Marriott has amended the terms and conditions of its Bonvoy guest loyalty program in November 2022.
These changes are not drastic but merely clarify new features, such as converting miles from select airline programs to Bonvoy and converting Bonvoy points to Rakuten (Japan).
You can access Marriott’s page for T&Cs here.
READ MORE: Marriott Bonvoy Rate & Bonus Points Offers
T&Cs Changes in November 2022:
City Express Hotels
xxxiv. City Express® – All properties do not participate in the Loyalty Program.
Marriott clarifies that City Express hotels are not yet part of the Bonvoy program (has the deal even close yet?).
Airline Miles To Marriott Bonvoy Conversions
Miles to Points Offering. A Member may convert Miles to Points with select frequent flyer programs or other affiliated airline programs (each, a “Participating Airline”) at a designated Miles to Points conversion ratio as indicated here (the “Miles to Points Offering”). Registration for the Miles to Points Offering is not required but may be subject to eligibility criteria, from time to time, as set forth by Participating Airlines and the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program. Members requesting to convert Miles earned through Participating Airlines to Points with the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program, must be a member of both the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program and the Participating Airline in order to successfully complete the conversion. Members engaging in the Miles to Points Offering are required to ensure that the account holder name in both their Participating Airline account and Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account match to ensure that the Miles to Points Offering transaction successfully posts to the Account. Once Miles have been converted to Points, Points will automatically be transferred to the Member’s Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account. In most cases, Points will be posted to the Member’s Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account in up to eight (8) weeks. Once Points are ordered to a Member’s Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account, cancellation, changes, reissuance, and/or refunds of Miles are not allowed. The Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program and Participating Airlines have the right to terminate the Miles to Points Offering or to change the Miles to Points Offering policies, procedures, conditions of participation, benefits, awards and special offers, in whole or in part, at any time, with or without notice. The Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to prevent or cancel transactions where (i) the Loyalty Program has reason to believe that the identity of the Member converting the Miles to Points does not match the identity of the person receiving the Points or (ii) where the Loyalty Program suspects there has been any fraudulent activity connected with the Miles to Points conversion in relation to the Member’s Account. For details on joining Participating Airline, please refer to the particular Participating Airline’s terms and conditions. The terms and conditions of each Participating Airline control the distribution of the Miles earned through Participating Airline. The Miles to Points Offering is subject to the terms and conditions of each Participating Airline. Miles to Points Offering. A Member may convert Miles to Points with select frequent flyer programs or other affiliated airline programs (each, a “Participating Airline”) at a designated Miles to Points conversion ratio as indicated here (the “Miles to Points Offering”). Registration for the Miles to Points Offering is not required but may be subject to eligibility criteria, from time to time, as set forth by Participating Airlines and the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program. Members requesting to convert Miles earned through Participating Airlines to Points with the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program, must be a member of both the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program and the Participating Airline in order to successfully complete the conversion. Members engaging in the Miles to Points Offering are required to ensure that the account holder name in both their Participating Airline account and Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account match to ensure that the Miles to Points Offering transaction successfully posts to the Account. Once Miles have been converted to Points, Points will automatically be transferred to the Member’s Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account. In most cases, Points will be posted to the Member’s Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account in up to eight (8) weeks. Once Points are ordered to a Member’s Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Account, cancellation, changes, reissuance, and/or refunds of Miles are not allowed. The Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program and Participating Airlines have the right to terminate the Miles to Points Offering or to change the Miles to Points Offering policies, procedures, conditions of participation, benefits, awards and special offers, in whole or in part, at any time, with or without notice. The Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to prevent or cancel transactions where (i) the Loyalty Program has reason to believe that the identity of the Member converting the Miles to Points does not match the identity of the person receiving the Points or (ii) where the Loyalty Program suspects there has been any fraudulent activity connected with the Miles to Points conversion in relation to the Member’s Account. For details on joining Participating Airline, please refer to the particular Participating Airline’s terms and conditions. The terms and conditions of each Participating Airline control the distribution of the Miles earned through Participating Airline. The Miles to Points Offering is subject to the terms and conditions of each Participating Airline.
You can now convert miles to points (which makes no sense) with select airline partners, and Marriott has added the blurb above to the T&Cs.
