Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy: Earn and Redeem Factors on Trip Leases

Airbnb took the journey world by storm within the 2010s, unlocking entry to quirky lofts, treehouses, and charming metropolis residences—removed from the world of cookie-cutter accommodations.

However because the platform grew, so did the complications: rising cleansing charges, chore lists, and hosts who anticipate you to wash cereal bowls earlier than checkout.

For factors collectors, the most important letdown is that Airbnb nonetheless doesn’t provide a loyalty program or a co-branded bank card. No elite perks, no bonus factors—only a primary transaction and a passive-aggressive home guide.

That’s the place Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy steps in, providing curated trip leases with hotel-like requirements and the possibility to earn or redeem Marriott Bonvoy factors.

What Is Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy?

Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy is Marriott’s reply to Airbnb, launched in 2019 as a strategy to faucet into the booming trip rental market.

In contrast to Airbnb’s anything-goes method, Marriott focuses on premium and luxurious properties which might be professionally managed and held to model requirements—that means no squeaky mattress frames sourced from Kijiji or “classic” couches rescued from somebody’s storage.

With over 100,000 properties in additional than 700 locations worldwide, the portfolio consists of all the things from beachfront villas and countryside estates to stylish metropolis flats.

Whereas Marriott doesn’t personal or function these properties, it companions with vetted property administration corporations and layers within the perks that Marriott Bonvoy members care about—like factors, elite night time credit, and infrequently, some juicy promotions.

That mentioned, Houses & Villas isn’t essentially the most cost effective strategy to lease a house. You’ll usually pay greater than in case you booked straight by way of the property supervisor or through platforms like Vrbo—however in return, you get peace of thoughts, a extra constant normal of service, and the power to earn or redeem factors with one of many world’s greatest resort loyalty applications.

Incomes Marriott Bonvoy Factors with Houses & Villas

One of many greatest perks of reserving by way of Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy is the power to rack up Marriott Bonvoy factors and elite night time credit similar to you’d at a standard Marriott resort.

And in case you’re aiming for elite standing or attempting to high up your factors steadiness, a single reserving—particularly a bunch keep—can go a good distance.

Right here’s what you earn on eligible stays at Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy properties:

• Base Factors
  • Earn 5 Marriott Bonvoy factors per US greenback spent on the bottom price (excluding taxes, cleansing charges, and add-ons)
• Earn a tiered bonus relying in your Marriott Bonvoy Elite standing:
  • Silver Elite: 10% bonus
  • Gold Elite: 25% bonus
  • Platinum Elite: 50% bonus
  • Titanium & Ambassador Elite: 75% bonus
• Elite Welcome Bonus
  • Gold Elite: 500 factors per keep
  • Platinum, Titanium, and Ambassador Elite: 1,000 factors per keep
• Elite Night time Credit
  • You’ll earn one Elite Night time Credit score for each night time stayed, serving to you qualify or requalify for elite standing. These publish as “Bonus Nights/Promotional” and don’t rely towards lifetime standing.
• Credit score Card Bonus Factors
  • Earn 5 Marriott Bonvoy factors per greenback spent in case you pay with the Canadian Amex Marriott Bonvoy co-branded playing cards
  • Earn 6 Marriott Bonvoy factors per greenback spent with most US-issued Marriott Bonvoy co-branded playing cards from Amex or Chase

In case you’re reserving a pricier group keep, the factors can stack up rapidly—particularly in case you mix elite bonuses with a bank card that gives elevated earn charges on Marriott spending.

For the ultra-optimizers on the market, you may typically squeeze out much more worth by beginning your reserving by way of a buying portal like Aeroplan eStore or AAdvantage eShopping, which sometimes provide further factors or cashback for Houses & Villas reservations.

Redeeming Marriott Bonvoy Factors for Houses & Villas

In case you’ve been saving up Marriott Bonvoy factors and need extra space than a resort can provide, Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy offers you the choice to redeem factors for trip leases world wide.

In contrast to Marriott’s resort program, which makes use of dynamic pricing, Houses & Villas redemptions provide a hard and fast worth of 0.56 cents (USD) per level. That price stays constant throughout properties and dates—from family-sized seashore homes to fashionable city residences.

