Oct 22, 2018, 11:18 am
Last edit by: rrgg
If you need to cancel a reservation booked using a free night certificate, follow the process in this post before cancelling to avoid potentially losing your certificate. If the certificate is lost it should be re-enstatable by Marriott customer service, but it may take a while and require some extra work on your part.
Certificate top-off is available as of April 30th: and discussed in a separate thread. Marriott has announced that starting in early 2022, members will be able to combine free-night certs with up to 15,000 points when making redemptions. See the FT thread discussing the 10/26/21 announcements and Marriotts FAQ for current info.
EXTENDING AN EXPIRING CERTIFICATE:
Before 18 Aug 2018, Chase issued certificates good for specific categories of hotels. Post 18 Aug 2018, all certificates have been converted or will be issued at a specific level of points. SPG AMEX and Ritz Carlton credit cards have also begun to issue certs.
25K points - lower level certificates
35K points - higher level certificates
50K points - luxury level certificates
Marriott will introduce peak and non peak levels for hotels after 1 Jan 2019. Certificates will be capped at the points level where they can be redeemed rather than for a specific category of hotel. Thus, if a hotel is 25K at the non peak level and the peak level is higher, it cannot be booked in the peak level window.
Nine co-branded credit cards offer an annual free night worth up to 85,000 points:
NEW EXTENSION OF CERTIFICATES announced in October 2021:
The expiration date on certificates this year is pushed to 1/31/21.
Certificate top-off is available as of April 30th: and discussed in a separate thread. Marriott has announced that starting in early 2022, members will be able to combine free-night certs with up to 15,000 points when making redemptions. See the FT thread discussing the 10/26/21 announcements and Marriotts FAQ for current info.
EXTENDING AN EXPIRING CERTIFICATE:
- A blogger reported that as of 12/7/2023 Marriott removed the internal tool to extend an FNA, so it may or may not still be possible.
- Your best chance for an extension is to call Marriott within 1 month of the expiration and consider having a specific property and date in mind to book. It's not necessary but even without one in mind, pick something you might use and change it later. 1-800-MARRIOT
- Most importantly, have a good reason for needing the extension, like illness or injury.
- If granted, the new expiration date is 1 year from the date of the request. You cannot get a 2nd extension on the same certificate, meaning the maximum life of a certificate is 2 years.
- If not granted, some have luck by calling later a few times.
- In 2022, Marriott seemed to deny all extension requests except a few exceptions such as here, here, and here. They may be allowing some again in 2023.
Before 18 Aug 2018, Chase issued certificates good for specific categories of hotels. Post 18 Aug 2018, all certificates have been converted or will be issued at a specific level of points. SPG AMEX and Ritz Carlton credit cards have also begun to issue certs.
25K points - lower level certificates
35K points - higher level certificates
50K points - luxury level certificates
Marriott will introduce peak and non peak levels for hotels after 1 Jan 2019. Certificates will be capped at the points level where they can be redeemed rather than for a specific category of hotel. Thus, if a hotel is 25K at the non peak level and the peak level is higher, it cannot be booked in the peak level window.
Nine co-branded credit cards offer an annual free night worth up to 85,000 points:
- Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card (formerly Starwood Preferred Guest Luxury Credit Card from American Express) - up to 85K (Second with $60k spend)
- Marriott Bonvoy Boundless (formerly Rewards Premier Plus) Credit Card - up to 35K
- Marriott Bonvoy Premier (formerly Rewards Premier) - up to 25K
- Marriott Bonvoy from American Express (formerly Preferred Guest) - up to 35K
- Marriott Bonvoy Business from American Express (formerly Preferred Guest Business) - up to 35K
- Marriott Rewards Business Premier Plus Credit Card - up to 35K
- Ritz Carlton Rewards - up to 85K
- Marriott Bonvoy Bevy - up to 50k (with $15k spend)
- Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful - up to 50k (with $15k spend)
- Amex credit card free night certificates are issued 2 months after the anniversary date of the credit card. For example if the Brilliant fee posts 7/1, the certificate is available in your Marriott account on 9/1. Chase FNA certificates can appear much sooner, within 1 week.
- The certificate expires one year after it is issued. You must complete your stay by the expiration date.
- Can NOT be combined with a 3-night award to get a "Stay for 5, Pay for 4" award.
- Can be used for a standard room only
- Cannot be used for "redemption with cash upgrade" or any points and cash combination
- According to Marriott's terms, points reservations can be gifted to another person but certificates earned from a credit card cannot. This means the certificate owner (cardholder) must check-in even if someone else is listed as a guest on the reservation. In some cases a property has given leeway and allowed just the guest to check-in anyway without the certificate owner present, but it is risky to depend on this.
- If you use "top-off" with a certificate and the room price later decreases, you can modify the reservation to rebook the same date and recover the difference in top-off points.
- If you made a reservation with a FNA and want to know its expiration date, you can find it by editing the reservation as described at this link.
