Marriott news: W Algarve opening, Hurlingham tennis tickets, ‘buy points’ bonus ending

Marriott news in brief:

W Algarve opening date confirmed for May

One of our ‘top 10 Marriott openings for 2022‘ was W Algarve.

The hotel has now set 2nd May as its official opening date, making it potentially worth a look for a break this Summer.

The hotel will have 134 rooms and 83 suites and is located directly on the waterfront with direct access to three beaches and a golf course.  All hotel rooms have sea views and suites will be complete with rooftop plunge pools.  A sky deck rooftop terrace will, apparently, offer unrivalled 220-degree view of the Algarve coastline.

The W Algarve website is here if you want to learn more.

Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic tickets coming up

I saw a news story this week about the Hurlingham Club pre-Wimbledon tennis tournament returning this year, and when I clicked through I saw something interesting.

It turns out that Marriott Bonvoy is sponsoring the event this year. The tournament website states that VIP hospitality tickets will be made available to Bonvoy members for points redemptions.

If you’ve never been to the Hurlingham Club tournament, it is well worth a visit. It is effectively a fun tournament, albeit one that attracts serious tennis names – albeit usually retired or semi-retired ones, who are in the UK anyway to commentate or play at Wimbledon.

It is nothing like Wimbledon in terms of scale – there are only about 12 rows of seats – and if the sun is shining it is a very pleasant afternoon out.

It runs from 21st to 26th June. We’ll let you know when Bonvoy tickets pop up. The tournament website is here.

Last call to buy Marriott Bonvoy points with a bonus

Finally, a reminder that Sunday 3rd April is your last chance – via this page of the website – to get a 40% to 50% bonus on all Bonvoy points purchases.

The bonus is staggered:

• 40% bonus on purchases of 2,000 to 9,000 points

• 45% bonus on purchases of 10,000 to 39,000 points

• 50% bonus on purchases of 40,000 to 100,000 points

Marriott has now moved to revenue-based redemptions, although almost all hotels will remain inside their existing high and low price caps for 2022. The full force of revenue-based redemptions will not be seen until 2023.

The annual purchase cap has now been permanently raised to 100,000 points.  With the bonus, this means that you could pick up 150,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

At the top end you are paying $1,250 (£950) for 150,000 points.

My rule of thumb is that a Marriott Bonvoy point is worth 0.5p so this offer is not great at 0.63p per point. 

However, you might find it worthwhile if:

• you are topping off your account before making a points booking, or

• you are close to 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points and want to make a transfer into airline miles (you get a bonus of 5,000 airline miles when you transfer 60,000 Bonvoy points into 20,000 airline miles), or

• you are planning a stay at a property where you know you will get outsized value

Outsize value is, absolutely, possible. I have a booking in the diary for St Regis New York in May where I am getting 0.83p per Bonvoy point and, more impressively, the legendary Al Maha in the Dubai desert in October where I am getting 1.5p.

The page to buy is here. The offer ends on Sunday.

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How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (April 2024)

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 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 Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points indirectly:

• American Express Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Rewards Credit Card (10,000 bonus Amex points)

and for small business owners:

• American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Business Platinum (40,000 bonus Amex points)

The conversion rate from American Express to Marriott Bonvoy points is 2:3.

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.)