Are Marriott Bonvoy’s flight ticket redemptions a good deal?

One of the Starwood features that was adopted by Marriott after it bought the company was the ability to redeem your hotel points for a flight ticket.

Two facts make this offer sound quite attractive.  Marriott Bonvoy is buying you a cash flight ticket so there is no problem with reward availability.

And, because it is a cash ticket, you will receive airline miles and tier points when you fly.

Historically, looking at the cash value of your SPG (now Marriott Bonvoy) points, this deal was terrible value.  Things have now changed.  The Marriott Bonvoy flight booking system is priced in US$ and, with the £ hovering around $1.30 compared to the $1.65 it was at for many years in the 2010s, it’s worth taking another look.

If you want to book a ticket, you need to go to this page of the Marriott Bonvoy website and click on ‘Go by Road, Air, or Both’. 

What do I get for my Marriott Bonvoy points when I book a flight?

Marriott does not publish a pricing table for flight redemptions.

However, Starwood DID publish one and it has not changed substantially.  The chart below is ROUGHLY correct but may be a few thousand points too high or too low in some cases.

Based on the cash cost of your flight, the number of Marriott Bonvoy points you need is approximately:

up to $150 30,000 Marriott Bonvoy points

$150-$215 45,000

$215-$280 60,000

$280-$345 75,000

$345-$410 90,000

$410-$475 105,000

$475-$540 120,000

$540-$605 135,000

$605-$670 150,000

$670-$735 165,000

$735-$800 180,000

$800-$865 195,000

$865-$930 210,000

$930-$995 225,000

$995-$1060 240,000

….. and so on.

Looking at a few random examples I ran yesterday:

• a $120 ticket came out at 30,000 points (as per the list above)

• a $242 ticket came out at 62,500 points (slightly worse than the list suggests)

• a $415 ticket came out at 105,000 points (as per the list above)

These three examples work out at 0.40c, 0.39c and 0.40c per Marriott Bonvoy point.

At the current exchange rate, it means you are getting 0.30p per point.

Let’s be clear.  0.30p is not great value.  We target 0.5p when redeeming Marriott Bonvoy points and you can do a LOT better.

It isn’t totally terrible, however, and ‘totally terrible’ is what you expect when a redemption involves the programme handing over hard cash to a third party.  If you earn all of your Marriott Bonvoy points via business travel, which makes them effectively ‘free’, then you might consider this acceptable.

For comparison, remember that Marriott Bonvoy points convert to Avios at the ratio of 3:1, although this improves to 2.4:1 if you convert in chunks of 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

If you value an Avios point at 1p, then getting 0.33p per Marriott Bonvoy point by converting them to Avios at 3:1 (assuming you convert fewer than 60,000 Marriott points) is not a lot better than getting 0.30p by redeeming directly for a flight – and you have zero availability problems and you will earn miles back when you fly!

On this basis, you might find redeeming Marriott Bonvoy points for flights offers some value. You can find out more on the Marriott website here.

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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.