I miss the days when 90 cheap flights plus $20k of credit card spending would combine to get you there.
I know I had a year in there when I got a CP mostly on Alamo credits. I don't believe that's possible anymore...
Regarding this particular approach, I'm a huge fan of the Marriott Travel Packages in general, and a 2-year Southwest CP is icing on the cake. ^ I believe the TP's will be there for calendar 2017, but I could easily see their final day being Dec 31, 2017 - e.g., Jan 1, 2018 is a combined program with something different. But that's just a guess on my part - nothing more.
If one intends to use the hotel stay at a full-service, non-resort Marriott or Renaissance, that Ritz card from upthread becomes more valuable. It confers Gold status, which is the first legit elite status in the Marriott program. At most mainline non-resort hotels, it's a meaningful status with lounge access, etc.
If you don't know what hotel you want to book when you redeem the award, that's okay: redeem the Category 5 Travel Package. It can always be upgraded later if you find a Cat 6 or higher hotel that you like. But you can't go the other way: if you redeem Cat 8, you are more than welcome to use it at a Cat 5, but they don't refund any points.