Great Card If
- You frequently stay at Ritz-Carlton and other Marriott hotel brands.
- You want perks like airport lounge access, Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status, and a Free Night Award.
Don’t Get If
- You rarely stay at Marriott hotels.
- You want a card without an annual fee.
Ritz-Carlton Card: Is It Worth It?
If you frequently stay at Ritz-Carlton and other Marriott brand hotels and are looking for a premium card that offers perks like Marriott Bonvoy elite status, airport lounge access, an annual travel credit, an annual Free Night Award, and more, then it is likely the Ritz-Carlton card would be a good fit for you.
There is a catch, though: The card is no longer open to new applications, so adding it to your wallet would require jumping through hoops.
Essentially, what you need to do is open up one of the currently available Marriott Bonvoy cards from Chase (the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card, or the Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Credit Card) and hold that card for a year. Afterward, call the number on the back of your card to request an upgrade (also known as a product change) to the Ritz-Carlton card.
Is the Ritz-Carlton card worth all of this trouble? For many, it is, thanks to its perks like a valuable Free Night Award and airport lounge access for you and your authorized users, who you can add for no additional fee. All that comes for an annual fee that is considerably less than most premium travel rewards cards.
Ritz-Carlton Card Top Benefits and Perks
Here is a look at all of the top travel benefits and perks that the Ritz-Carlton card offers:
- Annual Free Night Award: This certificate is redeemable for a free night at any Marriott property costing up to 85,000 points per night, though you can top it off with a further 15,000 points to book a more expensive property.
- $300 Annual Travel Credit: This credit can be applied to incidental charges such as seat selection, checked bags, inflight Wi-Fi, etc., with any airline.
- Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status: Status includes perks like bonus points, complimentary room upgrades, late checkout, and more.
- Airport Lounge Access: Receive access to over 1,400 Priority Pass lounges worldwide, as well as Chase Sapphire Lounges, with unlimited guests.
- 15 Elite Night Credits Each Year: Get a boost toward higher levels of elite status with 15 automatic elite qualifying night credits at the start of each year.
- 3 Annual Upgrade Certificates to Ritz-Carlton Club: Upgrade your room to a Ritz-Carlton Club Level room, which includes breakfast, complimentary food and drinks throughout the day, and more, on paid stays of up to 7 nights.
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Credit: Receive up to a $120 credit toward your application fee for either program. We recommend Global Entry, as it includes TSA PreCheck.
- Rental Car Elite Status: Cardholders receive Avis Preferred Plus status and National Emerald Club Executive status, which can earn you complimentary car upgrades, discounts, and reduced fees.
Additionally, here is a look at all of the card protections you receive to help keep you covered when things don’t go according to plan:
- Primary Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver: When you decline the rental company’s insurance plan and pay for your rental with your Ritz-Carlton card, you can receive up to $75,000 in coverage toward accidental damage or theft of your rental car.
- Trip Delay Reimbursement: If your flight is delayed for a covered reason by 6 hours or more, you can receive up to $500 in coverage toward unreimbursed necessary expenses like lodging, meals, and toiletries.
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement: If the carrier loses or damages your checked or carry-on luggage, you can receive up to $3,000 in coverage.
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance: Trips cut short for a covered reason, such as sickness or severe weather, can receive coverage of up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip toward nonrefundable travel expenses.
- Return Protection: You’re eligible to be reimbursed for items that the store won’t accept as returns within 90 days of purchase, up to $500 per item and $1,000 per year.
- Purchase Protection: This covers new purchases made with your card against accidental damage or theft within 120 days from purchase, for up to $10,000 in coverage per claim and up to $50,000 per year.
- Extended Warranty Protection: This policy extends the manufacturer warranty by 1 year on eligible warranties of 3 years or less.
Best Ways To Earn and Redeem Your Marriott Bonvoy Points
To earn more Marriott Bonvoy points, use your Ritz-Carlton card for as many purchases as you can, especially those that fall within its bonus categories of 6x points on Marriott purchases, 3x points on dining, rental cars, and airfare booked directly with the airline, and 2x points on all other purchases.
Of course, there are other ways to earn Marriott Bonvoy points, such as the Marriott/Uber partnership, the Marriott Eat Around Town dining program, and more.
Once you have a stash of Marriott Bonvoy points you are ready to redeem, you’ll find that these points are arguably the most flexible available. This is because you can redeem Marriott Bonvoy points for Marriott hotel stays and transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to over 40 airline partners at a rate of 3:1 for most partners. Better yet, for many airlines, you can even receive a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points you transfer — boosting the transfer rate to 2.4:1 on transfers of that increment.
Alternatives to the Ritz-Carlton Card
For those in the market for a premium Marriott Bonvoy co-branded card, your only other option is the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card. Similar to the Ritz-Carlton card, it offers 6x points on Marriott purchases, 3x points at restaurants worldwide and flights purchased directly with airlines, and 2x points on all other purchases.
It also offers an annual free night award bookable at any Marriott property costing up to 85,000 points per night, comes with complimentary Marriott Platinum Elite status, Priority Pass access (upon enrollment), 25 annual elite night credits, up to a $300 annual dining credit, a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit, and more.
Those who prefer an all-around premium travel rewards card that isn’t tied to 1 program should consider the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. It earns 10x points on hotels and rental cars purchased through Chase Travel, 10x points on dining purchased through Chase Dining, 5x points on airfare purchased through Chase Travel, and 3x points on all other travel and dining purchases.
Plus, the card comes loaded with top-notch benefits like a $300 annual travel credit; complimentary lounge access to Priority Pass and Chase Sapphire Lounges; a Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck credit; various rental car elite statuses; travel and purchase protections; access to Chase transfer partners; and more.
