Travel tip: book Marriott's most exclusive hotels with a huge points discount

Friday newsletters always feature luxury travel contests, tips, series, or news.

Today (September 21, 2018): Book Marriott’s top hotel with a huge points discount.

I recently posted an overview (with pros & cons) of the new combined loyalty program of Starwood, Marriott, and Ritz-Carlton, which you can read here. With 110 million members, the new loyalty program is one of the largest in the world, and has more than 6000 hotels in its portfolio, including some of the world’s most exclusive and southt-after properties, belong to iconic brands such as Ritz-Carlton, Bvlgari, St Regis, and The Luxury Collection. The essence of the program is that you collect points when staying at Marriott operated hotels and later use them for a free stay at any of the Marriott hotels and resorts worldwide, with no blackout dates. Every property under the combined Marriott Rewards umbrella falls into one of seven categories, depending on the hotel brand, location and type. If you are planning on using your points for a free stay in one of Marriott’s top hotels, I recommend to make the booking asap (by the end of December 2018) and here’s why.

BOOK A STAY AT W KOH SAMUI, FOR FEWER POINTS — BOOK A STAY AT W KOH SAMUI, THAILAND, FOR FEWER POINTS

For the remainder of 2017, there are only seven hotel categories in the Marriott Rewards program, starting at just 7500 Marriott Rewards points for a free night at a category 1 hotel to 60,000 points for a category 7 hotel. However, in January 2019, a new award chart kicks in, which will see two major changes:

First, Marriott Rewards will add a new category 8 to their current reward chart. This means that the brand’s most exclusive hotels will move up from category 7 to 8, resulting in a shocking 42% increase in the number of points you need to book these hotels as they rise from 60,000 points per night to 85,000 points per night.
Second, Marriott Rewards will add on- and off-peak redemption rates, with category 8 hotels costing 70,000 points in the off-peak season and 100,000 points in peak season (a 66% increase as compared to now).

Since Marriott’s hotels slated for category 8 are temporarily placed in category 7 for the remainder of 2018, it’s time to book them now using your points since this means a savings of 25,000 points (or 40,000 point for certain dates) per night. Your stay can be for any date up to 12 months ahead, so you can make a booking until late December 2018 for a holiday until late December 2019. In addition, Marriott Rewards provides the 5fth night of every award booking free, so you only pay for 4 nights when booking a 5-night award stay. This means that booking a 5 night stay before the end of the year will cost you 240,000 points at a top Marriott hotel while the same journey may set you back 400,000 points in 2019.

Below, you find an overview of all category 8 hotels. The (updated) list is also found on this page of Marriott website (sort the chart by ‘points required’).

Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort & Spa, Dubai	Luxury Collection	United Arab Emirates	85,000	8^*
Blue Palace, a Luxury Collection Resort and Spa, Crete	Luxury Collection	Greece	85,000	8^*
Cristallo, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Cortina d’Ampezzo	Luxury Collection	Italy	85,000	8^*
Domes of Elounda, Autograph Collection	Autograph Collection	Greece	85,000	8^*
G-Rough, Rome, a Member of Design Hotels	Design Hotels	Italy	85,000	8^*
Giardino Ascona, A Member Of Design Hotels	Design Hotels	Switzerland	85,000	8^*
Giardino Mountain, a Member of Design Hotels	Design Hotels	Switzerland	85,000	8^*
Gramercy Park Hotel, New York, a Member of Design Hotels™	Design Hotels	USA	85,000	8^*
Hotel Cala di Volpe, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Costa Smeralda	Luxury Collection	Italy	85,000	8^*
Hotel Danieli, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Venice	Luxury Collection	Italy	85,000	8^*
Hotel Pitrizza, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Costa Smeralda	Luxury Collection	Italy	85,000	8^*
Hotel President Wilson, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Geneva	Luxury Collection	Switzerland	85,000	8^*
Hotel Romazzino, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Costa Smeralda	Luxury Collection	Italy	85,000	8^*
Hôtel de Berri, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Paris	Luxury Collection	France	85,000	8^*
Kenoa Exclusive Beach Spa & Resort, Barra de Sao Miguel, a Member of Design Hotels	Design Hotels	Brazil	85,000	8^*
Le Méridien Bora Bora	Le Meridien	French Polynesia	85,000	8^*
Mystique, A Luxury Collection Resort, Santorini	Luxury Collection	Greece	85,000	8^*
PalazzinaG, Venice, a Member of Design Hotels	Design Hotels	Italy	85,000	8^*
Parklane, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Limassol	Luxury Collection	Cyprus	85,000	8^*
Phoenician Residences, a Luxury Collection Residence Club, Scottsdale	Luxury Collection	USA	85,000	8^*
Prince de Galles, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Paris	Luxury Collection	France	85,000	8^*
Santa Marina, a Luxury Collection Resort, Mykonos	Luxury Collection	Greece	85,000	8^*
Schloss Fuschl, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Fuschlsee-Salzburg	Luxury Collection	Austria	85,000	8^*
Sir Joan Hotel, Ibiza City, a Member of Design Hotels	Design Hotels	Spain	85,000	8^*
Suiran, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Kyoto	Luxury Collection	Japan	85,000	8^*
The Canyon Suites at The Phoenician, a Luxury Collection Resort, Scottsdale	Luxury Collection	USA	85,000	8^*
The Chatwal, a Luxury Collection Hotel, New York City	Luxury Collection	USA	85,000	8^*
The Gritti Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Venice	Luxury Collection	Italy	85,000	8^*
The Miami Beach EDITION	Edition	USA	85,000	8^*
The Prince Gallery Tokyo Kioicho, a Luxury Collection Hotel	Luxury Collection	Japan	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton Bal Harbour, Miami	Ritz-Carlton	USA	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park	Ritz-Carlton	USA	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch	Ritz-Carlton	USA	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman	Ritz-Carlton	Cayman Islands	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong	Ritz-Carlton	China	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Kyoto	Ritz-Carlton	Japan	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe	Ritz-Carlton	USA	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Naples	Ritz-Carlton	USA	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas	Ritz-Carlton	Virgin Islands (US)	85,000	8^*
The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo	Ritz-Carlton	Japan	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Aspen Resort	St. Regis	USA	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort, Puerto Rico	St. Regis	Puerto Rico	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort	St. Regis	USA	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Bali Resort	St. Regis	Indonesia	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort	St. Regis	French Polynesia	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Deer Valley	St. Regis	USA	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Florence	St. Regis	Italy	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort	St. Regis	Maldives	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Mardavall Mallorca Resort	St. Regis	Spain	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis New York	St. Regis	USA	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Osaka	St. Regis	Japan	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Princeville Resort	St. Regis	USA	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Punta Mita Resort	St. Regis	Mexico	85,000	8^*
The St. Regis Rome	St. Regis	Italy	85,000	8^*
The Wellesley Knightsbridge, a Luxury Collection Hotel, London	Luxury Collection	United Kingdom	85,000	8^*
The Westin Golf Resort & Spa, Playa Conchal	Westin	Costa Rica	85,000	8^*
Vana Belle, a Luxury Collection Resort, Koh Samui	Luxury Collection	Thailand	85,000	8^*
W Costa Rica – Reserva Conchal	W Hotels	Costa Rica	85,000	7
W Koh Samui	W Hotels	Thailand	85,000	8^*
W Maldives	W Hotels	Maldives	85,000	8^*
W South Beach	W Hotels	USA	85,000	8^*
W Verbier	W Hotels	Switzerland	85,000	8^*