First, I think the Marriott elite award special is $1000 check for 135K points. And in general, you won't get too many here who would say it is a good redemption value. Given that other options, like the Travel Package stated above, can net much more value per point that this.

That doesn't mean that no one would or should ever redeem this award, just that it isn't going to net you the best "value" per point. Given the right situation like lots and lots of points, strapped for money, want to take the wife to a great resort somewhere in the world for a very nice anniversary trip. I might be able to see someone redeeming a Travel Package and one of these check awards for some spending money (but only on items that could be charged to the room of course.)

Personally, another award that I have used quite a bit in the past are the MVCI awards. For 150K points each, a few years ago I was able to get 7 nights in a 2 bedroom suite at the Waiohai Beach Club and 7 nights in the Ko Olina Beach Club to make a really great 14 night vacation in Hawaii. If you don't need 2 bedrooms, a 1 bedroom suite costs even less. So if you like extra room and can find the availability, the MVCI awards can be a great value as well.