(EXPIRED) 50% transfer bonus from Marriott to Etihad Guest

Etihad Guest is offering a 50% transfer bonus when you transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to Etihad Guest. That’s not necessarily a bad deal, though I’d probably not be enticed by this since Etihad Guest miles are pretty easy to collect through major transferable currencies.

The Deal

• Etihad Guest is offering a 50% transfer bonus when you transfer from Marriott Bonvoy to Etihad Guest miles
• Direct link to this offer

Key Terms

• The offer is valid for conversions made between 01 October 2021 (00.00am) and  31 October  2021 (23.59pm) both days inclusive.
• Base Etihad Guest Miles transferred by the member will be awarded as per the applicable conversion ratios of each respective partner.
• Bonus Etihad Guest Miles earned during this promotion will reflect in the member’s Etihad Guest membership account within 10 working days of the end date of the promotion.
• Bonus Etihad Guest Miles will not be calculated on a retroactive basis under any circumstances i.e. credit card/ hotel reward points transferred to Etihad Guest Miles and posted into the membership account during the promotion period but for which the transfer request was placed outside the promotion period will not qualify for the bonus miles promotion.
• This offer cannot be clubbed (stacked) with any other transfer offer.
• See offer landing page for full terms

Quick Thoughts

Etihad Guest has its share of sweet spots, so this promotion could make sense in some circumstances. Marriott Bonvoy points normally transfer to Etihad Guest at a rate of 3:1. With this bonus, that rate would become 3:1.5.

However, it gets better yet if you are transferring in increments of 60K Marriott points since Marriott adds an additional 5K airline miles in that case. In other words, 60K Marriott points ordinarily become 25K Etihad Guest miles. With the 50% transfer bonus, 60K Marriott points become 37,500 Etihad Guest miles.

That’s not a bad deal. There are certainly instances where you can get good value for Etihad Guest miles. However, since American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou points, and Capital One “Miles” all transfer 1:1 to Etihad Guest, I just don’t find a transfer from Marriott particularly compelling. Marriott points aren’t terribly easy to accumulate these days since the credit cards earn at a poor rate for most spend and transfers from Chase and Amex are unattractive since they don’t represent good value for those points. That leaves credit card welcome bonuses and points earned from paid Marriott stays as the best options for earning Marriott points. I’d probably hang on to the Marriott points for hotel redemptions (or perhaps transfers to more obscure airlines with hard-to-get miles).

On the other hand, if you just need to top off an account for a valuable redemption, this could certainly be the right opportunity. I certainly wouldn’t make a speculative transfer, but with the right use in mind it certainly might make sense.

Do note that the terms state that you’ll get the standard miles in one transaction and the bonus miles within 10 days of the end of the promotion. In other words, if you transferred 60K Marriott Bonvoy points you would initially see 25K miles and then you should see the additional 12.5K miles by November 10th.

H/T: One Mile at a Time

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