a pool with palm trees and chairs and a deck chair
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Points are lovely, but they alone can also create a bit of anxiety. What if I don’t use them right? What if I don’t want to burn all my points right away? That’s exactly why the new Marriott Bonvoy Amex Card offers really are fantastic.

Not only do they come with lots of points, some with 150,000 or more, but they also bring easy to redeem free night certificates, and with the Bonvoy Brilliant Amex, $600 in “easy” initial value to offset the $450 annual fee.

Here’s the details on these enticing limited time offers, which brings perks and bonus points on every Marriott stay…

Why Hotel Credit Cards Matter

Hotels are very picky about how guests earn points and benefits, and force people to book direct to enjoy elite status hotel perks and become eligible for points earning.

Even when you do book direct, it’s not always all that easy to rack up enough points for elite status or awesome free nights, just from hotel stays.

That’s where credit cards transform the game, by earning huge numbers of bonus points on each stay, on top of what you earn from the stay itself. In many of the latest loyalty program promotions, having a hotel branded credit card can be the difference in earning 2X points or 3X points during global bonuses.

Basically, they really want you to get a card, and they make it really rewarding when you do, by offering cardmembers earning and burning opportunities which other people don’t get to enjoy.

a credit card on a wallet

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Is Brilliant

How do you chip away at a $450 annual fee for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex? Well, a $300 credit to spend at any Marriott Bonvoy property is certainly a great start.

The free night certificate for any stay up to 85,000 points per nigh also helps, and so does the $100 credit for every 2+ night stay at a Ritz or St. Regis. If you add up the value of the free night certificate, it’s effectively a 235,000 point welcome bonus.

And back to justifying the annual fee…

Yep, your math is right, by regularly staying at Marriott Bonvoy hotel brands, you’ll get much more than $450 in value from a $450 a year card via this offer. Every year you hold the card, you get the $300 credit to use at Marriott too, and the $100 property credits. But the card doesn’t stop there, and that’s why it’s awesome.

a pool with palm trees and chairs and umbrellas

Free Night Certificate Annually

The Bonvoy Brilliant Card also offers a free night certificate worth up to 50,000 points for every anniversary of holding the card, as well as complimentary Marriott Gold Elite status.

But thanks to this limited time offer, you also get a free night certificate good for any hotel up to 85,000 points per night, when you hit $5,000 in spending within the first 3 months. So on top of the 150,000 welcome points, you’re effectively getting another 85,000 via this “free night” offer.

A Marriott loyalist and still not convinced? It gets better.

$100 Property Credits

The next value comes from a $100 property credit every time you stay two nights or more, in a Ritz Carlton or St. Regis property. You could earn that $100, a hundred times or more in a year, which is cool. You can even book online, at Marriott.com to enjoy the rate.

15 Elite Status Nights Annually + Marriott Bonvoy Gold

Hotels have gone to great lengths during the pandemic to extend elite status, or to make it easier for people to earn.

Marriott gives you 15 nights toward Marriott Bonvoy status each year, and if you happen to also have a business Marriott Bonvoy credit card too, you can combine the credits to instantly give you 30 nights toward any goal. You can get nearly half way to top tier status just from cards!

They’re giving you Marriott Bonvoy Gold as gratis, but it’s incredibly easy to reach Platinum or Titanium thanks to the potential of these night credits, particularly in a year full of promotions (as travel recovers).

Why Now Might Be A Great Time

There’s been strong rumors (and just rumors for now) swirling that Marriott is looking to up the annual fee on this Amex Card, but potentially add more benefits. By getting the card now, you’re able to lock in the lower $450 annual fee for at least a year, but still be able to reap the benefits, if new benefits are introduced.

Adding fuel to the speculation that changes are coming, terms for the offer state that any application received after November 3rd won’t be considered for the card, which could suggest there really are “upgrades” on the way. Again, if they are, you get access right away, even though you paid the lower annual fee for the first year.

With the 150,000 Marriott Bonvoy Point welcome bonus, $300 annually in Marriott credit and $100 to spend at the hotel every time you stay two nights or more at a Ritz or St. Regis, it’s not hard to justify this card — if you stay brand focused.

This is the best offer we’ve seen, particularly thanks to the elevated free night award for the first year. The “free night” for subsequent years can be really handy too.

You can check out this limited time Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card offer here.

Gilbert Ott is an ever curious traveler and one of the world's leading travel experts. His adventures take him all over the globe, often spanning over 200,000 miles a year and his travel exploits are regularly...

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9 Comments

  1. Is the $100 credit good on ANY rate… usually those are rip off deals as they make you spend extra money to earn a credit you may not use.

    1. Definitely needs to be a specific rate, but experience says it’s small margin, when there is any. Margin may be a few bucks here and there, versus some like super advance purchase etc. In other words, I’d say it’s probably not realistically a $100 win every time, but maybe $75+, depending on the stay. So probably not a 100% winner, given the fluctuation of rates, but should be relatively easy to win many times with.

  2. What’s the best Avios earning card for someone in USA? I’m in UK and get a companion voucher with my AMEX BA card every year. Can someone in USA get a companion voucher via a card? And could I refer them for an Amex card even though I am in UK and they are based in USA?

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