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Marriott free-night certificate PointSavers glitch soon to be fixed

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Carissa Rawson is a Points and Miles Reporter at TPG, helping readers get to where they need to go, faster (and cheaper). You can find her in your nearest Priority Pass lounge, sipping free coffee and obsessively researching travel.
Oct. 09, 2019
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3 min read
Marriott Grand Cayman
Marriott free-night certificate PointSavers glitch soon to be fixed
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With the introduction of Marriott's peak and off-peak pricing in September, we've seen a variety of changes. While most of them don't seem great, these new rates have opened up some really interesting redemptions with PointSavers hotels. Why? Take a look at Marriott's award chart:

Off-peak rates occur during the low season, as determined by Marriott's newest algorithm. PointSavers rates discount the points required for a free night even further. Take, for example, the Marriott Grand Cayman Beach Resort, a Category 6 hotel which would normally cost 50,000 points per night. During off-peak times the rate drops to just 40,000 points per night.

With PointSavers, the total amount needed for a single night is a stunning 35,000 points, which puts this Category 6 hotel firmly within reach of the annual free night certificate (up to 35,000 points) offered by the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card.

Related: Which Marriott Bonvoy credit card is right for you?

However, something interesting happens when you actually go to redeem your free night certificates on Marriott's website.

Note how the option to redeem your free night certificate doesn't appear, unlike when you try to book a Category 5 hotel, like at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort & the Royal Beach Casino:

Unfortunately, when TPG editor Jasmin Baron tried to take advantage of one of these off-peak PointSavers rates and called to apply her certificate to her reservation, she was told by two separate Marriott representatives that her booking was considered a promotional rate and thus not eligible for the free-night certificate. When a detailed investigation of Marriott's terms and conditions failed to yield further information, we reached out to Marriott for comment.

Related: How to use a Marriott 35,000-point certificate

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Luckily for cardholders everywhere, Marriott has confirmed that free-night certificates are usable with PointSavers hotels, and that they're actively working to correct these issues with booking. This opens up some phenomenal uses of the 35k Marriott certificate, letting members redeem their free nights for hotels up to Category 6 when they're priced off-peak combined with PointSavers. While we've written about Marriott PointSavers discounts, keep in mind that Marriott's published list isn't comprehensive — you can find deals on tons of different destinations simply by searching. In the meantime, let's hope that Marriott is quick to fix this glitch.

Featured image by Marriott Grand Cayman (photo courtesy of hotel)
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.