Earlier today we wrote a post on whether it was worth signing up for the American Express SPG cards now given Marriott had announced details of the merger with SPG and we had more details regarding the SPG cards. A few readers asked me to do a similar post on the Chase Marriott personal, business and Ritz-Carlton personal card so here goes.
Chase Marriott Personal
This card will be discontinued and replaced with the Chase Marriott Premier Plus. Existing cardholders will be able to upgrade to the Premier Plus and if it’s your first year of being a cardholder you won’t have to pay the additional $10 annual fee in the first year (this is due to the CARD act). Some things to note:
- Chase 5/24 rule applies to this card
- Current sign up bonus is 75,000 points with the annual fee waived first year
- Premier Plus card will launch with a 100,000 point bonus, but requires $5,000 in spend instead of $3,000
- I suspect this will be treated as a different card to the Premier Plus
If I had to guess the Premier Plus will not have the annual fee waived first year. So it’s a matter of whether you’d prefer an 25,000 Marriott points for $95 or not. Personally I don’t think Marriott cards are even worth a 5/24 slot but if you do then you probably value 25,000 points at more than $95 so my recommendation would be to wait until the new card launches. You could theoretically get this bonus and the Premier Plus if you really value Marriott points as well I guess (update: Chase website says: “Cardmembers can have either the Marriott Rewards Premier credit card or the Marriott Rewards Premier Plus credit card. We will be offering points to upgrade to the new Marriott Rewards® Registered Trademark Premier Plus card. Check back on May 3rd” so I guess you won’t be able to get both).
Chase Marriott Business
Chase doesn’t have the right to issue Marriott business cards (starting in August I think) so if you’re interested in this card then you need to apply now. Some things to note:
- Chase 5/24 rule does not apply to this card
- Current sign up bonus is 75,000 points with the annual fee waived first year
We’ve seen bonuses on this card up to 100,000 but without the annual fee waived the first year. I think the 100,000 point bonus is better but it’s a question of whether we will see that return before Chase no longer issues that card. To be honest I have no real idea. My gut recommendation is to get the bonus now. But I could easily see reasoning for waiting closer to August.
Chase Ritz-Carlton
Chase will still issue the Ritz-Carlton and they plan to make changes to the card, currently it’s not competitive at all in terms of ongoing benefits (it has a spend requirement for gold status. Keep in mind this card comes with a $450 annual fee. Update: This is gold status under Marriott, it will become Platinum under the new program). Some things to note:
- Chase 5/24 rule does not apply to this card
- Current sign up bonus is two complimentary free night awards at tier 1-4 properties
We’ve seen bonuses on this card of 140,000 points or three free nights. Given that Chase is going to make changes to this card and continue to issue it my recommendation would be to wait until those are released. They are supposed to be in line with what the American Express Luxury SPG card offers and traditionally card issuers will offer a higher than normal bonus to help launch a new card/or product refresh in this case.
Our Verdict
Basically my advice is to not worry about the personal Marriott card because 5/24 applies to it, sign up for the business card if you’re eligible and wait for more information on the Ritz-Carlton. Obviously your own travel plans and what minimum spend requirements you can meet should inform the decision you make. Don’t just blindly follow my suggestions, read why I am making those suggestions and then apply that thinking to your own unique situation!
