Marriott Bonvoy selling points with mystery bonus

Expired

From now till 26 September 2021, buy Marriott Bonvoy points with a bonus of up to 50%, or 0.83 US cents each.

From now to 26 September 2021, 11.59 a.m SGT, Marriott Bonvoy members will receive a mystery bonus when they purchase points. As per my understanding, this maxes out at a 50% bonus, but do sound out if you were targeted for something higher. 

Check your Marriott Bonvoy bonus here

Marriott Bonvoy normally charges 1.25 US cents per point, so a 50% bonus reduces the price to 0.83 US cents per point.

For reference, the most recent Marriott Bonvoy sale offered a 30% discount on points, which worked out to 0.875 US cents each. Go back a bit further, and most of the points sales we’ve seen max out at a 50% bonus, although there was a 60% bonus offered in November 2020 (0.78 US cents/point).

You can normally buy a maximum of 50,000 points per year, but for this sale, Marriott has doubled the cap to 100,000 points.

A new member may buy points 30 days after enrollment if their Marriott Bonvoy account has a qualifying activity (like a stay). Otherwise, they’ll need to wait 90 days to purchase points.

What can you do with Marriott Bonvoy points?

As a reminder, here’s Marriott’s award chart. Marriott has now introduced off-peak and peak pricing, and these dates may change every month

Category Off-Peak  Standard Peak 
1 5,000  7,500 10,000
2 10,000 12,500 15,000
3 15,000  17,500 20,000
4 20,000  25,000 30,000 
5 30,000  35,000 40,000
6 40,000  50,000 60,000
7 50,000 60,000 70,000
8 70,000 85,000 100,000

The best scenarios to buy Marriott Bonvoy points typically exist at the extremes of the spectrum- either Category 1 or Category 8 hotels. Do the math and see whether buying points is cheaper than paying the revenue rates, and keep in mind that you don’t need to pay taxes when redeeming points. 

St Regis Maldives
St Regis Maldives

It’s probably not a good idea to buy points with the goal of redeeming Singapore staycations, however, as staycation packages tend to offer a better deal (e.g breakfast, late check-out). 

Marriott Bonvoy points can also be converted to airline miles with the following programs:

Marriott Bonvoy Airline Transfer Partners
(Bonvoy: Partner)
FFP Ratio FFP Ratio
AEGEAN Miles+Bonus 3:1 Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings Club 3:1
Aeroflot Bonus 3:1 Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles® 3:1
Aeromexico ClubPremier 3:1 Iberia Plus 3:1
Air Canada Aeroplan 3:1 InterMiles 3:1
Air China PhoenixMiles 3:1 Japan Airlines JAL Mileage Bank 3:1
Air France-KLM Flying Blue 3:1 JetBlue TrueBlue 6:1
Air New Zealand Airpoints 200:1 Korean Air SKYPASS 3:1
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan™ 3:1 LATAM Airlines LATAM Pass 3:1
Alitalia MilleMiglia 3:1 Multiplus Fidelidade 3:1
American Airlines AAdvantage® 3:1 Qantas Frequent Flyer 3:1
ANA Mileage Club 3:1 Qatar Airways Privilege Club 3:1
Asiana Airlines Asiana Club 3:1 SAA Voyager 3:1
Avianca LifeMiles 3:1 Saudia Alfursan 3:1
British Airways Executive Club 3:1 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer® 3:1
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles 3:1 Southwest Rapid Rewards® 3:1
China Eastern Airlines Eastern Miles 3:1 TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go 3:1
China Southern Airlines Sky Pearl Club 3:1 Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus 3:1
Copa Airlines ConnectMiles 3:1 Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles 3:1
Delta SkyMiles® 3:1 United MileagePlus® 3:1.1
Emirates Skywards® 3:1 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club 3:1
Etihad Guest 3:1 Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer 3:1
FRONTIER Miles 3:1    

Assuming a ratio of 3:1 (and factoring in 5,000 mile bonus for transferring 60,000 points), you’re paying 2 US cents per mile when buying Marriott points with a 50% bonus. 

That may be a bit steep for Alaska Mileage Plan (where members are sometimes targeted for a 60% bonus, or 1.85 US cents/mile), and way too steep for KrisFlyer. However, if you happen to have miles in an “exotic” account that doesn’t partner with any bank in Singapore, that could be a way of topping it up. 

What card should I use to buy Marriott Bonvoy points?

Purchases of Marriott Bonvoy points are processed by Points.com in USD, so they won’t code as hotel purchases. Here’s the best cards to maximize the miles earned on your purchase:

Card Earn Rate Remarks
Citi Rewards
Apply here
4 mpd Cap of S$1K per s. month 
UOB Visa Signature
Apply here
4 mpd Min S$1K Max S$2K FCY spend per s. month
SCB Visa Infinite
Apply here
3 mpd Min spend S$2K per s. month
UOB PRVI Miles
Apply here
2.4 mpd No cap 
S. Month= Statement Month | C. Month= Calendar Month

I generally don’t advise you to use the DBS Woman’s World Card, as past data points have indicated there are issues with getting the bonus points credited. 

Conclusion

A 50% bonus is one of Marriott’s better offers, but it might be prudent to wait and see which countries Singapore decides to lift SHN for in September before deciding to purchase. 

Don’t buy points speculatively, as there’ll always be future sales. 

Aaron Wong
Aaron Wong
Aaron founded The Milelion to help people travel better for less and impress chiobu. He was 50% successful.

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Lim

Still can’t make the maths work on Bonvoy – > Skywards even with recent Skywards bonus for buying and factoring in a 20% reduction through the subscription.

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