Marriott is one of the largest Hotel Chains in the world. Its loyalty program, Marriott Bonvoy, is fantastic. There are few hotel loyalty programs worldwide that also have preferred partnerships with airlines, and Marriott is one of them. This blog covers Marriott Airlines’ preferred partnership, including the benefits such partnership provides, such as earning miles and points or even status matches.
List of Marriott Preferred Partnership Airlines
Marriott has tie-ups with several airlines for the transfer of Marriott Bonvoy Points. However, few of these airlines have relationships that are much more than just transferring points.
There are three Airlines with which Marriott has Preferred Partnerships which are:
- Emirates
- Cathay Pacific [Since Feb’24]
- United Airlines
- Singapore Airlines [Since Dec’23]
Marriott Emirates Partnership
Marriott Emirates partnership is called “Your World Rewards”. You will have to register for your world rewards. However, not all members are eligible for this promotion. Marriott or Emirates members must achieve a minimum elite status level to qualify for this promotion.
Below Marriott Elites are eligible for sign-up of this promotion:
- Gold Elite
- Platinum Elite
- Titanium Elite
- Ambassador Elite
Whereas below Emirates Skywards Elites are eligible for this promotion:
- Silver
- Gold
- Platinum
You can sign up for this membership here or here.
Benefits for Marriott Elites at Emirates
- Earn 3 Marriott Bonvoy Points per US dollar for all eligible Emirates flights within two to four weeks.
- Priority check-in
- Priority boarding for members only
Benefits for Emirates Skywards Elite at Marriott
- Earn 1 Skywards Mile per US dollar spent on all eligible stays at Marriott within two to four weeks.
- 4 p.m. Late Checkout
- Access to Elite check-in as available to Marriott Gold & Platinum members
- Complimentary in-room Wi-Fi
Overall, the Marriott Emirates Airlines partnership is good for earning those additional miles and points and members looking to save time using elite check-in or priority check-in.
Marriott Cathay Pacific Partnership [Registration Closed]
Cathay Pacific and Marriott already have a special relationship, as you can transfer Asia Miles in a 2:1 ratio to your Marriott Bonvoy Account. This Feb’24, Cathay Pacific and Marriott launched their preferred airline partnership, giving reciprocal benefits to their members. Two months back, Marriott launched a similar partnership with Singapore Airlines [More details below].
If you are an elite in any program, you can register here whenever it opens again. However, this promotion is not available for elite members in either program.
Benefits for Marriott Elites
| Marriott Elite Status | Asia Miles Elite Status Match Available | Asia Miles Status Through Accelerator | Accelerator Condition |
| Sliver Elite | NA | NA | NA |
| Gold Elite | NA | Silver | 150 Status Points Within 12 Months |
| Platinum/Titanium/ Ambassador Elite | Silver | Gold | 300 Status Points Within 12 Months |
Once your status matches, it will be valid for 12 months. You should re-qualify for the Cathay Pacific Elite status next year.
Benefits for Cathay Pacific Elites
| Cathay Pacific Elite Status | Marriott Elite Status Match Available | Marriott Elite Status Through Accelerator | Marriott Elite Status Accelerator Requirement |
| Sliver Elite | Gold Elite | Platinum | Ten Qualifying Night Within Six Months |
| Gold/Diamond | Gold Elite | Platinum | Ten Qualifying Night Within Six Months |
Once your status matches, it will be valid for at least 12 months. If you already registered in Feb’24, you will hold that status until Feb’26.
Registration Closed
I’m surprised with the closer registration for the Marriott & Cathay Pacific partnership within a single day. For Marriott elites, it was a okay sort of promotion. However, for Cathay Pacific members, it was a bonanza. Since all Catholic Pacific elites were eligible to become Marriott Gold members, they were also eligible to become Platinum Elites with just ten nights. A Cathay Pacific Silver Elite can become a Marriott Platinum Elite member. I hope registration should up soon with some tweaks.
Marriott United Airlines Partnership
Marriott and United Airlines’ partnership is one of the best. Premium Elite members are highly valued in this partnership, and the benefits are great. To get the benefits of this partnership, you don’t have to sign up anywhere; however, some of the benefits are limited to elite members.
Here are the official details.
Benefits for Marriott Elites
- 5000 Extra miles on the transfer of Marriott Points to United. i.e. you get 10K United Miles on the transfer of 60K Marriott Bonvoy Points. This benefit is available to all Marriott members.
- Marriott Titanium Elite and Ambassador Elite are eligible for Complimentary United MileagePlus Premier Silver Status. Not Available to Marriott members who reached the tier with a trial Elite status program.
