Marriott brings back MegaBonus for Spring 2015

UPDATE – DECEMBER 2021:  This article is now out of date, but don’t worry.  We produce a monthly summary of the top hotel bonus point offers – please click HERE or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ menu above.

Marriott Rewards has launched its major promotion for Spring, which will be (yet) another outing for MegaBonus. This promotion is active across all Marriott brands, including Renaissance, Courtyard, Ritz-Carlton, Autograph, AC Hotels, Edition, JW Marriott, Gaylord and the various US ‘extended stay’ chains.

This promotion will run from February 1st to April 30th 2015.

However, I’m getting ahead of myself ….

Full details of the promotion can be found here.

Marriott targets different offers to different members based on your stay pattern (or lack of a stay pattern). To see what you have been given, you need to log in to your account.

I very rarely stay at a Marriott group property and if I log into my Marriott Rewards account and click on ‘Promotion Central’, I am offered what appears to the mainstream version:

Earn 2,500 bonus points per stay, starting with my second stay during the period, up to a maximum of 25,000 points

I tend to value Marriott Rewards points at 0.5p each so you are effectively getting £12.50 of value per stay from your bonus points.  This is certainly not terrible but neither is it a major reason to go out of your way.

Other versions of this offer include 3,000 points per stay (capped at 24,000 points) or a one-off bonus for hitting 15 or 20 nights.

The version which was most common in the past – offering a free night in a Category 1-4 hotel in return for two stays – seems to have disappeared.  This is not necessarily a disaster as Category 1-4 hotels were becoming quite rare.

Anyone whose Marriott account is set up to give airline miles instead of points will receive a different miles promotion instead.

Note that you need to register by 31st March so it is worth registering even if you are not planning any Marriott stays at present – it would be a shame to be faced with a couple of Marriott nights in April only to find that you can no longer sign up for the MegaBonus.

Whether the MegaBonus promotion works well for you will depend on your stay pattern – if you were staying in a cheap provincial Marriott for one night a week then the bonus is a decent rebate. 

If you are a ‘free agent’ with your bookings, though, I would certainly compare the new IHG Rewards Club promotion first (see my other article today) which should be more generous.

How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (December 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.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express

20,000 points sign-up bonus and 15 elite night credits Read our full review

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.

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

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.)