Time to choose my Annual Choice Benefit with Marriott, this year I'm waiting until last

In July, after spending the 50th night of 2023. in a hotel Marriott, I received an invitation from the Bonvoy program to Choose my Annual Choice Benefit. 

Actually, it wasn't 50 nights since I took advantage of the double-night promo at the beginning of the year qualifying to climb the mountain,

2023 vs. 2022

The main swimming pool at W Muscat in Oman

Last year I had decided to climb the Bonvoy program for the first time., as I have written several times I have always been a happy serial accumulator of Hilton Honors nights and points, but accomplice to a series of coincidences and promotions of the two programs I had managed to renew Diamond with Hilton and climb up to the Titanium Bonvoy level, the top since Ambassador is unattainable for me.

Yes I know there are so many other hotel chains in the world and I talk little, too little, about Accor, IHG, Radisson, Melia and many others. We're not a powerhouse yet, though, and it's pretty much just me traveling, so I can't work miracles, but as always readers can contribute their reviews.

At the beginning of the year, I had set as my goal. the renewal of the Diamond by Hilton and hoped to at least renew Platinum with Marriott. To date I have achieved the first goal and am on track for the other. However, appetite comes with eating and the urge to renew the Titanium is getting stronger and stronger, too bad only that unlike some friends I have not been blessed with any personalized offer from Bonvoy and so everything will be decided in the coming weeks.

Being so far away from the "lifetime" status  I have to choose carefully how to distribute my reservations and stays, because I realize the different treatment one receives When you stay with these cards in your pocket.

I am currently pinned at 57 nights., which is 18 nights from the finish line. Unfortunately Marriott does not use stays, but only nights stayed, as a metric to arrive at status. Between now and the end of the year I currently have 9 nights planned all concentrated in Bali where we will vacation and visit the W and the two Ritz Carltons on the island, including the first Ritz Carlton Reserve of my life (booked of course with points). So I have to plan my strategy very well in the last months of the year.

Annual Choice Benfeti, what are they

I have already explained in detail what Annual Choice Benefits are and how they work, in short are two gifts that the Bonvoy program grants when crossing the finish line Of the 50 and 75 nights stayed.

Last year I opted, in both cases for the 5 SNAs, that is, the ability to ask the hotel for an upgrade to a suite, or to a better room than the one booked. Something different than the free upgrades provided by the status. These credits are valid for as many nights and To date, I have had a success rate of 100% Having used 4, plus 5 pending for reservation at W Bali.

I used the first one at the Le Meridien Nice, two at the W of Muscat And one at the JW in Hanoi. Other stays I have done without using residual credits always getting some kind of upgrade, but of course the counter-evidence would be impossible to have. The big difference will be whether or not I will be accepted for the 5 nights in Bali in November. Of course they are nice to have, but having to wait until you are under date to know if they are accepted or not is not the best.

In my case if those requested at the Bali W are not confirmed, I will find myself at the end of November with 5 credits virtually unusable and therefore wasted, since they are not rollovers on the following year, it would be different if instead of waiting for 8 months the answer came within a few weeks so that you don't have a credit stuck for nothing.

Because this year I do not choose anything until the last

I have until January '24 to decide how to use this benefit and the decision will be really last minute. The choice will depend on my situation qualifying nights at the end of December. Since the options include getting 5 free qualifying nights, to be added to the current year's total, if I find myself at the end of the year at a quota of 70 nights I will use this bonus to cross the finish line for the Titanium, Alternatively, I will opt for 5 credits to be used in 2024.

At worst, I will remain Platinum, a status that is very rich in benefits, but when traveling to the U.S. is little more than base given the ease of obtaining status overseas. Instead, if I cross the Titanium finish line this time I will opt for a certificate for a free night, or rather, for 40k points to be used to book a free night around the world.

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