umystery

Newb here. Literally my first post. Please be nice.
I live in a town that has a Marriott Conference Center which has a great gym. They allow people to have a monthly gym membership without staying there. It goes through on my credit card as a Marriott charge. My question is this: while I'm not actually spending the night there, is there a loyalty program or card that might accumulate benefits or points in this situation? I pay for my girlfriend and me, and it comes out to $50 per month for both of us (she has a military discount that gives us %20 off).
Thanks!

SkiAdcock

Welcome to Flyertalk!

Do you plan on staying at Marriotts in the future? If so, I'd recommend joining the Marriott Rewards program & getting a Marriott Visa to maximize the points you would earn on the gym membership that would post to your Marriott Rewards account.

If you don't really plan on staying at Marriotts, you might want to get a card that offers cash back. Or just don't worry about it too much if it's only the gym membership you think you'll earn points on.

The Marriott would give you 5points/$1 spend on things that come through as a Marriott charge & 1point/$1 spend. You'd also get a free Category 1-5 night certificate.

Cheers.

EricH

I would check to see if the charge comes through as equivalent to a hotel charge for points earning. If so, then a Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) Amex card will get 2 points per dollar, which will convert to 6 MR points when the programs merge. No free night cert, though.

SkiAdcock

If it's coming across as Marriott on his current credit card bill, probably is coming across as hotel charge.

The bigger question is whether the OP is going to be staying at Marriott (or SPG) in the future. Right now his spend on the gym membership is $600/year. That's not enough in either program to justify getting a new credit card.

But if he thinks he'll be staying at them in the future and/or wants the free night cert if he goes w/ the Visa vs. Amex, getting a new c.c. is something for him to consider.

Cheers.

joshua362

Seriously. At $600 per year spend x 5 pp$, he'll have enough for a decent room in 10 years at a cost of $85 per year (less the hard to use annual cert). Something just aren't worth pursuing...

BostonBusinessTraveler

There are 2 primary ways of earning Marriott Points:
1. Through their free membership program (Marriott Rewards)
2. Through spending on a Marriott branded credit card

To earn normal Marriott Rewards points through option #1, you need to have a room at the hotel with your member number on file. All room charges (and depending on the hotel type, incidentals) will earn you points. It is not possible to earn points for simply eating at a hotel restaurant or paying for their gym membership if you are not staying at the hotel.

The second option is via the Marriott-branded credit card. This card will let you earn 5 points for every dollar spent at Marriott properties and send those points to your Marriott Rewards account (same one as in point #1). You also get points for every day purchases based on category, but less than other credit cards offer. It's also worth mentioning that this credit card comes with an annual fee and also comes with an annual "free" night certificate to a lower-end property. There are also sign-up bonuses where you can earn an additional 80,000 points when opening a new Marriott credit card.

Ultimately $600 x 5 points = 3,000 Marriott Rewards points. You can purchase the same points for less than $40 on their website, or earn it by spending 2-3 nights at most properties. If you decide going the CC route, the biggest benefit will be the sign-up bonus and not the points earned from the gym membership.

MSPeconomist

You might wan't to explore getting a RC credit card rather than the Marriott version.

SkiAdcock

What bennie does the RC card offer over Marriott card for someone who may or may not be staying at Marriotts (or RCs) & right now is just looking for a way to leverage the $600 annual gym membership spend?

Cheers.

Carpboy823

That's an awful idea for someone looking to spend $600 a year using the card.

SacTownGuy

Good on you for exploring the options.

The Marriott credit card is nice as you spend $85 a year but get a free category 5 night. Take your girlfriend away for a night. It's thus a break even on the card and you get good Marriott points for the Marriott spend which the gym may or may not qualify as. Not a big deal but every little bit helps!

As to the gym membership I have never heard of this before. That's very cool. I do know of some Marriotts with very nice facilities.

Welcome to FT!

umystery

I'm pretty new to this whole thing, but I do travel 2-6 times a year, sometimes for work, sometimes for pleasure. This summer we are going to Ireland so I was looking in that direction.

umystery

Also, thanks for the warm welcome! And I'm a "she" not a "he".

SkiAdcock

Then you may want to sign up for the Marriott Visa & try to focus your 2-6x/year travel with Marriotts moving forward, and also sign up for the megabonuses.

Cheers.