We worth Marriott Bonvoy factors at round 0.6 cents per level (USD), so this redemption price is barely under our benchmark. It’s not probably the most environment friendly use of factors, nevertheless it’s removed from the worst. And albeit, having the choice to e book a personal dwelling with factors remains to be a stable win in our books.

One of many nicest options right here is the flexibleness. You’ll be able to redeem any quantity of factors—from only a portion to your entire keep—and it even applies to cleansing charges and taxes. That’s nice for anybody seeking to shave a bit off the invoice or expend leftover factors.

That mentioned, there are just a few limitations value noting:

• Whereas I couldn’t discover an official minimal keep rule in Marriott’s FAQ, the location at the moment gained’t allow you to seek for one-night stays—so in observe, it seems that a two-night minimal is required
• The “Keep for five, Pay for 4” profit (aka Fifth Night time Free) doesn’t apply, even in case you’re redeeming factors for the 4 nights
• Free Night time Awards, PointSavers, Nightly Improve Awards, and different hotel-specific perks additionally don’t apply
• Redemptions should be made at the very least three days upfront

Whereas the worth per level gained’t knock your socks off, having the choice to redeem towards a comfortable trip dwelling—even when it’s simply the cleansing payment—is one thing I nonetheless admire.

My Expertise with Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy

For my first Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy reserving, I stayed at Hercules Residence, a classy two-bedroom house in Athens managed by a trip house administration known as My Greek Holidays.

I booked a two-night keep for $282.81 (USD), which felt like a stable deal contemplating the house, facilities, and placement. The house is ready in a comfortable neighbourhood simply exterior the center of Athens—shut sufficient to the town centre for sightseeing, however far sufficient to supply a extra laid-back, native vibe.

The unit itself was spacious and thoughtfully designed, simply giant sufficient to accommodate 5 friends, although it was simply the three of us this time. With two correct bedrooms, a residing space, and a personal patio, it supplied far more respiratory room than a typical resort keep.

The constructing additionally featured just a few good extras: a shared gymnasium, laundry services, a youngsters’s play space, and free road parking.

The whole lot was clear and well-maintained, and the check-in expertise was seamless.

On the morning of arrival, I acquired entry codes for each the primary entrance and the unit—a totally keyless system that made issues easy and hassle-free.

Whereas this wasn’t a luxurious villa with a pool and ocean view, it was an ideal match for a fast household journey to Athens. In comparison with a resort, the additional house and home-like really feel made an enormous distinction.

For what it’s value, I additionally earned round 3,926 Bonvoy factors on this keep—due to a 2x factors promo stacked with Titanium standing and a welcome bonus. I’ll break down the numbers extra later.

Is Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy Price It?

Whether or not reserving by way of Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy is “value it” actually will depend on what issues most to you—worth, factors, or total expertise.

In case you’re purely searching for the bottom worth, this most likely isn’t your finest wager. In truth, after I checked the identical property I stayed at—for a similar dates—Reserving.com confirmed a worth of €399.90, whereas Marriott Houses & Villas listed it at €418.80.

That’s about an €18.90 premium when reserving by way of Marriott’s platform.

Let’s break down the worth assuming you’re a Platinum Elite member and there have been no promotions on the time of reserving:

• The room price, excluding a €72 cleansing payment, involves €346.80.
• Changing that to USD at roughly 1 EUR = 1.09 USD offers about $377.01 USD.
• At 5x factors per greenback, that’s roughly 1,885 base factors.
• As a Platinum member, you’ll earn further 50% bonus—including about 942 factors.
• Plus, there’s a welcome bonus of 1,000 factors.
• That brings the overall to round 3,827 Bonvoy factors
• Valuing Bonvoy factors at 0.6 cents per level (USD), these factors are value roughly $22.96 USD—or about €21.06.

So, you’re paying an additional €18.90, however you’re incomes almost €21.06 in factors worth—nearly breaking even in direct financial phrases, and that doesn’t even account for the two elite night time credit you additionally earn.

Now, right here’s the place it will get extra nuanced:

• If there’s a terrific promotion operating—for example, if there’s a bonus promotion (we’ve seen as excessive as 5x) or Amex or Chase gives to offset the reserving price—the deal could be considerably higher. That further multiplier can actually tip the scales in favour of reserving by way of Marriott.
• However, in case you don’t have elite standing or there aren’t any promotions throughout your keep interval, the additional price might not justify the factors earned in case you’re simply searching for the perfect deal.

