Hotel + Air Travel Package awards which were offered by Marriott Bonvoy — with which you could redeem Marriott Bonvoy points for seven nights at a hotel or resort property plus miles from 39 participating frequent flier loyalty programs — have officially been discontinued effective as of yesterday, Wednesday, January 19, 2022 with an advance notice of only one week.
Hotel + Air Travel Package Awards Discontinued by Marriott Bonvoy
The now-defunct RewardsPlus program was a partnership with the United Airlines MileagePlus frequent flier loyalty program, which was “created to enhance every step of your travel journey”, as you received ten percent more MileagePlus miles when you redeemed for a Hotel + Air Package — up to 10,000 more miles. Travel packages were excluded from airline partner conversion bonus campaigns.
The point redemption values were as follows:
| Hotel Category | 7 Nights + 55,000 MileagePlus Miles | 7 Nights + 110,000 MileagePlus Miles | 7 Nights + 50,000 Miles — Other Airlines | 7 Nights + 100,000 Miles — Other Airlines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 through 4 | 255,000 | 330,000 | 255,000 | 330,000 |
| 5 | 315,000 | 390,000 | 315,000 | 315,000 |
| 6 | 435,000 | 510,000 | 435,000 | 510,000 |
| 7 | 495,000 | 570,000 | 495,000 | 570,000 |
| 8 | 675,000 | 750,000 | 675,000 | 750,000 |
Other than United Airlines MileagePlus, participating frequent flier loyalty programs of airlines of the Hotel + Air Package included:
- Aegean Miles+Bonus
- Aer Lingus AerClub
- Aeroflot Bonus
- Aeromexico ClubPremier
- Air Canada Aeroplan
- Air France-KLM Flying Blue
- Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- American Airlines AAdvantage
- ANA Mileage Club
- Asiana Airlines Asiana Club
- Avianca LifeMiles
- British Airways Executive Club
- Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Copa Airlines ConnectMiles
- Delta Air Lines SkyMiles
- Emirates Airline Skywards
- Etihad Guest
- Frontier Miles
- Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings Club
- Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles
- Iberia Plus
- InterMiles
- Japan Airlines JAL Mileage Bank
- Korean Air SKYPASS
- LATAM Airlines LATAM Pass
- MilleMiglia
- Multiplus Fidelidade
- Qantas Frequent Flyer
- Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Saudia Alfursan
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Southwest Rapid Rewards
- TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go
- Tahi Airways Royal Orchid Plus
- Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
- Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer
- Vueling Club
Official Notice From Marriott International, Incorporated
Due to varying factors — such as low volume in demand — Marriott Bonvoy is no longer selling Hotel + Air Travel Package awards.
The official notice — verbatim — which was received yesterday, Wednesday, January 19, 2022 from my contact at Marriott International, Incorporated is as follows:
While you may have heard already that Travel Packages with hotel and air components are being discontinued today (January 19), I am providing you with information that we are emailing to members in case you receive reader inquiries. This includes members with a current Travel Package certificate attached to a reservation and members who have purchased a Travel Package but not yet attached the certificate to a reservation.
The popularity of Travel Packages has been steadily decreasing. With the introduction of flexible point redemption rates sometime in March and the elimination of hotel categories, we can no longer offer Travel Packages.
For members who have a current Travel Package certificate attached to a reservation, they can rest assured their package will be honored, and no additional action is required. However, if they need to make any modifications after March 2, 2022, they will need to contact Member Support and an associate will refund the total hotel portion in points.*
Members who have purchased a Travel Package but have not yet attached their Travel Package Certificate to a reservation, must contact Member Support by February 28, 2022. for assistance in attaching their certificate. If a member does not attach their Travel Package Certificate to a reservation by that date, the certificate will be cancelled and the total hotel portion will be refunded to your account as points.*
Members can find the phone number to Member Support in their region at https://www.marriott.com/help/loyalty-customer-support.mi.
*Subject to program terms and conditions.
Additionally, if you have a Hotel + Air Travel Package award which is not yet attached to a reservation, you should contact Member Support by Monday, February 28, 2022 to attach your award to a reservation. If your Hotel + Air Travel Package award remains unattached after Monday, February 28, 2022, the lodging portion of your Hotel + Air Travel Package award will be automatically canceled and refunded in full to your Marriott Bonvoy membership account in points on Tuesday, March 1, 2022 — which happens to be approximately when hotel categories 1 through 8 and redemption rates which are classified as Off-Peak, Peak, or Standard are expected to be replaced with Flexible Point Redemption Rates.
Details of Marriott Hotel + Air Travel Package Award Refunds
If you purchased a Hotel + Air Travel Package award prior to the deadline, the refund you would receive after Monday, February 28, 2022 if you do not use your hotel certificate is as follows, as if you purchased a Category:
- 1-4 certificate and 110,000 miles for 330,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, you will get a refund of 210,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
- 5 certificate and 110,000 miles for 390,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, you will get a refund of 280,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
- 6 certificate and 110,000 miles for 510,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, you will get a refund of 420,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
- 7 certificate and 110,000 miles for 570,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, you will get a refund of 490,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
- 8 certificate and 110,000 miles for 750,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, you will get a refund of 700,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
Final Boarding Call
I personally never used — or never had the need to use — a Hotel + Air Travel Package award; so I am not personally adversely affected by this development…
…but apparently, this is not the first time this has happened with the frequent guest loyalty program of Marriott, according to this comment which was posted by FlyerTalk member nexusCFX: “All of us who had the old packages got hosed when they turned into the new ones. It’s hard to say what they’ll do, but I wouldn’t expect things to go any better for people holding them this time.”
Also, as a result of the major announcement from Marriott International, Incorporated pertaining to the integration of The Ritz-Carlton Rewards, Starwood Preferred Guest and Marriott Rewards into one frequent guest loyalty program — which became effective as of August of 2018 — Crossover Rewards ceased as of Sunday, July 15, 2018. First introduced on Thursday, February 7, 2013 and effective as of Friday, March 1, 2013, Crossover Rewards was a comprehensive joint loyalty partnership between Delta Air Lines and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide through which the members of their respective frequent travel loyalty programs who have earned elite level status were able to enjoy reciprocal benefits.
Rest in peace, Hotel + Air Travel Package awards.
Photograph ©2021 by Brian Cohen.
