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Short answer: No, you probably cannot convert a 7 night travel package to a 5 night package.
Yesterday we wrote that multiple people have recently had success booking Marriott 5 Night Travel Packages. This is a big deal because 5 night packages are supposed to be only for Marriott Vacation Club owners. The rest of us are supposed to get the 7 Night Packages. 5 Night Packages are cheaper, so those of us who are unlikely to stay 7 nights in a row at a single Marriott would generally prefer to save a few points. You can find comparisons of the point prices for 5 and 7 night packages here: Analysis of Marriott Travel Packages: 5 Night vs. 7 Night. With Category 1-5 packages, 5 night travel packages are 35,000 Marriott points cheaper than 7 night packages.
Given that people have recently had success in purchasing 5 night packages, I wondered if those of us who already purchased 7 night packages could convert ours over and get back 35,000 points. Time to investigate…
Investigation…
Since multiple people have reported success in calling foreign Marriott Rewards offices, I started there. I first called the Australia office, then Kuala Lumpur, then Hong Kong, then US… At each one, I told the rep that I had purchased a 7 night travel package and wondered if I could convert it to a 5 night package because I wouldn’t be able to use all 7 nights. Here’s what happened:
Australia office: The woman who answered said no, five night packages are only for Vacation Club owners. Me: OK, thanks anyway. Goodbye.
Kuala Lumpur office: The man who answered didn’t seem to mind that I wasn’t a vacation club owner. He apologized and said that it is not possible to convert 7 night packages to 5 night packages. To ensure that we were talking about the same thing, I asked him if it was possible to convert my 7 night category 1-5 package to a different category, and he confirmed that it was. To be clear, I knew that changing categories was possible. I asked about it only to make sure that the agent understood my original question.
Hong Kong office: Same as Kuala Lumpur. “It is not possible to convert one to the other.”
US office: Again, same answer. It is not possible to convert.
Maybe someone at Marriott Rewards knows a way to convert one to the other, but every rep I spoke with thought it was impossible. Unless I learn otherwise from readers, I’m satisfied that the final answer is no. Too bad!
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Thanks for this data point I was wondering this exact question. I at least was smart enough to transfer enough points to get a category 7 which gets my family into some really nice resorts for a week.
Anyone able to convert a 7 night Cat 5 certificate to a 5 night Cat 6 stay?
Greg,
Do you happen to know the number of points required for the 5 night package at Ritz Carlton properties?
I have replied many times that it’s no longer possible to do 5 night packages without ownership. I heard there is even a system block. A few people got lucky years ago but I can assure anyone you are wasting your time and effort
Quite a few readers, including two that I’m friends with personally, have had success booking 5 night packages very recently (one booked just last week).
According to an inside source at Marriott that wouldn’t even be physically possible as the system no longer allows it.
I can send you a screenshot of my email confirmation of getting the 5 night package on March 19th.