Controversial take on the #1 hotel chain: Why book with Marriott for travel hacking

Wondering if you should use Marriott for travel hacking? Look no further, we’ve got you covered in this comprehensive post about whether it’s the right chain for you in your points and miles journey.

If you ask any frequent traveler, they likely have a preferred hotel chain—whether for familiarity, value, or company-mandated stays. While flexibility is a core principle of travel hacking to maximize redemption value, hotel loyalty can also unlock significant benefits.

For many travel hackers in the points and miles community, Hyatt is a favorite due to its Chase transfer partnership and valuable award chart, with off-peak nights starting at just 3,500 points. In many cases, the cents per points redemptions are truly incredible. And there are definitely instances we stay with Hyatt when we’re redeeming our hard-earned points. In fact, we had an incredible stay at the Grand Hyatt Kauai in November 2024 for 30,000 points per night instead of paying over $1,000 a night.

Despite all that, we lean towards Marriott for travel hacking —and here’s why.

First things first: All About Marriott

Marriott International is one of the world’s leading hospitality companies, with a vast portfolio spanning over 8,500 properties across 139 countries and territories. Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Marriott operates more than 30 distinct hotel brands, catering to travelers across every segment—from the ultra-luxurious Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, and Bulgari Hotels to the lifestyle-driven W Hotels and Autograph Collection, as well as trusted midscale options like Fairfield Inn and Courtyard by Marriott.

Marriott’s Bonvoy loyalty program, with over 180 million members, offers many benefits and experiences.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: Extensive Portfolio and Global Availability

One of the biggest advantages of Marriott is its significant global footprint. Marriott has more locations than Hyatt or Hilton, which means that no matter where we want to go, there’s likely a Marriott property nearby.

For those of us who travel frequently for work, this is especially valuable—since even when we don’t choose our destination for travel, we can still earn Marriott points because there’s bound to be at least one Marriott hotel nearby.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: Stay for 5, Pay for 4

A key feature of Marriott Bonvoy award redemptions is the Stay for 5, Pay for 4 benefit. When you book five consecutive award nights, Marriott automatically waives the cost of the lowest-point night. So you’re actually only using the cost of points for four nights but getting to stay for five.

For example, on a trip to Vienna, we booked five nights for only 69,000 points—an effective rate of 13,800 points per night. While this wasn’t the absolute lowest redemption rate possible, it was an excellent value for the location and time of year.

If you’re planning longer trips, this feature dramatically improves redemption value—especially in cities with high hotel rates.

Marriott for Travel Hackings: Marriott Promotions

Marriott frequently rolls out lucrative promotions, allowing members to stack rewards on stays they were already planning. This means increased points earning and increased Elite Night earnings towards Marriott Bonvoy status.

Promotions rolled out in 2025 have included:

From February 11 through April 28, 2025:

• Earn 1,000 bonus points per eligible paid night.
• Earn one bonus Elite Night Credit per night, helping you reach Platinum, Titanium, or Ambassador status faster.
• Registration required by April 14, 2025. Details here.

From January 1 to March 25, 2025:

• Earn up to 10,000 bonus points for staying five or more consecutive nights at participating properties.
• Great for maximizing longer business or leisure trips. More info.

Targeted Promotion through April 30, 2025

• Earn up to 5,000 bonus points on eligible paid stays that include a Friday or Saturday night
• Receive 2,000 bonus points after the first stay that includes a Friday or Saturday night and 3,000 bonus points after the second stay that includes a Friday or Saturday night

Historical promotions that we’ve earned with:

• Bonus Elite Night Credits + 1,000 Points per Night: We earned 8 additional elite night credits and 8,000 bonus points by enrolling and making no adjustments to our existing travel plans.
• Stay Twice, Earn a Free Night: Thanks to a mix of work and personal travel, we earned a free night (valued at 35,000 points) without booking any extra trips.
• Q4 2023 Promotion: Earn 1,500 points per stay with no limits, plus an additional 3,000 bonus points for every Marriott brand you stay at. We racked up 3,000 points in just the first month of earning!

Pro Tip: Always enroll in Marriott’s promotions, even if you don’t have any upcoming stays planned—you never know when you might need a hotel!

Marriott for Travel Hacking: Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card – a Travel Hacker’s Best Friend

A must-have for Marriott loyalists, the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card offers serious value.

For just a $95 annual fee, you’ll receive:

• Three free nights (up to 35,000 points each) after spending $3,000 in the first three months, which can be topped up with points for higher-category stays.
• A free annual night (35,000 points value), a value that easily covers the card’s annual fee. We used this Free Night Award for a hotel night worth $646 last year.
• Automatic Silver Elite status and 15 Elite Night credits every year, putting you closer to Gold, Platinum, or even Titanium status.
• 1 Elite Night Credit per $5,000 spent, helping you reach higher elite tiers faster.

