American Express Membership Rewards transfers to Marriott Bonvoy are now instant

On Friday, we published an article on why INSTANTLY transferable points are the best sort of points.

Whilst it is fantastic that you can convert points such as American Express Membership Rewards points into many different airline and hotel schemes, the vast majority of Amex, Heathrow Rewards and Tesco Clubcard transfers are not instantaneous.

Most happen overnight or within 24 hours, which can be a problem if a flight or hotel reward pops up and may disappear. Some American Express transfers take 2-3 days and transfers from other schemes can take far longer.

Our article on Friday listed the following partners as transferring instantly from Membership Rewards:

• Delta SkyMiles
• Virgin Flying Club
• Emirates Skywards

Marriott Bonvoy has now joined the list

Two readers dropped me a note to say that Marriott Bonvoy transfers from American Express are also now instant.

I gave it a try and they were correct. I transferred 400 points from American Express Membership Rewards to Marriott Bonvoy and immediately went across to marriott.com to log in. My 600 transferred points (the rate to Bonvoy from Membership Rewards is 2:3) were there.

My Marriott account was already linked to my American Express account, so I don’t know if first time transfers could be slower. A report in our comments yesterday said that it was within a couple of hours, which is the same as Virgin Atlantic first time transfers.

(The reason that first time transfers are slower is that American Express sends an initial request to validate the account name and number, and only then authorises the transfer. Subsequent transfers are sent immediately.)

Hotel room redemption availability tends to disappear more slowly than flight availability so this is less revolutionary than an airline partner becoming an instant transfer partner. It is definitely good news though.

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.)