Marriott Bonvoy peak and off-peak points pricing is now live

Marriott Bonvoy put its new peak and off-peak pricing into effect over the weekend.

It will take a while before I can see how much it impacts me.  Two Saturday nights I locked in at The Langley (the best ‘country house’ redemption near London bookable for points) for March and June 2020 have not changed and remain at 35,000 points per night (vs £400ish for cash!).

On the other hand, a midweek night I have at Renaissance Paris Republique next month has gone up from 50,000 points to 60,000 points.  Mid October should arguably not be ‘peak’.  That said, St Regis New York remains 85,000 points for a possible November trip I am looking at.

Marriott sent me the following examples of times when you can expect to find hotels reduced to off-peak pricing:

Hawaii: October through mid-December (2019) and late September through October (2020) depending on market
California Wine Country: Mid-November (2019) through April (2020)
New York: January through February (2020)
Orlando: beginning in May with the greatest concentration in August and September (2020)
Washington DC: Late November (2019) through February (2020)
Cape Town: May through August (2020)
Dubai: May through September (2020)
European destinations: primary November (2019) through March (2020)
Maldives: May through June and end of August through early October (2020)
Bora Bora: January through March (2020)
Bali: November through mid-December (2019), mid-January through March (2020)
Phuket: May through June (2020)
Koh Samui: October through mid-December (2019) and September through October (2020)
Costa Rica: October (2019) and August through October (2020)
Macau: March through June (2020)

There is an element of ‘you don’t say’ at work here (Dubai in July anyone?).  However, you can potentially get a good deal on the shoulder seasons – Dubai in early May or late September, for example, is perfectly pleasant, so try the The Al Maha Desert Resort which we reviewed here.  A lot of southern European cities are also very pleasant in late March.

In reality, however, it does not appear to be like this.  Hotels are changing in points price from day to day, linked to the cash rate.  You may see a Monday at peak rate and then Tuesday at standard rate.  It makes it a lot more difficult to plan your stays if your points stash is limited.  The points required will flip between peak, standard and off-peak pricing as cash rates go up or down.

You will see one extra change to the Bonvoy website.  When you search for a reward stay, it now shows the price for the full stay rather than the price per night.  This makes is trickier to see if all or only part of your trip is in a higher pricing bracket.

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How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (September 2021)

There are various ways of earning Marriott Bonvoy points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

The official Marriott Bonvoy American Express card usually comes with 20,000 points for signing up, 2 points for every £1 you spend and 15 elite night credits per year.

You can apply here.

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points by converting American Express Membership Rewards points at the rate of 2:3.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Marriott Bonvoy Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Hilton Honors Gold, Radisson Rewards Gold and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

Until 2nd November 2021, The Platinum Card comes with a sign-up bonus of 60,000 Amex points. This converts into 90,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

You can also earn American Express Membership Rewards points with American Express Gold (20,000 bonus points), the American Express Rewards Credit Card (5,000 bonus points) and – for small business owners – American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus points) and Business Platinum (40,000 bonus points).

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Marriott Bonvoy points. 

(Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)