For earning points, the card provides:

• 6X points per dollar at Marriott hotels
• 3X points per dollar on the first $6,000 spent annually on gas, groceries, and dining
• 2X points per dollar on all other purchases

When we do pay for stays instead of using points, we exclusively stay at Marriott hotels. With our Platinum status, we earn 14 points per dollar spent on Marriott stays (10 base points plus 6 card points plus 5 Platinum points). It’s an easy decision for us to keep this card as an essential part of our travel hacking strategy.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: Uber Partnership

By linking your Marriott Bonvoy and Uber accounts, you can passively earn points every time you use Uber:

• 3X points per dollar on Uber rides
• 6X points per dollar on Uber Eats orders over $40 delivered to Marriott hotels
• 2X points per dollar on Uber Eats orders over $40

We’ve earned 3,500+ bonus points this year through this partnership alone—on top of the points we earn from our credit card. Set it and forget it – once you link accounts, the points will roll in without any additional effort on your part.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: More Ways to earn with the Marriott and Starbucks Partnership

One of Marriott’s newest perks is its partnership with Starbucks, allowing Bonvoy members to earn Marriott Bonvoy points on their Starbucks coffee purchases.

To take advantage, link your Marriott and Starbucks accounts in your Marriott Bonvoy app and keep an eye on limited-time promos.

• Earn Double Starbucks® Rewards Stars on all qualifying U.S. Starbucks purchases during eligible stays at participating Marriott Bonvoy® hotels.
• During Marriott Bonvoy® Week, earn 100 Marriott Bonvoy Points by making three qualifying Starbucks transactions at participating U.S. locations. In 2024, there were certain Marriott Bonvoy weeks that offered earnings of 500 Marriott Bonvoy points. I’ve also occasionally had 300 point weeks targeted to me as well.

This is a simple way to earn free points for something many of us do anyway—buy coffee! In 2024, I earned 1,400 Marriott Bonvoy points from the Starbucks weeks. Is that enough to cover a night at a Marriott? No, but it’s an easy way to earn more points for travel hacking on purchases I’m making anyways.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: Transfer Partners

Both Chase and American Express allow you to transfer their flexible points currencies to Marriott. That’s a nice benefit by itself, but what’s even better is that they periodically have transfer bonuses. In 2024, Chase offered both a 50% and 70% transfer bonus to Marriott.

As loyal Marriott guests, this was a great option for us. Since we frequently stay at Marriott hotels and plan to continue doing so, we took advantage of the opportunity to transfer 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Marriott. Thanks to the transfer bonus, we received 70,000 Bonvoy points, even though we didn’t have a specific stay in mind at the time.

We would not necessarily advocate for transferring points you don’t have a plan for – because once you do so, they’re “stuck” with that hotel or airline. For the Marriott transfer bonus, however, we were comfortable because we knew we would use those Bonvoy points at some points in our travels, and this was a way to build up our stash easily.

The most recent transfer bonus we saw for American Express to Marriott was 35% – not as high as the Chase option, but a good option nonetheless.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: M Club Access

Marriott’s M Club Lounge is a fantastic perk for Marriott Bonvoy Elite members (Platinum, Titanium, and Ambassador) at select properties, offering an elevated travel experience with premium amenities. These exclusive lounges provide a stylish and comfortable retreat, whether you’re looking to unwind after a long day or stay productive while on the road.

Guests can enjoy a complimentary daily breakfast featuring a selection of fresh and healthy options, along with all-day snacks, beverages, and evening hors d’oeuvres. Many locations also offer unlimited access to soft drinks, gourmet coffee, and, in select properties, premium alcoholic beverages in the evening. With high-speed Wi-Fi, ample seating, and a quiet atmosphere, M Club Lounges serve as the perfect spot for both business and leisure travelers.

Because of our personal and work travel, we’ve been able to achieve status with Marriott the last few years, and the M Club has been a nice perk. Having breakfast covered is a way for us to save money when we travel, and it’s nice to know we have a place to grab something to drink or eat if we’re looking for a snack between meals.

At one of the hotels we recently stayed at, the Monterey Marriott, they did not have an M Club, but because of our status, we received our breakfast at their buffet (complete with an omelet station) for free.

Marriott for Travel Hacking: Where we’ve stayed on points

Given Marriott’s wide portfolio, there are tons of places you can use your hard-earned points. As experienced travel hackers, we’ve used Bonvoy points (earned either through Marriott stays or via transfers from Chase or American Express) at a number of locations.

Here are just a few:

• Residence Inn Maui Wailea
• Residence Inn Vienna City East
• Lisbon Marriott
• JW Marriott Madrid
• Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa
• Courtyard Zurich North
• JW Marriott Guanacaste Resort & Spa

Final Thoughts: Why Marriott is great for travel hacking

In the world of travel hacking, Marriott Bonvoy stands out for several key reasons:

• Largest global portfolio—ensuring a chance to earn Bonvoy points no matter where you travel.
• Stay for 5, Pay for 4—increasing the value of award redemptions.
• Frequent promotions—offering bonus points and elite status acceleration.
• Strong credit card perks—making it easy to earn and redeem points.
• Lucrative partnerships—with Uber, Starbucks, and dining programs.

While Hyatt often gets the most love from travel hackers (and rightfully so – it can be a great redemption!), Marriott’s flexibility, promotions, and widespread availability make it an excellent choice for all types of travelers.

If you’re looking for a hotel loyalty program that maximizes your travel rewards, Marriott Bonvoy should be at the top of your list.