Marriott Bonvoy rolled out its flexible award last night and no longer calls them for free night awards (those pesky resort and destination fees).
You have to remember that this is only the first stage of flexible awards, and the pricing in points will be further “enhanced” come 2023.
You can access Marriott here.
READ MORE: Marriott Bonvoy Rate & Bonus Points Offers
You should go through all your existing award redemptions to see if some have gone down, and you can then just modify the award and get the lower pricing (refund of points). You don’t have to cancel and rebook.
My Existing Award Reservations:
Ritz-Carlton Maldives
Went up by 58,500 points.
St Regis Maldives
Went up by 110,000 points.
Le Meridien Maldives
Went up by 168,000 points.
Rate Searches
Bali
London
The award and paid pricing don’t go hand in hand for hotels in London. It is clear that hotels with a higher share of awards are priced up compared to other properties at the same cash rates.
Previous Dynamic Award Price Articles:
Conclusion
It seems to me that Marriott tries to nudge members to use their points in areas and hotels that don’t see much redemption activity. This is precisely what Marriott did back in the Marriott Rewards times.
The problem with this flexible (partially dynamic) award pricing is that it can change at any time. So the price you see today can be higher or lower tomorrow or next week.
I am sure that there can and will be “flash” sales for specific properties for a short period. You cannot, however, bank your points for redemption in the future, hoping that the award rate will stay the same.
Marriott has previously communicated that sans 200 or so properties, the now rolled dynamic pricing will follow their current category min/max pricing. This will change next year, however. The price in points can be anything that Marriott determines you are willing to pay.