- If you downgrade the Amex Brilliant to the $95 Amex Bonvoy card, you can still get your anniversary FNA.
- Search for a points booking at an eligible hotel and the option to use the certificate a replacement for some of the required points should appear during the booking process
- Some have had trouble booking certificates from the 2020 credit card offer to get 5 free nights. In that case, try this website for booking: https://www.marriott.com/loyalty/red...free-nights.mi
- Officially Marriott allows gifting of points awards but not gifting of free night certificates from credit cards. For the latter, your name will still need to be the reservation. Whether the property requires you to be present for check-in may depend on the hotel.
- If you have 2 certificates of different value and try to redeem one, the Marriott website offers the one expiring first. If that's not what you want, work around this issue by making a dummy booking with that certificate. Then book the real reservation with the desired certificate. Then cancel the dummy. Be sure to pay attention to any cancellation terms since a few properties are more strict than others.
NEW EXTENSION OF CERTIFICATES announced in October 2021:
- Free night awards, Suite night awards, and travel certificates will be given a new expiration date of June 30, 2022
- The Marriott Bonvoy app shows the original issue date of your free night certificates. Go to Account -> Free Night Certificates to find the issue date in small print above each certificate. It's unlikely you have a certificate that won't be extended. If you don't see the issue date in the app, you'll have to wait for the actual extension to happen to check the new expiration.
- Expiration of points is paused through December 31, 2022. At that time, your points will only expire if your account has been inactive for at least 24 months
- In March 2022, Marriott will eliminate hotel categories and use variable point pricing for awards. Only a small number will be affected at first, so you won't see an immediate sweep of all properties at once.
- "Starting May 6, members who had a FNA with an original expiration date in 2020, or which will expire before January 2, 2022, as part of their Cobrand Credit Card Benefit, Annual Choice Benefit, promotions or travel package will be able to redeem it through January 3, 2022.
- Please note that FNAs with an original expiration date before 2020 will not be eligible for the additional extension. Members do not need to take any action because the system will automatically update their account with these extensions on May 6, 2021."
The expiration date on certificates this year is pushed to 1/31/21.
- ...Members who currently have an active Free Night Award (FNA) expiring in 2020 as part of their credit card benefit, annual choice benefit, promotions or travel package will be able to use it through January 31, 2021.
- Expiration dates will be updated by the end of April, giving priority to those expiring soonest.
- If yours will expire within just a couple days, contact a Marriott representative here by private message.
Marriott Branded Credit Cards Free Night Certificate FNA Discussion Thread
May 7, 2024, 10:44 am
#2416
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 3,469
Well I am on here trying to figure out when I should start complaining about mine. My card renewed in Feb... No cert YET I know it's 8 weeks but... Really
May 20, 2024, 11:39 am
#2418
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Palm Beach/ New England
Programs: AA EXP 3MM, DL GM, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 4,386
I have some 85K certificates in my Bonvoy account.
May I use one certificate for two nights at a 40K hotel? Meaning, the points stay would total 80K points if I used points, but I'd like to use one certificate for two nights?
May I use one certificate for two nights at a 40K hotel? Meaning, the points stay would total 80K points if I used points, but I'd like to use one certificate for two nights?
May 20, 2024, 1:28 pm
#2419
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Toronto
Programs: UA 1K, AC MM E75, Marriott LT Ti, IHG Dia Amb, Hyatt Glob
Posts: 15,547
May 20, 2024, 1:29 pm
#2420
Join Date: May 2022
Posts: 2,363
I wish! I have an 85k certificate, and I want to use it at a hotel that in 83k for 5 nights. That would be totally worth it :-)
May 20, 2024, 10:41 pm
#2421
Join Date: Mar 2020
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy
Posts: 7
Must use earliest expiring FNA first?
I got 5 FNA up to 50k from the Marriott AMEX Business card. I also have a 35k FNA from my Personal Marriott AMEX that expires earlier. All 6 nights show up in my overview in my Bonvoy account. I'm trying to redeem a night using one one 50k FNA, but the only options I get are the 35k FNA+points or all points...it won't let me select the 50k nights.
Does anyone know if Marriott requires you to use the earlier expiring FNA first? Any idea?
Thanks.
Does anyone know if Marriott requires you to use the earlier expiring FNA first? Any idea?
Thanks.
May 20, 2024, 11:16 pm
#2422
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Saipan, MP 96950 USA (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands = the CNMI)
Programs: UA Silver, Hilton Silver. Life: UA .57 MM, United & Admirals Clubs (spousal), Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,324
Part of the adventure of Marriott BONV
If the software is still programmed to use the earliest expiring Free Night Award (FNA), the workaround is to make (a) dummy booking(s) with the earlier one(s), until you are able to access and use the desired FNA.
Then cancel the dummy booking(s), being sure to retain screen shots. When canceling a reservation with an attached FNA, the best practice has been to remove the FNA certificate first, presuming adequate available points. Then cancel it as a points reservation. This two-step process is to reduce the likelihood of the FNA getting lost.
