Get 500-1,000 free SPG points and 50% off SPG Suite redemptions at The O2

Two bits of Starwood news:

Get 500 or 1,000 free Starwood Preferred Guest points

If you received an email from Starwood Preferred Guest yesterday – the loyalty scheme for Sheraton, Le Meridien, Westin, Luxury Collection, aloft, W, St Regis etc – and deleted it without opening it, have a dig around in your trash folder.

Last November I wrote about the new Starwood partnership with Emirates.  This allows elite members to double-dip and collect Starwood hotel points with every Emirates flight they take – on top of their usual Emirates Skywards miles.

SPG Gold or Platinum members receive 1 SPG point per $1 spent on Emirates flights.  All Emirates flights count as long as your ticket is under an EK flight code.  This is a very generous deal in my view.

I tend to value SPG points at 1.5p – 2p each. A £3,000 Emirates business class flight would therefore earn you £70 – £95 of free hotel stays. This is on top of your usual Skywards miles.  Remember that you can obtain SPG Gold status for free by signing up for the American Express Platinum charge card – this may be worthwhile for heavy Emirates flyers.

Similarly, Emirates elite members will also earn Emirates Skywards miles with every Starwood hotel stay – on top of their usual SPG points.  There are also crossover privileges for elite members of both pogrammes.

Take-up of this deal must have been slower than anticipated.  Yesterday SPG wrote to a lot of members and offered them 500 or 1,000 SPG points (worth £7.50 – £15 in my book) simply for linking their SPG and Emirates accounts.  No flights or stays are needed.

If you got the email, it is a no-brainer to use the link and register your Emirates details.  For everyone else, it is worth registering anyway if you are an occasional Emirates or Starwood customer – there is no point leaving points on the table.  The registration link on the Emirates site is here.

Half-price offers at the SPG suite at The O2

I wrote recently about my night at the SPG Suite at The O2 arena in Greenwich.  If you are quick, Starwood has reduced the cost of three upcoming concerts by 50% – just 10,000 points for two tickets with full hospitality (food and drink) in the SPG Suite, pictured above.

At the time of writing yesterday, the current concerts are reduced to 10,000 points per pair:

Neil Diamond – 16th July and 26th July

Mrs Brown’s Boys – 11th July

50 Cent and G-Unit – 17th July

Roxette – 13th July

You can book via the SPG Moments website here.  There are only a handful of tickets for each so don’t delay if you are interested.

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How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (April 2025)

There are various ways of earning Marriott Bonvoy points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

The official Marriott Bonvoy American Express card comes with 20,000 points for signing up, 2 points for every £1 you spend and 15 elite night credits per year.

You can apply here.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express

20,000 points for signing up and 15 elite night credits each year Read our full review

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points by converting American Express Membership Rewards points at the rate of 2:3.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Marriott Bonvoy Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Hilton Honors Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.

We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points indirectly:

• American Express Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Rewards Credit Card (10,000 bonus Amex points)

and for small business owners:

• American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Business Platinum (50,000 bonus Amex points)

The conversion rate from American Express to Marriott Bonvoy points is 2:3.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Marriott Bonvoy points.