The newest promotions for Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, and SPG have just been announced. All three promotions have the same time period in which they are valid but they each offer something unique to each chain’s loyalty program (even though all three programs are linked on some level).
Here’s what you need to know about the hotel bonuses:
Marriott Rewards® Megabonus® Infinite Points
- Earn 2,000 bonus points beginning with your second stay – with no limit to the number of points you can earn.
- Earn an additional 2,000 bonus points for each new brand you stay with, beginning with your second brand. (The first stay establishes the first brand. Members will earn bonus points for every additional brand they stay with.)
- Valid May 27 – September 4, 2017.
- Register by August 30, 2017.
- Register here.
I think this would be a fantastic promotion to jump on if you were already planning to do a Marriott status challenge. Many of these cheap Marriott properties are eligible for this promotion that you could use on a status challenge including:
- Courtyard by Marriott
- Residence Inn by Marriott
- SpringHill Suites by Marriott
- Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott
- TownePlace Suites by Marriott
In many major cities, it’s not hard to find these different brands, often clustered together.
So you could rack up 4,000 additional points per stay by staying at those properties, which could easily add up to 20,000 bonus points. That would be in addition to the base points you earn and any other bonus rates you pick up along the way. Each 4,000 point bonus is about $32 worth of Marriott points in your pocket and considering some of those nights can be booked for $64.
That means you could possibly net a 50% return on top of the base points and credit card points you’d earn, making this probably one of the cheapest ways to ever complete a challenge status.
The Ritz-Carlton Rewards Summer Sojourns
- Double points per eligible stay.
- Triple points per eligible stay for members with The Ritz-Carlton Credit Card.
- The stays must be of two or more nights within the earning period
- Valid May 27 – September 4, 2017.
- Register by August 30, 2017.
- Register here.
3X for Ritz-Carlton Credit Card holders is very good. At 3X that’s 30 points per dollar spent and a return of 24%. If you were planning on dropping a lot at a Ritz-Carlton property soon, that 3X could add up pretty quickly At 2X it’s a 16% return which is still decent.
SPG® Take Three
- Triple Starpoints® on weekends or Double Starpoints® on weekdays (all bonuses are on base points)
- The stays must be of two or more nights within the earning period
- Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card Members earn an additional 1,500 Starpoints per eligible resort stay.
- Valid May 27 – September 4, 2017.
- Register by August 30, 2017.
- Register here.
On weekends, you’ll be earning a total of 6 SPG points (3 x 2 standard earning points). SPG Gold and SPG Platinum members will earn their additional SPG point on top of that for a total of 7 SPG points (the elite bonus points are not tripled). 7 SPG points for Gold and Platinum members is a 17% return which is pretty good. Even on weekdays, you’ll earn 5 SPG points and Gold or Platinum, which is still a 12% return and not bad.
Final word
Remember, you must register for these promotions in order to earn the bonus points. Overall, I think these promotions are pretty decent but the Marriott promotion could be an exceptional deal for those planning to complete a challenge status.
Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio.
