A Marriott Bonvoy devaluation 2026 appears to be underway, with award prices climbing at many of the program’s most popular redemption hotels around the world. There was no announcement, no email to members, and no press release. The increases were picked up by Zaozao, a hotel award search and monitoring tool that tracks point prices across programs, and the pattern is too broad to dismiss as normal seasonal movement.
If you have been sitting on a large Bonvoy balance waiting for the right moment, this is your nudge. Here is what changed, how much it actually costs you, and what to do about it.
What Just Happened to Marriott Bonvoy Award Prices
Over the past several days, Zaozao’s monitoring data flagged award price increases at dozens of high-demand Marriott properties spanning Europe, Asia, and the United States. To be clear about sourcing, this is tracking data from a third-party tool rather than anything Marriott has confirmed, and Marriott has said nothing publicly.
One important caveat before the numbers: Marriott Bonvoy uses fully dynamic award pricing and has not published an award chart since March 2022. That means the figures below are indicative examples observed in early July 2026, not fixed rates. Prices at any individual property can move day to day with cash rates and demand.
That said, what makes this look like a genuine devaluation rather than routine fluctuation is the breadth. When one hotel gets more expensive, that is dynamic pricing doing its thing. When The London EDITION, The Ritz-Carlton Kyoto, W Bangkok, and The New York EDITION all move upward in the same window, that points to an adjustment behind the scenes.
Which Hotels Got More Expensive
The increases hit a who’s who of aspirational Bonvoy redemptions. In Europe, The London EDITION jumped from 107,000 to 115,000 points per night, while Le Méridien Etoile in Paris rose from 61,000 to 64,000 points. In Asia, The Ritz-Carlton Kyoto went from 122,000 to 128,000 points, W Osaka climbed from 55,000 to 58,000 points, and The Athenee Hotel in Bangkok saw the steepest jump of the batch, from 32,000 to 37,000 points per night.
Beach and resort properties were not spared either. The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands moved from 168,000 to 176,000 points per night, and JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay went from 57,000 to 60,000 points. Stateside, The New York EDITION rose from 109,000 to 113,000 points.
The full comparison table below shows every property flagged in Zaozao’s data, with old prices, new prices, and the percentage increase for each.
| Hotel | Old Price | New Price | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Athenee Hotel, Bangkok | 32,000 | 37,000 | +15.6% |
| The London EDITION | 107,000 | 115,000 | +7.5% |
| The Ritz-Carlton, Nanjing | 42,000 | 45,000 | +7.1% |
| Courtyard Paris Porte de Versailles | 49,000 | 52,000 | +6.1% |
| W Bangkok | 33,000 | 35,000 | +6.1% |
| W Osaka | 55,000 | 58,000 | +5.5% |
| JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay | 57,000 | 60,000 | +5.3% |
| The Sanya EDITION | 58,000 | 61,000 | +5.2% |
| Le Méridien Etoile, Paris | 61,000 | 64,000 | +4.9% |
| The Ritz-Carlton, Kyoto | 122,000 | 128,000 | +4.9% |
| The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands | 168,000 | 176,000 | +4.8% |
| The New York EDITION | 109,000 | 113,000 | +3.7% |
| W Shanghai The Bund | 56,000 | 58,000 | +3.6% |
| The Tokyo EDITION, Toranomon | 106,000 | 109,000 | +2.8% |
| The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong | 124,000 | 127,000 | +2.4% |
How Big Is This Devaluation Really
Let’s run the actual math. Across the fifteen properties in Zaozao’s sample, increases range from about 2.4 percent at The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong to 15.6 percent at The Athenee in Bangkok. Most properties cluster between 3 and 8 percent, which makes this a modest devaluation by Marriott’s own historical standards. For context, the unannounced devaluation in early 2025 pushed some top properties from an unofficial cap of around 150,000 points to well over 200,000 points per night.
In dollar terms, third-party valuations generally peg Marriott points at roughly 0.7 to 0.8 cents each. Those are estimates rather than official values, but they give us a useful yardstick. At 0.8 cents per point, the 8,000-point increase at The London EDITION costs you about $64 per night in points value. The Athenee’s 5,000-point jump works out to roughly $40 per night. Multiply that across a five-night trip and the London increase alone is around $320 in additional points value for the same room.
Modest, yes. But devaluations compound. A balance that loses 5 percent of its purchasing power every year or two without warning is a balance you should not be hoarding.
Why This May Be Happening
Here is where it gets interesting, and to be upfront, what follows is editorial inference rather than anything Marriott has confirmed. The timing lines up with a fight happening behind the scenes.
The Wall Street Journal reported in June that a coalition of 51 ownership groups, together representing roughly 1,000 Marriott hotels, is demanding a bigger share of the money flowing through the Bonvoy program. The trigger was Marriott’s own disclosure that fee revenue from its co-branded credit cards is expected to jump 35 percent this year to nearly $1 billion. Owners want reimbursement for award stays at least on par with what they collect from online travel agencies, and Marriott has already increased owner compensation for loyalty stays on high-demand nights.
Connect the dots and the picture is uncomfortable for members. If Marriott has to pay hotel owners more every time you redeem points, one obvious lever is making each redemption cost more points. Gary Leff at View from the Wing has speculated that guests will ultimately pay for this dispute through higher award prices. We cannot prove that is what happened here, but a broad, quiet increase landing weeks after that reporting is quite the coincidence.
There is also simple precedent. Marriott raised award costs across a slew of properties without warning in early 2025, and the program has a long track record of devaluations arriving unannounced since award charts disappeared. This is how Bonvoy operates now.
What This Means for Your Free Night Certificates
Every points increase also erodes the free night awards attached to Marriott’s credit cards. In March 2026, Marriott raised the top-off limit on free night certificates from 15,000 to 25,000 points, meaning a 35,000-point certificate from a card like the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card can now stretch to a 60,000-point redemption.
That was a genuinely member-friendly change, but rising award prices eat into it fast. Look at the properties in this batch. JW Marriott Phu Quoc at 57,000 points was comfortably within reach of a topped-off 35,000-point certificate. At 60,000 points, it now sits exactly at the ceiling, and one more small increase pushes it out entirely. W Bangkok moving from 33,000 to 35,000 points means it now consumes a 35,000-point certificate with zero room to spare. NerdWallet’s analysis of Gondola pricing data this spring found dozens of properties had already drifted out of certificate range between February and April, and this round of increases will only add to that count.
If you are holding certificates that expire this year, the same advice applies with extra urgency: book before prices drift further.
What to Do With Your Bonvoy Points Now
The single best move is straightforward. If you have a specific redemption in mind and the availability is there, book it now rather than waiting for the perfect moment. Marriott points are not going to be worth more next year, and award reservations booked on points are generally cancellable, so locking in today’s price costs you nothing but keeps your rate protected if prices climb again.
Stretch every redemption with the fifth night free. Marriott gives you the cheapest night free on award stays of five or more nights, which cuts the effective cost by up to 20 percent. A five-night stay at The Ritz-Carlton Kyoto at the new 128,000-point rate would run 640,000 points at face value, but with the fifth night free you pay 512,000 points, saving 128,000 points on the stay.
Use the flexible date calendar on Marriott’s site to shop around the increases. Dynamic pricing cuts both ways, and shoulder season dates at these same properties can price meaningfully below the figures above. And if your balance is bigger than your travel plans, remember that hoarding is the losing move in a program that devalues without notice. Earn with intention, redeem promptly, and keep your exposure to the next quiet increase as small as possible.
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