Briefly, for loyal Marriott Bonvoy members—particularly these with elite standing or those that can make the most of present promotions—reserving by way of Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy could be a good transfer.

You’ll get the added perks of incomes factors, elite night time credit, and the peace of thoughts that comes with Marriott’s service requirements.

However in case you’re simply searching for the bottom worth and never too involved with loyalty, you’ll possible save extra by reserving by way of an OTA or straight with the property administration.

How one can Maximize Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy

In case you’re reserving by way of Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy, you’ll need to be sure to’re getting probably the most out of your spend.

Listed here are just a few suggestions to assist maximize your return.

Use the Proper Credit score Card

In case you’ve began your US bank card journey, Marriott Bonvoy co-branded playing cards just like the Marriott Bonvoy Good American Categorical Card or Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit score Card will earn as much as 6x factors on Marriott purchases—and sometimes include standing perks or annual Free Night time Awards.

For Canadians who don’t but have entry to US playing cards, the Marriott Bonvoy American Categorical Card or Marriott Bonvoy Enterprise American Categorical® Card are nonetheless stable choices, incomes 5x Bonvoy factors on Marriott stays.

Nonetheless, it’s essential to notice these playing cards cost a 2.5% international transaction payment, which might scale back your total worth when reserving properties priced in currencies apart from CAD.

In case you’re seeking to keep away from international transaction charges, think about using a card just like the Scotiabank Passport® Visa Infinite Privilege* Card, which earns 3x Scene+ factors on journey and has no international transaction charges.

When you gained’t earn Bonvoy factors on the cardboard facet, you may come out forward by saving on foreign money conversion and incomes Scene+ factors for versatile redemptions sooner or later.

Look ahead to Amex Presents and Chase Presents (US Playing cards)

These focused gives can add severe worth—however they’re usually solely accessible to US cardholders. That mentioned, in case you’ve obtained US playing cards in your pockets, keep watch over your Amex and Chase dashboards.

Prior to now, we’ve seen:

• Amex Presents: $250 off $1,000 spend on Houses & Villas bookings
• Chase Presents: $70 off $250 spend

They arrive and go regularly, so it’s value checking your accounts earlier than pulling the set off on a reserving.

Take Benefit of Promotions

Marriott runs Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy promos pretty often—a few of them could be fairly beneficiant.

Previous examples embrace:

• 2x factors on all Houses & Villas bookings
• 20,000 bonus factors on 2+ night time stays
• Focused 5x Bonvoy factors promos

In case you’re planning a bunch journey or longer trip, these can present a powerful return, particularly when stacked with bank card factors and elite bonuses. All the time verify the Marriott Bonvoy Promotions web page earlier than reserving.

Stack with Buying Portals

Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy is constantly accessible on choose on-line buying portals, so don’t miss the possibility to double dip on rewards.

You’ll be able to at the moment earn further miles by beginning your reserving by way of:

• Aeroplan eStore
• AAdvantage eShopping
• Alaska Mileage Plan Buying
• British Airways Avios eStore

It solely takes just a few further clicks—and it’s free cash within the type of airline factors.

Conclusion

Houses & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy fills a singular house within the journey ecosystem—it’s not fairly a resort, not fairly your common Airbnb.

As a substitute, it gives a trip rental expertise with the added perks of incomes and redeeming Bonvoy factors, elite night time credit, and extra consistency in service and high quality.

Sure, you’ll possible pay a premium in comparison with third-party platforms like Reserving.com or Vrbo, however for loyal Marriott travellers, that further price can usually be offset by the factors earned—particularly in case you’re stacking promotions, bank card rewards, or focused gives.

Personally, I appreciated the peace of thoughts, the seamless check-in, and the power to pad my Bonvoy steadiness whereas staying in an attractive Athens house. That mentioned, in case you’re not deep into the Marriott ecosystem or aren’t involved about elite standing, you may discover higher bang to your buck elsewhere.

Finally, Houses & Villas gained’t substitute accommodations—or Airbnb—nevertheless it’s a stable various for anybody seeking to steadiness consolation, house, and loyalty advantages beneath one roof.