Marriott Bonvoy 50k Free Night Certificate Sweet Spots: Jordan
Marriott Bonvoy is a program where you’d have to cherry pick on where to go to get outsized value out of its points. Marriott credit cards like the Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless and Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business Card occasionally offer signup bonuses in forms of 50k Free Night Certificates rather than points. Unfortunately, 50k FNC’s are the most frustrating to extract the max value.
This post’s aim is to make 50K FNC redemptions as painless as possible while showing luxurious options with decent to great value out of your 50K FNC’s. Maximizing monetary value with 50k FNC’s is unfortunately very difficult outside of special events.
One country where you can extract good value out of them is Jordan, and there are a good amount of Marriott properties in the country’s major sites.
Amman
In Jordan’s capital Amman, there are 3 options to consider for your 50K FNC redemption. The first main two options are either the St. Regis Amman and The Ritz-Carlton, Amman. They’re categorized at Category 6, so their peak redemption rates are at 70,000+ per night. But, there’s a good chance they’d be priced at mid 50K’s to 60K’s as long as you book well ahead before your stay.
If the St. Regis or Ritz-Carlton won’t work, then the safest bet to redeeming your 50K FNC is the W Amman, which is set as a Category 4 hotel. Category 4 hotels are pretty much guaranteed for 50K FNC redemptions, alas not the most optimal use.
Petra
Petra is undoubtedly one of the main reasons to visit Jordan. But, hotels there can be very pricy due to high demand. Marriott has the Petra Marriott Hotel that’s a bit outside of the main sites of Petra, but offer daily shuttles from and to the hotel. Petra Marriott Hotel could charge over $300 per night, but fortunately, it’s a Category 4 hotel. That means, you’re pretty much guaranteed a free stay near Petra when you have 50K FNC’s at your disposal. It won’t be the most luxurious hotel, but can provide an easy great value redemption.
Aqaba
Aqaba is a beachside resort town in south Jordan, and there’s a Luxury Collection hotel there called Al Manara. It’s a Category 5 hotel, so there’s still a very great chance that you can redeem a free night there. It could be a good option to relax after visiting Petra and Wadi Rum before flying back to Amman.
Though depending on when you go, it could be better to redeem 35k FNC’s here and save the 50K FNC’s for elsewhere. But, the 50K certs can be handy for the times when you go during the busier seasons, where a 35k FNC redemption would no longer be possible.
Though, there will be a new Westin opening in Aqaba some time in 2024, and I’m curious how it would compare with Al Manara. I would guess that the Westin would be in a lower Category level as Luxury Collection is a higher tier brand compared to Westin.
Conclusion
If you’re having troubles in redeeming your Marriott 50k FNC’s, then you may want to consider Jordan as your next destination. Of course, there are plenty more places in the world where redeeming 50K FNC’s are easy while retaining a good amount of value along with a nice level of luxury.
