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The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
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Why Category 5 is the new sweet spot in the Marriott Bonvoy award chart
Ethan's been a frequent flier for as long as he can remember, from studying abroad in Paris to moving to Shanghai after graduating college, where he served as TPG's eyes and ears for all things travel in the Asia-Pacific region. If you asked him where he wants to travel next he'd quote Anthony Bourdain and tell you "anytime I'm eating spicy noodles in a bowl, I'm happy."
September 11, 2021 • 7 min read
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Quick summary
Marriott Bonvoy's Category 5 hotels offer a strong balance of value, luxury and location, with over 1,100 properties worldwide.
Category 5 includes notable luxury brands in major cities and international destinations, often providing experiences that exceed their mid-tier status.
Standard award nights at Category 5 properties typically require 35,000 points, with peak and off-peak pricing ranging from 30,000 to 40,000 points.
Free night certificates valued at 35,000 points can be used at these hotels, making them accessible for many travelers.
What to consider
Award pricing for Category 5 hotels varies by date, so checking for peak or off-peak rates is important.
Fifth-night-free benefits apply when redeeming points for five consecutive nights, increasing overall value.
TPG values Marriott points at 0.8 cents each as of June 2024, helping to determine if a redemption offers good value.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed guide to maximizing free night certificates and identifying standout Category 5 hotel options for both luxury and family travel.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
By this point, we've settled into the new normal with Marriott Bonvoy. With most award charts, the sweet spots lie at the absolute top and bottom. That’s definitely true with some Marriott hotels, including the aspirational Category 8 Al Maha resort outside of Dubai, which might be the single best value redemption in the entire Marriott Bonvoy program.
However, when looking back on my redemption patterns, I noticed another sweet spot emerging in the middle of the award chart: Category 5 hotels.
The hotels that offered me the best value — in terms of the overall experience and quality of the property coupled with the award cost relative to cash rates — were almost all Category 5 properties. Despite the attention given to top-tier luxurious properties like the Ritz Carlton, Hong Kong, Category 5 offers travelers the best and most consistent value across the Marriott award chart. Here’s why.
Earning Category 5 free nights
The simplest way to get a free night at a Category 5 hotel is to redeem Marriott Bonvoy points. At standard pricing, Category 5 hotels cost 35,000 points per night. However, that number can range from 30,000 to 40,000 if the dates are off-peak or peak. Based on TPG’s valuation of Marriott points at 0.8 cents each, 35,000 works out to a $280 value. Meanwhile, peak and off-peak pricing would require redeeming points worth either $240 or $320, respectively.
Many people might also recognize this standard award rate (35,000 points) as the value of the anniversary free night award that comes with select Marriott Bonvoy credit cards. The following credit cards are currently accepting new applicants and offer a free night award worth up to 35,000 points each year after the card renewal month:
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card ($125 annual fee, see rates and fees).
A free night worth $300 or more makes it easy to keep paying the annual fees on these Bonvoy credit cards. I wouldn’t be surprised if many people have multiple Marriott Bonvoy cards and hence earn multiple anniversary free nights each year. I have four Marriott Bonvoy credit cards and have spent $60,000 on my Bonvoy Business Amex some years to earn an extra free night award.
Use your points at stunning Category 5 properties like the Mira Moon in Hong Kong. (Photo by Ethan Steinberg/The Points Guy)
Even after this year’s annual category changes, which went into effect on March 3, Marriott still has more than 1,100 Category 5 hotels across the world.
Category 5 is just above the midpoint of Marriott’s eight-category award chart, but this tier still includes several ultraluxurious hotels in Marriott’s most upscale brands. There are 21 different Category 5 Ritz-Carlton hotels, spanning diverse locations, like Beijing; Jakarta, Indonesia; Istanbul; Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; and Tysons Corner, Virginia (outside of Washington, D.C.).
Further, St. Regis has another 12 hotels at Category 5, including locations in Mumbai, India; Cairo; and Bangkok. If you expand the search a little bit to include brands like Edition, JW Marriott and W Hotels, you easily end up with more than 70 luxury hotels to choose from.
Of course, picking the right hotel for your trip is as much about location as anything else. And the flexible Category 5 options let you pick the best spot in several major U.S. cities. Chicago alone has 17 such hotels, including the Hotel Chicago Downtown (a Luxury Collection property steps from the House of Blues) and two W hotels.
Los Angeles, Atlanta and New York are just a handful of other cities that have at least 10 Category 5 properties for you to book, meaning that you should never struggle to find a good value redemption for your points or free night award certificates. Of course, always double-check the cash rate of the hotel to make sure you’re getting a good deal. But, it’s typically easy to find Category 5 properties pricing out above the “break-even” point of $280 a night (based on TPG’s valuations).
Marriott smoothed the transition into Bonvoy by offering incredible discounts on awards at top-tier properties and delaying the introduction of peak and off-peak pricing. But even now, there’s still plenty of value to be had in the program.
However, knowing where to look can help. And there’s no better place to start than with Marriott’s more than 1,100 Category 5 hotels. Plus, if you have a Marriott Bonvoy credit card that earns a 35,000-point free night award after each account anniversary, it’s worth familiarizing yourself with your many redemption options.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex, please click here.
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By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