If the software is still programmed to use the earliest expiring Free Night Award (FNA), the workaround is to make (a) dummy booking(s) with the earlier one(s), until you are able to access and use the desired FNA.
Then cancel the dummy booking(s), being sure to retain screen shots. When canceling a reservation with an attached FNA, the best practice has been to remove the FNA certificate first, presuming adequate available points. Then cancel it as a points reservation. This two-step process is to reduce the likelihood of the FNA getting lost.
Last edited by SPN Lifer; May 20, 2024 at 11:37 pm
May 21, 2024, 8:05 am
#2424
Join Date: Mar 2020
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy
Posts: 7
Thanks a lot! Is it hard getting the refund? I'll book some random room for 35k to use the FNA, then book the activity I actually want for 50k. Does it usually take much time to get a refund of FNA? I've never done this before.
May 21, 2024, 12:38 pm
#2427
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Toronto, Ont., Canada
Programs: Aeroplan; Marriott Platinum; IHG Platinum; Best Western Diamond
Posts: 2,183
This is one of the things I'd call to have the CSR do. They can do that.
But if it's after hours or it can take long wait, then do the first booking, then the real booking, then cancel. There had been times when a cancellation doesn't return the FNA, and it can take calls to get it back.
But if it's after hours or it can take long wait, then do the first booking, then the real booking, then cancel. There had been times when a cancellation doesn't return the FNA, and it can take calls to get it back.
May 21, 2024, 12:58 pm
#2428
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: SBA
Programs: UA Gold 1MM, Marriott Gold, IHG Plat, Hertz PC
Posts: 951
Great use of my 85k certificate for a little under a $1,000 night in Pismo Beach, CA this Memorial Day weekend. Continue to find good value in the certificate, as long as I have a little flexibility.
May 25, 2024, 5:57 pm
#2429
Join Date: Dec 2009
Programs: WN A-list, UA Silver, Hyatt Glob, HH DM, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 441
(Wrong) 35K cert that expires later is pulled instead of one that expires sooner
Has anyone experienced that a certificated that expires later was pulled instead of one that expires earlier? I had this happened to me recently and trying to rectify the situation has only made it worse. Any advice, including by the Lurkers, is most welcome. I made a booking in NYC using a 35K cert+12k points. A couple of weeks later, I noticed that a certificate expiring in November was pulled, instead of the one I wanted to use - expiring in July. I called the Titanium line to ask if they can just swap the correct 35K cert that expires sooner, and the very nice agent tried but could not help. She transferred the case to the Resolutions center. Here is when things went downhill. The next day I received an email from the RC stating that since the price has gone up, I cannot use 35K cert anymore. What is worse, the agent returned the cert I used to my account and pulled 62k points to hold the reservation instead, without consulting with me. She did not return, however, the 12k points I had also used with the cert.
I called the Titanium line again, stating that this is not what I wanted, I just wanted to swap the cert. After being transferred to a supervisor, she said there's nothing she could do with the cert, since the reservation had already been changed, but she could give me back 30k points, and it would only take 24hrs to see these points back in my account. I asked what if I don't see them? She gave me her name and said to call back and refer to the case number.
36 hrs later, I call back and, unsurprisingly, there is no record of the supervisor's promise, no record of my original reservation (I have email confirmation). They transferred me to a "management team" who said he will take down all the notes and a "higher up" management team will contact me within 24 hours. Of course, I did not receive any phone call more than 2 days later. I'm now stuck with a reservation that is booked fully on points at a much higher rate and a certificate that expires soon that I could not use as intended because of the original error. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
I called the Titanium line again, stating that this is not what I wanted, I just wanted to swap the cert. After being transferred to a supervisor, she said there's nothing she could do with the cert, since the reservation had already been changed, but she could give me back 30k points, and it would only take 24hrs to see these points back in my account. I asked what if I don't see them? She gave me her name and said to call back and refer to the case number.
36 hrs later, I call back and, unsurprisingly, there is no record of the supervisor's promise, no record of my original reservation (I have email confirmation). They transferred me to a "management team" who said he will take down all the notes and a "higher up" management team will contact me within 24 hours. Of course, I did not receive any phone call more than 2 days later. I'm now stuck with a reservation that is booked fully on points at a much higher rate and a certificate that expires soon that I could not use as intended because of the original error. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
May 25, 2024, 6:41 pm
#2430
Join Date: May 2009
Location: EUG
Programs: AS MVP, AA MM, HH Diamond, MR Gold
Posts: 8,246
This advice is pretty much locking the barn door after the horse is out...(if you remember that old expression)...the conventional wisdom is that you make a dummy booking that ties up the cert you do not want to use. Now you are left with the "good" one. Make the "good" reservation, then cancel the dummy booking.
Sorry that this is too late to help you, but might be a good reminder for others (including me).
Sorry that this is too late to help you, but might be a good reminder for others (including me).