The situation:

I'm planning on spending around $6K on Marriott stays in the next couple of months. It looks like the deal for 50K Marriott points as a signup bonus is still valid. The card comes with 5 points per dollar spent at Marriott so if my math is correct, the stays would net me an additional 30K points if I used the card.

Seems like a good opportunity to go ahead and get the card. I just got approved for the Capital One Venture card earlier today so I don't know how bad it is to apply for another one right away...

On a side note, how do you like the Marriott Card in general?

Appreciate any advice ya'll can give me.

I got it after I got most of the major airline cards. It's not a first-round pick but a great 2nd round.

The yearly cat 5 cert is worth the annual fee but has short time limit for use.

The card can be churned but you only get the bonus miles, not the free night cert on the churn.

The Pointsavers are almost freebies.

5th night free on reward is nice.

The best Marriott rewards by far are the 200K and up packages of a week's hotel and 2 air tickets.

If you've already gotten the 3 Citi AA's, the UA 50K, the CO 50K, the Delta Golds (at 50K each), the AmEx Gold 50K's, the US 35K, the Starwoods (at a 30K bonus), the CapOne 100K's and the BA 50K, then the Marriott Premier is a decent second rounder. Especially if you know you'll be spending $6K at Marriott. Just time your Chase app's as they don't like more than 2 every 60 days.

Thanks. Yeah I'm really only looking into it because I have this long term stay coming up, otherwise I would probably just stick with the Venture card for a bit then grab a different one.

If I do get it, I plan on canceling it before the year is up.

Didn't know about those Marriott hotel/air packages, will have to try for 200k now.

Thanks

That's right. You have a 6 month window to use the free e-certificate that you earn annually with this card. (The Priority Club credit card also gives you an annual free night, but you have 12 months to use it.)

If you travel (and would want to use the free e-certificate) during the summer months, now is a good time to apply for the Marriott card. By the time you are approved, you will be earning an e-certificate each year sometime in April. That would give you an April - October window to use the e-certificate.

One more tidbit: if you know you will have an e-certificate coming in early April, but let's say you want to reserve a room for May, go ahead and reserve the room in advance (as if you are going to use your Marriott points). Then, when the e-certificate hits your account, apply it to your upcoming stay. If you wait too long (don't reserve a room until the e-certificate arrives), you might not be able to get an award room in your desired location.

Assuming you get comped gold status by calling Marriott after a few stays:

5 pts per $ for Premier Card + 30,000-50,000 signup bonus
10 pts per $ for staying
3 pts per $ for gold status bonus

= 138,000-158,000 pts, good for an all inclusive 5 night stay to 4 resorts

Currently I'm using the Marriott card for business trips in general and any air/hotel cost, using CitiForward for restaurants as it nets 5pts/$

Best deal is to buy the gift cards at the end of the year when they are offering an additional 10pts/$. Then pay any hotel stays with the cards netting 28pts+/$ with status.

yes, get the card. another bonus is bonus night credits at certain spend levels but if you're not going to stay at marriotts long term it probably doesn't matter much (but the nights do rollover).

i use mine for all marriott stays and rarely at other places. the weeklong vacation stays are the best bang for the buck, gift cheques are good if you're elite...

one thing, if you haven't yet joined marriott rewards, pm me your email and I can send you a referral link that will get you (and me) up to 5000 bonus MR points...

I don't think the annual free night is worth the annual fee, not compared to priceline. You can only use it on categories 1-5 and only in a six month window. This was a better deal a few years ago, but Marriott keeps making the categories more devalued. I'd cancel my card but for a good balance transfer deal I got on it quite a while ago.

The best thing about MR is the travel packages-and even then, you need to stay a week on one place. Really, SPG is a better value, especially if you play the miles game. And Hyatt-when you can find them around, might be the best for nice hotels with their usually good promotions.

Though Priority Club-though it doesn't have as many nice hotels as Marriott, IMO-is really the best for free nights.

Sorry if this has been mentioned before, but the recent elimination of foreign transaction fees on this card is enough for me to keep it around:

http://thepointsguy.com/2011/03/chas...+Points+Guy%29

It certainly makes it a good card to use when staying at a Marriott property overseas.

I put the Hyatt with the 2 free days anywhere over the marriot

Long term though, doesn't the Marriott win? Not only do you get a free night and 50k points for signing up (equal to 2-3 nights at a nice hotel), you get the annual cat 5 certificate, which I value at 150 to 175. Offsetting the annual fee. Hyatt card doesn't do that, I believe. So you keep paying the fee every year.

the best marriott deal was over 3 days ago.
America was selling Marriott gift cards at 20% off, and those can be used for any rates... so definitely the best deal in my book....

To get that 20%, you *definitely* had to pass on the 5 MR points/$ you could otherwise earn via the Chase Marriott Premier Visa, as well s the 4% cash back you could get by ordering a Marriott Gift Card via the normal channels. If you value MR points at 1 cent per point, that's 9% foregone. The 20% off would still put you ahead, but then you have to factor the *risk* involved with buying the Travel Card via that deal, where the terms stated that points for your stay will also not be earned. Many question whether this will be enforced, as it often hasn't been in the past, but it's still a risk you take either way. If you're not worried about the risk, the 20% still puts you ahead. Last, you have to consider whether other opportunities to load up on gift cards without restrictions are preferable. There are frequent offers for 10 points/$ or 10% off with no strings attached, sometimes even better. Someone with an upcoming stay, no current gift card balance, and no Chase Marriott Card in hand will likely have found the Discover America offer superb. Those lacking the named variables? Maybe not.

I just did a short trip and had 3 nights free (no points used for these) with Marriott.

My annual free night for renewal of the card.

A free night for spending (these figures are close but may not be exact) $750 in maybe a two month period.

Another free night for spending maybe $2000 in a 3 month period.

There was in fact a problem with my registration for the $750 spending----it did not take---OK maybe I did it wrong----I called and they gave it to me any way.

Then I had a 4th night free for only 10,000 points. It was a nice but not a high cat Spring Hill Suites.

For me the card works.

Those 3 free night coupons were worth $400 in free stays.