Late last night news broke about what the new combined Starwood Preferred Guest and Marriott Rewards program will look like. Many SPG members were relieved to hear their SPG points would transfer to Marriott Rewards at a 3:1 ratio. It was fairly clear the points would not transfer at 1:1, but 3:1 also seemed unlikely. Marriott is also matching SPG status to Marriott status in a highly favorable way. Today however I want to touch on a quick way to earn a ton of Marriott points before it is too late.
A few days ago, American Express changed the public offering on the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card. The change was subtle, instead of earning 25,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months, cardholders would now earn 2 free nights in Category 1-5 properties. You can definitely get over 25,000 points worth of value from the offer, but I still prefer points to free night certificates. Interestingly, if you visit SPG.com and click on the link for the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express, the offer is still to earn 25,000 SPG points after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. The offer is only valid to those who have not previously earned a bonus on the product.
If you have not already opened the Starwood Preferred Guest credit card, today might be the best day to do it as the offer may not stand for much longer. After earning the 25,000 points, by linking your SPG and Marriott accounts, you can transfer your signup bonus to the Marriott Rewards program at a 3:1 ratio. Meaning you will earn 75,000 Marriott points for signing up for the SPG credit card from American Express.
Next, you can then open the Marriott Rewards credit card. If you are not currently a cardholder or have received a bonus on the product in the prior 24 months, you will earn 80,000 Marriott Reward points after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. This card comes with a ton of benefits and is definitely worth carrying anyway, especially now that you can link your SPG and Marriott accounts.
I am not sure how much longer the 25,000 point offer will remain on SPG’s website, so if you want to earn a few thousand Marriott points quickly, now is the time to act.
