Marriott and its Starwood subsidiary are enticing travelers to sign up for the hotel company’s new credit cards by pointing out their rewards, perks and advantages. It's wise, though, to carefully evaluate the terms of the new cards against those already in existence before choosing which one is best for you.
The new Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card, issued by Chase, will be available May 3 and costs $95 per year. The hotel company’s marketing hype proclaims: “MORE POINTS. MORE POSSIBILITIES. MORE OF WHAT YOU LOVE…DON’T MISS THIS EXCITING OPPORTUNITY!”
The points are undoubtedly the major attraction: 100,000 for signing up and spending $5,000 on the credit card during the first 90 days. A free night at a Marriott hotel ranges from 6,000-45,000 points.
Among other benefits, the new Marriott credit card provides six points per $1 spent at Marriott hotels, two points per $1 spent on all other purchases and a free night at a Marriott hotel that charges up to 35,000 points for such a night.
The new Marriott card and the new Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Luxury Card, which will be available in August, “seem like a win for credit-card rewards seekers,” says Matt Schulz, the senior industry analyst at CreditCards.com. “There’s nothing earth-shaking with these new cards, but they will certainly catch the eyes of rewards junkies.”
The cards “aren't necessarily breaking any new ground, like the Chase Sapphire Reserve did,” Schulz says. “That doesn't mean the offers aren't strong, though. The new Marriott card's 100,000-point sign-up bonus is especially attention-grabbing.”
Travelers, however, should also consider CreditCard.com’s analysis of 300 travel-related credit-card offers. The card with the top recommendation is the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, and another favorite is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.
CreditCard.com applauds the Capital One card for “its strong rewards rate for hotel bookings and easy redemptions” and the Chase Sapphire card “for its flexible redemptions and valuable Ultimate Rewards points.”
The new Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Luxury Card, which will cost $450 annually when it is available in August, is full of perks. They include: $300 of credit-card statement credits each year for purchases at Marriott hotels; a free hotel night at hotels charging 50,000 points or fewer; gold status in the Marriott/Starwood frequent-stay programs; Priority Pass membership for more than 1,100 airport lounges, and Boingo Wi-Fi access.
Marriott currently offers a Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card that provides $200 of statement credits each year. The card, which is free during the first year and $95 for the second year, will continue to be offered when the “luxury” card becomes available.
The new Starwood and Marriott credit cards “continue the battle royal that we've seen in the credit-card business for folks who are passionate about travel,” Schulz says. “Banks and credit-card issuers continue to fall all over themselves to establish relationships with the travel crowd, and the new Marriott and Starwood cards are no exception."
Regardless of the travel-related credit card one chooses, avoiding high interest rates by paying off the balance as soon as possible should be the No. 1 aim, Schulz says.
"One of the worst things one can do is overspend just to get credit card rewards, no matter how lucrative those rewards might be," he says. "That's just asking for trouble. If you can't pay that balance off every month, you're probably better off not getting that rewards card."
