Marriott Bonvoy points expire after 24 months of account inactivity, but you can easily extend your points by earning or redeeming one point.
This post will go over the 11 ways to easily reset the expiration of your Marriott Bonvoy points to prevent them from expiring.
How to Tell When Your Marriott Points Will Expire?
You can easily see when your points will expire by:
- Logging into your Marriott Bonvoy account at this link. (Alternatively, sign in at Marriott.com and navigate to “Activity”)
- Scroll down the page until you see the information below, which is above a listing of your last Marriott activity.
1. Make A Purchase With Your Marriott Cards
The best way to reset your points expiration is to spend at least $1 on a Marriott Bonvoy credit card.
If you don’t have a Marriott credit card, consider opening one of the following to unlock elite status, special benefits, and free nights on certain cards:
- Best for Most People: Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card– (Review)
- No Annual Fee: Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card – (Review)
- Best for Luxury Travel: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card – (Review)
- Small Business Owners: Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card – (Review)
- Mid-Tier: Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card (Review) OR Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ (Review)
Points from spending on the card are generally credited to your Bonvoy account shortly after the statement closing date.
2. Staying At Marriott Hotels
Booking a hotel stay or redeeming points for a free night at a Marriott Bonvoy property will count as qualifying activities that keep your points from expiring.
Just remember, merely booking a hotel will not reset the clock. You need to book and complete the stay before your points expire.
3. Eating at Marriott Dining Partners
Earn points whenever you dine at an Eat Around Town partner. Signing up is free and you may qualify for a new member bonus.
Once you’ve signed up, link any credit or debit card to your account, search for partner restaurants, pay using your linked card, and earn Marriott points automatically.
Basic Marriott Bonvoy members earn 4 points per dollar while Marriott Bonvoy Elite status members (Silver, Gold, Platinum, Titanium, and Ambassador) earn 6 points per dollar.
4. Booking An Experience With Marriott
Members can book an experience with Marriott Tours & Activities and earn points so they can keep their points from expiring.
From museum tours, culinary experiences, helicopter tours, to surfing lessons, Marriott has a vast collection of travel packages that you can choose from.
Not only that, but they also offer virtual experiences! Cook a meal with a professional chef, learn how to make Japanese Sake, or explore the Pyramids of Giza right at the comfort of your home.
The points you earn will vary for each experience you book.
5. Redeeming Your Points Towards Marriott Moments
Marriott Bonvoy Moments are exclusive tours or activity packages for Marriott elite status members.
The program offers a wide selection of packages ranging from concerts, culinary experiences, private parties to sports events. Some packages can be bought at fixed prices, but some requires you to bid against other members.
6. Booking A Car Rental Or Cruise
Members get exclusive discounts when booking a Hertz car rental. Plus, they’ll earn 500 points one one-day rentals and 2,000 points for rentals of two days or more at participating Hertz locations within the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico, New Zealand, and Australia.
Meanwhile, booking a cruise with Marriott will earn 3x points per dollar.
7. Host An Event With Marriott
Host an event and earn 2 points per dollar spent (up to 60,000 points per event) on food, beverages, and audio/visual charges when you host an even with Marriott Bonvoy Events.
Marriott elite status members (Silver Elite or higher) will have a higher earning rate and limit.
8. Convert Marriott Points To Airlines Miles
Did you know that Marriott points transfer to several airline partners? This is a valuable benefit that Marriot Bonvoy offers since it gives members total control over how they want to use their points, whether for stays or flights.
You can transfer your points to to 38 Marriott airline partners at a rate of 3 Marriott points to 1 airline mile for most partners.
Marriott Bonvoy Points Transfer Partners
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|---|---|
| Marriott points transfer at a rate of 3 Marriott points to 1 airline mile with a transfer bonus of 5,000 airline miles when you transfer 60,000 Marriott points. | |
Aegean Airlines
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Aer Lingus
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Aeroflot
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AeroMexico
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Air Canada Aeroplan
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Air China
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Air France/KLM Flying Blue
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Air New Zealand [200 to 1 Ratio]
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Alaska Airlines
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Alitalia
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ANA
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American Airlines*
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Asiana Airlines
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Avianca Lifemiles*
|
British Airways
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Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
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China Eastern Airlines
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China Southern Airlines
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Copa Airlines
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Delta SkyMiles*
|
Emirates
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Etihad
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Frontier Airlines
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GOL
|
Hainan Airlines
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Hawaiian Airlines
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Iberia
|
Japan Airlines
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jetBlue [6 to 1 Ratio]
|
Korean Air*
|
LATAM Airlines
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Lufthansa Miles & More
|
Qantas
|
Qatar Airways
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Saudi Arabian Airlines
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Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
|
South African Airways
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Southwest Airlines
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TAP Air Portugal
|
Thai Airways
|
Turkish Airlines
|
United [3 to 1.1 Ratio]
|
Virgin Atlantic
|
Virgin Australia
|
| * Transfer Bonus Does Not Apply | |
9. Purchase Marriott Points
You can purchase Marriott points for a minimum of 1,000 points and in increments of 1,000 points as well.
Points typically costs 1.25 cents apiece so that means every 1,000 points bought costs $12.50.
10. Donate Points To Charity
Donating your points to Marriott’s charity partners will count as a qualifying activity.
11. Uber or Uber Eats
Marriott and Uber partnered to allow you to earn extra points on rides or food when you link your account.
You can earn:
- 3 points per dollar on Uber Premium rides (includes Uber XL, Uber Black, Uber SUV, and Uber Comfort)
- 6 points per dollar when you order Uber Eats while staying at a hotel within the Marriott® portfolio.
- 2 points per dollar when you order Uber Eats at home or on the road.
Remember that this partnership excludes Uber X, which is usually the cheapest ride option.
Activities That Won't Extend Your Points
There are a few things that won’t extend your Marriott points:
Gifting or Receiving Marriott Points To Another Member
Whether you’re the sender or the receiver, you won’t generate any qualifying activity through Marriott points transfers.
Earning Points Through Social Media Promotions
Marriott has run promotions in the past where you can earn points by sharing or posting things. However, these activities will not keep your points from expiring.
How Marriott Bonvoy Compares to Other Programs
Here’s how Marriott’s expiration policy compares to other hotel loyalty programs:
Bottomline
It’s not that hard to reset your points’ expiration date. There are multiple ways on how to do it which don’t cost a lot of time and money.
Preferably, having Marriott cards is the best method since you don’t only earn points, but also the benefits that come with the cards. However, always choose the method that’s the easiest for you.
- Earn 3 Free Night Awards up to a 150,000 Total Point Value (each night valued up to 50,000 points) after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from your account opening
- 6x Points at Marriott Hotels & Resorts
- 3x Points on Groceries, Gas, and Dining on the First $6,000 in Combined Purchases Each Year
- One Annual Free Night Award (Up to 35,000 Points Every Year After Account Anniversary)
- Automatic Silver Elite Status + 15 Elite Credits
- Trip Delay, Baggage Delay, and Lost Luggage Insurance
- $95 Annual Fee
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, please click here.