The Extra 5K miles on transfer to United effectively makes the transfer ratio 2:1 since you will get 30K United miles on the transfer of 60K Marriott Bonvoy points. And the availability of this to all members is simply excellent. Since Amex India cardholders can convert their Membership Reward points into United Miles via Marriott, that too in Amex standard airlines transfer ratio of 2:1.
Also, complimentary Sliver status at United for Marriott Titanium and Ambassador Elite is a decent benefit for those who don’t already have airline elite status. The most significant advantage of this complimentary status is that you use it to match your status with other airlines. You can also get the Star Alliance Sliver benefit of priority check-in and boarding.
Benefits for United Airlines Elites
- United MileagePlus Premier members can transfer United miles to Marriott Bonvoy points in a 1:1 ratio. A maximum of 1 Lac miles can be transferred in a calendar year.
- United MileagePlus Premier Gold, Premier Platinum, and Premier 1K elite members are eligible for complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status. Not Available to united members who reached the tier with a trial Premier status program.
The conversion of 1:1 from United Miles to Marriott Bonvoy is an excellent benefit. Also, Marriott Gold Elite status is the minimum status one should have to extract some value out of their Marriott stays.
HDFC Credit Card holders with United Silver status can transfer their HDFC points to Marriott via United. They already had access to Marriott via Singapore Airlines’ Krisflyer miles.
Marriott Singapore Airlines
After partnering with Emirates, an airline from the Middle East and United, an airline from the USA, Marriott launched a preferred partnership with Singapore Airlines in Dec’2023, an airline in Asia.
However, this membership is limited to status matches between Marriott & Singapore Krisflyer members and is a bit more complicated than a united partnership.
Marriott Elites can register here, and Singapore Krisflyer Elites can register here for this promotion.
Status Match for Marriott Members
| Marriott Elite Status | KrisFlyer Elite Status Match Available | Krisflyer Elite Status Through Accelerator | Accelerator Condition |
| Sliver Elite | NA | NA | NA |
| Gold Elite | NA | Silver | Two Flights in Six months |
| Platinum/Titanium/ Ambassador Elite | Silver | Gold | Four Flights in Six months |
Marriott Gold Elite and above are eligible for a status match with the Singapore Krisflyer program.
Pro Tip: Almost Every year, Marriott runs a global promotion that gives two elite nights credit as against one, allowing you to reach Marriott Elite Status fast. You can reach Silver status with a Marriott Credit Card, which gives you ten elite night credits. So, you have to stay 20 nights to become a platinum with a combination of these.
Suppose you have a gold elite, then you can reach Silver status with an accelerator by completing two flights within six months of account linking.
However, if you’re a Platinum Elite or above, you get a Krisflyer Silver status and can reach gold status by completing four months within six months of account listing.
All statuses are valid for 12 months. Suppose you travel significantly on the Star Alliance network and have Marriott platinum Elite or above status. In that case, this partnership may work better than the United partnership as you can get a higher airline elite status and better benefits.
And remember, Award flights & codeshare flights are not considered for this promotion.
Status Match for Singapore Krisflyer Elites
| Krisflyer Elite Status | Marriott Elite Status Match Available | Marriott Elite Status Through Accelerator | Marriott Elite Status Accelerator Requirement |
| Sliver Elite | NA | Silver | Three Qualifying Night |
| Solitaire PPS Club/PPS/ Gold Elite | Gold Elite | Platinum | Ten Qualifying Night |
Charges for qualifying night would need to be settled in cash. As per the terms below, award nights, cash points, and award nights are not eligible for this promotion.
“Qualifying Rates include most business and leisure rates, such as rates found on Marriott.com without an application of a discount code, standard and premium retail rates, advanced purchase rates, corporate negotiated rates, and national/regional/local government rates. Award Redemption Stays, including Cash + Points Awards, Free Night Awards, or a Points redemption (as each such term is defined under the Marriott Bonvoy Program Rules), are not eligible as Qualifying Nights under the Preferred Partnership Program.”
Which one is the best Marriott Airline Partnership?
All three partnerships have value for members depending on the airlines they frequently travel with.
Suppose you have a lot of upcoming flights on the Star Alliance network. Marriott Krisflyer looks better, as even the Platinum elite member can reach Krisflyer Gold, which is equivalent to Star Alliance Gold.
In contrast, with United, you will only reach Sliver status. However, it comes with the extra cost of six flights for Singapore Airlines.
On the flip side, if you already have a status above the United Sliver elite, then becoming Marriott Gold is easy as you don’t have to complete any stay you need in the Singapore Status match.
Bottomline
Marriott Airlines Preferred Partnership adds significant value for the members. They can experience the benefits of the elite without having to spend significantly. Overall, a preferred partnership is rewarding for everyone involved.
