Marriott Rewards Visa Signature Review - Earn 3 Points/$ On Marriott Stays
|
|
Editor's Rating:
 
|
| Intro Purchase APR | Regular APR | Intro Balance Transfer | Annual Fee | Credit Needed |
| N.A. | $45 (First Year Waived) | Excellent |
The Marriott Rewards Visa Signature Card is a card geared towards frequent guest members of the Marriott Rewards program. It is the lower tier of the two Marriott credit cards that are available to consumers. We go through this card a fine tooth comb below. How You Earn Marriott Rewards - The Marriott Rewards Credit Card from Chase allows the cardholder to earn 3 points for every dollar spent at Marriott Hotels. For other regular purchases, you earn the standard one point for every dollar you spend.
Sign Up Bonuses - New cardholders will receive 22,500 bonus points after their first purchase. You will also get a free night stay e-certificate once your credit card application is approved. Combining the bonus points and free night e-certificate allows you to redeem points for 4 nights free stay.
Elite Night Credit - You will also be able to earn 1 elite night credit for every $3,000 you spend on the card. On each anniversary date, you get 10 elite night credits that will count towards your elite status. Marriott Rewards require 10 elite night credits for silver status. Hence, simply getting and using this credit card will get you a Silver Elite Status automatically even if you do not stay at the hotel! Some of the perks for the Silver Status is the ability to earn 20% more points and also priority late check outs.
To qualify for Gold Elite Status, you will need 50 Elite Night Credits. Since you already get 10 Elite Night Credits every year, that means that if you spend $120,000 on the card, you will earn a total of 40 elite night credit cards. Add that to the 10 you get every year, there comes your Gold Status. In reality, you will not need to spend that much because if you get this card, we can all assume that you stay quite a bit at Marriott Hotels!?
15,000 Bonus Points If You Redeem a 7-day Stay - If you redeem your points for a 7-day stay at a category 7 or 8 hotel, you will get 15,000 bonus points in your Marriott account. There are no limits on how many bonus points you can earn.
Fees - The annual fee for this card is $30.
How Does This Compare to the Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card? - The Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card from Chase has a higher annual fee at $65. But you can earn 5 points for every stay at the Marriott and you also get 15 Elite Night Credits rather than 10 each anniversary. Hence, to see if it makes sense to get the "premier version", you just have to look at how much you spend at Marriott Hotels a year, and how many elite night credits you earn a year and see if the additional bonus that you get from the card makes sense for you.
Compared to other hotel credit cards - In terms of points earning capacity, the card compares well with its' peers like the Hyatt credit card, which also allows you to earn triple points. The fact that this card allows you to earn 10 elite night credits for every year you have the card is also comparable with the Hyatt card, which gives you a Platinum Status.
Should You Get the Marriott Rewards Credit Card? - I just compared (above) this card and their peers. But frankly speaking, in the big scheme of things, it should be irrelevant because you should only get this card if you stay a lot at Marriott hotels and their chains. If you happen to be a great Marriott customer, then the Marriott Rewards Visa Signature Card will appeal to you because you are likely to be looking to earn extra points through their credit card spending and to get more free nights. Whether you are frequent traveler or a business owner who stays at the Marriott a lot, this is a good credit card to get. Firstly, you get automatic silver elite status as long as you use your card each year (along with it's benefits). And the more money you spend on the card, the more elite night credits you will earn (which will help you towards getting a gold elite status).
You might also want to consider the Marriott Rewards Premier Visa Signature Card if you are a high spender and want to use the credit card to help you achieve Gold Elite Status.