Limited Blackout Policy
Vistana Signature Network
Marriott Vacation Club and Marriott Grand Residence Club – all properties
Marriott has added the exclusion above for properties that don’t participate in the limited blackout policy regarding awards.
Rakuten Points
3.6.h. Rakuten Points. A Member may redeem Points for Rakuten points (“Rakuten Points”) earned through the Rakuten Points loyalty program (“Rakuten Points Program”) at a 3 Points to 1 Rakuten Point conversion ratio through this website only. Members may redeem a minimum of 3,000 Points per transaction, up to a maximum of 240,000 Points per day, for Rakuten Points. Members requesting to convert Marriott Bonvoy Points to Rakuten Points must be a member of both the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program and the Rakuten Points Program. Members must provide their Rakuten Points Program account number and Marriott Bonvoy Membership Number when requesting to convert Marriott Bonvoy Points to Rakuten Points. Members may only request to transfer Points from their Marriott Bonvoy Account to their Rakuten Points Program account and may not transfer Points to the Rakuten Points Program account of another individual. Please refer to the Rakuten website↗ (in Japanese) for more information on the Rakuten Points Program account number. For details on joining the Rakuten Points Program, please refer to the Rakuten Points Program website↗ (in Japanese) and terms and conditions↗. Marriott Bonvoy reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to prevent or cancel transactions where (i) Marriott Bonvoy has reason to believe that the identity of the Member converting the Points to Rakuten Points does not match the identity of the person receiving the Rakuten Points, or (ii) Marriott Bonvoy suspects there has been fraudulent activity connected with the Points to Rakuten Points conversion in relation to the Member’s Account. Once Points have been redeemed for Rakuten Points, Rakuten Points will automatically be transferred to the Member’s Rakuten Points Program account. In most cases, Rakuten Points will be posted to a Member’s Rakuten Points Program account within two (2) weeks. Once Rakuten Points are ordered to a Rakuten Points Program account, changes, reissuance and/or re-credit of Points are not allowed. The terms and conditions of the Rakuten Points Program control the redemption and distribution of Rakuten Points. The Loyalty Program and Rakuten Points Program reserve the right to terminate or change the Points to Rakuten Points conversion program policies, procedures, conditions of participation, benefits, awards and special offers, in whole or in part, at any time, with or without notice. All terms and conditions↗ of the Rakuten Points Program apply.
Marriott Bonvoy members can convert points to Rakuten (Japan) Points.
Ambassador Qualification Clarification
v. Marriott Bonvoy – Ambassador Elite: 100 or more Qualifying Nights and at least $20,000 US Dollars in annual qualifying spend based on Qualifying Charges earned only on completed Stays alone in a Qualifying Period.in a Qualifying Period (as defined below), which does not include Qualifying Charges made in advance for Stays in the year(s) following the Qualifying Period such as for pre-paid stays (“Annual Qualifying Spend”). Beginning January 1, 2023, the Annual Qualifying Spend minimum for Ambassador Elite status will be $23,000 US Dollars.
Marriott has added a note that you cannot qualify for Ambassador by prepaying stays for the following membership year and also discloses the increased spending requirement in 2023.
Elite Member 4 PM Late Check-Out
Sheraton Vacation Club, Westin Vacation Club, The Phoenician Residences, a Luxury Collection Residence Club, Scottsdale
Marriott has removed the above properties from the 4 PM late check-out exclusions, but they likely qualify under resort-properties exclusions.
Vistana properties
And Vistana properties were added.
4-Hour Guaranteed Availability Change
Marriott Vacation Club Marriott Grand Residence Club
The Platinum and higher member guaranteed availability don’t apply to these two brands.
New Cobranded Card in Saudi Arabia
6.3.o. Marriott Bonvoy® American Express® Credit Card for residents of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
There is a new cobranded card in Saudi Arabia.
Conclusion
These updates to the T&Cs were rolled out this month (several iterations), but they weren’t alone significant enough to justify an update.
It is always a good idea to keep an eye on these changes (we certainly do) because they affect what elite benefits we can expect at Marriott-affiliated hotels.
