Using Marriott free night
 

I have a category 5 free night that I would like to use in Manila for my Mom. However, she doesn't have a credit card. Any tips on how to pull this off?

Did you email the property and ask them about a cash deposit? It is not uncommon for customers there not to have a credit card.

Maybe you have the Marriott credit card from their 70000 points offer? This is a good reminder that I have to burn that one night free hotel room as well.

I asked a similar question to Marriott before and they told me to complete a Credit Card Authorization Form and fax it to the hotel you are staying at. You should contact Marriott customer support for more information on this.

I could be wrong but I thought those were non-transferable. I understand it's your mom and you probably won't have an issue just adding her name to a reservation made by yourself but technically....

Marriott Rewards US Credit Card Benefits
Anniversary Free Night Stay E-certificate:
(Available for Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card holders only)
Please allow 6 to 8 weeks from Rewards Account anniversary date for Anniversary Free Night Stay E Certificate to be automatically deposited into Rewards Program Membership Account. Anniversary Free Night Stay E-Certificate is valid for hotels in categories 1-5. For participating category 1-5 locations, log onto MarriottRewards.com or call 1 801 468 4000. The E Certificate must be redeemed within 6 months from date of issue. E Certificates may not be transferred, extended beyond the expiration date, or re-credited for Points

Thanks everyone for the responses.

Yes, this is the anniversary free night cat 5 e-cert that comes with the MR chase visa. Initially I thought the annual free night justifies keeping the card but given all the restrictions (6 months validity, non-transferable, etc) I think I'll just cancel this card.

in the alternative to CXLing the account, you can always call MR and ask them to contact Visa (although others say differently) and get approval (same result either way) to renew the cert for another 6-months .............

My cert was expiring Oct 22nd so I contacted MR to ask them to either convert it to points or extend it. They told me that they could probably extend it but you need to call within 5 days of the cert expiring for them to go through that process and even then it isn't a guarantee. Good to know that it was possible, but I just decided to go to NYC for the weekend instead.

Kinda wish I got the option between a night cert or 40,000 points, that would make my life much easier.

I use my free certs for my mom all the time ... I call and make the reservation in my name with her name on the reservation as well, using my cc to hold the reservation and cover incidentals. I always call the hotel ahead of time to let them know that my mom will check in. My mom is able to check in / check out and enjoy her stay ... and she always pays for her incidentals, so I've never had the cc charged. Since the reservation is in my name, it is not a transfer. Done this over two dozen times.

putnam1980, Welcome to Flyertalk!

Thanks for sharing your experience re: this topic.

Cheers.