This means that if you want to make a five-night redemption containing one free night award and three nights which points were redeemed for, you would not be eligible to receive the fifth night free.
How to Earn Marriott Bonvoy Free Night Awards
There are a number of ways you can earn Marriott Bonvoy free night awards including by holding credit cards, earning Marriott Bonvoy status, and taking part in limited-time credit card welcome bonuses.
Holding Marriott Bonvoy Co-branded Credit Cards
American Express Canada Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards
American Express Canada offers the only co-branded Marriott Bonvoy credit cards in Canada and both of them give cardholders the opportunity to earn a free night award annually.
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy card offers a complimentary free night award worth 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points upon reaching the credit card anniversary. This means that you will not receive the free night award for signing up (unless specified in the welcome offer details), but instead, will receive it once you hold the card for a year and every year thereafter.
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy card earns Bonvoy points and offers cardholders benefits including an annual free night and 15 qualifying nights towards elite status.
Check out our American Express Marriott Bonvoy card review for more details.
80,000 Marriott Bonvoy
$3,000
$600+
$120
Yes
May 6, 2024
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy Business card is the other card that offers a complimentary free night award worth 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points upon reaching the credit card anniversary and every year thereafter.
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy Business card earns Bonvoy points and offers cardholders benefits including an annual free night and 15 qualifying nights towards elite status.
90,000 Marriott Bonvoy
$6,000
$660+
$150
Yes
May 6, 2024
Check out some of the best uses for 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy free night awards in North America to see how you can best use your free night award if you are holding either of these cards.
As an aside, both cards also offer 15 elite qualifying nights annually, making them a great tool to work towards earning Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status or Marriott lifetime status. The 15 nights offered by each of these cards do not stack, meaning you are eligible to receive 15 elite qualifying nights total.
American Express USA Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards
In the United States, American Express offers three co-branded Marriott Bonvoy credit cards that are eligible to earn free night awards. If you haven’t worked your way into the US credit card scene yet, learn how to get US credit cards as a Canadian.
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card (US) offers a free night award worth 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points upon reaching the credit card anniversary and every year thereafter. While this card has a high annual fee, cardholders can extract high value from the free night award if they have any aspirational hotel stays in mind. Plus, the card offers instant and complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status.
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card (US) offers cardholders complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status, an annual $300 restaurant credit, an annual free night, 25 elite qualifying night credits annually, and Priority Pass Select membership.
Check out our American Express Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card (US) review for more details.
185,000 Marriott Bonvoy
$6,000
$1,015+
$650
No
May 1, 2024
On the other hand, the American Express Marriott Bonvoy Business card (US) is identical to its Canadian counterparts as it offers a free night award worth 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points upon reaching the credit card anniversary and every year thereafter.
The American Express Marriott Bonvoy Business card (US) earns Marriott Bonvoy points and offers cardholders benefits such as an annual free night and 15 elite qualifying nights to work towards Bonvoy status.
75,000 Marriott Bonvoy
$3,000
$550+
$125
No
–
Finally, the American Express Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card (US) is also available, however, it does not offer a free night award just for holding the card. Instead, cardholders will receive a free night award worth up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after spending $15,000 USD in eligible purchases in a calendar year.
Chase Marriott Bonvoy Credit Card (United States)
While Chase offers two co-branded Marriott Bonvoy credit cards in the United States, only one of them can earn free night awards.
The Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card (US) offers a free night award worth 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points upon reaching the credit card anniversary and every year thereafter.
The Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless credit card earns Marriott Bonvoy points on all purchases and offers an annual free night worth 35,000 Bonvoy points plus an annual 15 elite qualifying nights to work towards Marriott Bonvoy status.
150,000 Marriott Bonvoy
$3,000
$1,255+
$95
No
–
While the American Express Marriott Bonvoy credit cards are most likely more attractive for many, the Chase card provides a good addition to the line-up and another option for cardholders who are looking to stack Marriott Bonvoy free night awards.
Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite Status – Annual Choice Benefit
If you reach Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite status by earning 75 elite qualifying nights in a calendar year, you will be able to select an “Annual Choice Benefit”. These benefits include things such as Nightly Upgrade Awards, a discount on a Marriott branded bed, the ability to gift Marriott Gold Elite status, or a free night award worth up to 40,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.
Needless to say, the free night award is the best choice far and above everything else on the list. If you are close to reaching this Titanium Elite status, consider using a mattress run to earn your last few nights so you can take advantage of this free night award.
Credit Card Welcome Bonuses
From time to time, the above credit cards may offer Marriott Bonvoy free night awards as part of the welcome offer. For example, we recently saw a welcome offer that was comprised of 5x 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy free night awards.
These welcome offers can be incredibly powerful and worth signing up for providing you have a plan as to how you will redeem the free night awards. I would advise against signing up for any offers that are structured like this without having a redemption plan in place.
How to Redeem Marriott Bonvoy Free Night Awards
Once you have earned your Marriott Bonvoy free night award, redeeming is easy.
For example, I am interested in redeeming a 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy free night award for a one-night stay at The Dorian, Autograph Collection in Calgary. Starting out, simply search for the property on the Marriott Bonvoy app or website and select that you wish to redeem points.
The search results will show the nightly Marriott Bonvoy points cost so you can ensure it is within the amount denoted on your free night award (or within the value of your free night award + 15,000 points).
Once you select the room type, you will arrive on the payment screen to confirm the booking. Select “Redeem Free Night” to start the process of applying your free night award towards the booking.
On the next screen, you will see all eligible free night awards that can be applied towards the booking. Click “Redeem” for the one you wish to use. Note that the expiration date listed on the free night award is a “stay by date” and not simply a date that the stay needs to be booked by. If you are making a booking for multiple nights, you can apply multiple free night awards towards one booking.
Finally, you will see the free night award applied towards the hotel reservation as the total points redemption cost will be zeroed out.
If you cancel the hotel stay, the free night award will return to your Marriott Bonvoy account. However, the expiry date will remain the same.
How to Maximize the Value of Marriott Bonvoy Free Night Awards
While Marriott Bonvoy free night awards are a great tool, they are ultimately quite a bit less flexible than Hilton Honor’s free night certificates. Where Hilton doesn’t assign point values to their certificates, Marriott does have point restrictions on their free night certificates, reducing the number of available properties that each free night award can be used for.
However, the value is still there and a significant amount of money can be saved with strategic usage of the Marriott Bonvoy free night awards. Before redeeming, ensure you are using your free night award for a hotel redemption that costs as close to the value outlined on your free night award.
For example, I previously redeemed an 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy free night award for a one-night stay at W Koh Samui which saved me $650 CAD. For even better value, Jeff was able to redeem an 85,000 point free night award plus 15,000 points for a night at Al Maha which saved him over $1,700 CAD.
Domestically, I have found that the 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy free night awards are great when used for a one-night stay after a positioning flight before heading out on an international vacation. More locally, I’ve enjoyed various staycations at The Dorian and the JW Marriott Edmonton Ice District simply to burn a free night award and get out of the house.
Conclusion
Marriott Bonvoy free night awards are a great tool to be utilized by miles and points enthusiasts. They are straightforward to earn and make it worth holding various co-branded Marriott Bonvoy credit cards year over year simply because you can easily get more value out of the anniversary free night award than what you would pay for the annual fees.
If you haven’t already, consider incorporating free night awards into your Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program strategy to save on your next stay!
Josh Bandura
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