Book Marriott Hotel For Someone Else
Marriott lets you reserve a room for another person, whether you pay cash or use Bonvoy points. The steps differ for each. A paid stay can be booked directly in the guest’s name, while a points stay for someone else must go through Marriott Bonvoy Member Support and has a yearly cap.
The sections below cover each method, what the guest needs at check-in, and what happens to points, elite night credits, and elite benefits.
Three Ways to Book for Another Person
There are three practical routes. You can book a paid stay in the guest’s name, redeem your own points for a gifted award stay, or transfer points so the guest books their own award stay.
| Method | How to book | Limits | Points and elite night credit | Elite benefits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paid stay in the guest’s name | Marriott website or app, signed out of your account, with the guest’s details | Guest must qualify for any restricted rate | Go to the guest when their Bonvoy number is on the booking and they settle the bill | The guest’s own status applies |
| Gifted award stay | Call Member Support, or book online and then call Member Support to add the guest’s name | 5 stays per calendar year; Free Night Awards excluded | None for you or the guest | Your benefits do not pass to the guest |
| Points transfer | Transfer points online; the guest books their own award stay | Send up to 100,000 points and receive up to 500,000 per calendar year | The guest earns elite night credit on their own award stay | The guest’s own status applies |
Booking a Paid Stay in the Guest’s Name
Put the guest’s details on the reservation
For a paid stay, Marriott’s guidance is to sign out of your Bonvoy account and enter the details of the person who will stay. Booking while signed in ties the reservation to your own profile and name.
Type the guest’s full name as it appears on the ID they will show at the front desk. If they have a Bonvoy number, add it to the reservation.
Check the rate rules before you confirm. The guest, not you, must qualify for any restricted rate, such as a senior rate.
Paying when you will not be at the hotel
Entering your card online does not always mean the room is paid. A card can simply guarantee the booking, with the bill settled at the property. The payment section of the confirmation shows which applies.
If the hotel will charge the room during the stay and you want to cover it, arrange the hotel’s approved third-party payment process directly with the property. This is often a credit card authorization form. Each hotel handles it a little differently, so contact the property rather than the central reservation line.
Ask the hotel to confirm these points in writing:
- Check-in permission: Whether the guest may check in without you, and which ID they need.
- Payment status: Whether the room charge is already paid or only guaranteed.
- Authorization: Which process the hotel uses if it needs your approval to charge your card.
- Deposit: The amount held for incidentals and which payment methods are accepted.
Do not include card numbers in the email. Forward the hotel’s reply to the guest along with the confirmation.
What the guest needs at check-in
The guest should bring the confirmation number and a valid photo ID that matches the name on the reservation. They should also have their own credit or debit card for incidentals such as the minibar or room service. This applies even when the room is prepaid.
If you filled out an authorization form, give the guest a copy.
Using Your Points: Gifted Award Redemption Stays
An award stay is normally valid only for the member whose account the points came from. The exception is a Gifted Award Redemption Stay, which is an award stay issued to another person when you will not be staying yourself, as outlined in the Marriott Bonvoy program terms and conditions.
The rules are specific:
- Booking channel: Call Member Support and give your name, your membership number, and the name of the person staying. You can also book the award stay online first, then call Member Support to add the recipient’s name. The hotel cannot make this change.
- Annual limit: Each account can book up to five gifted award stays per calendar year.
- Eligible awards: All award redemption types can be gifted except Free Night Awards.
- Changes: Any change to a gifted reservation goes through Member Support. Date changes depend on availability, and you cover any difference in points or cash.
- Check-in: The recipient must show valid ID and provide a credit card or cash deposit for incidentals.
Gifting has a cost beyond the points. Neither you nor the recipient earns points, miles, or elite night credit, and the stay does not count as a qualifying night or stay. The recipient also does not receive the elite benefits attached to your account.
Award nights normally count toward status. A five-night gifted stay therefore gives up five elite night credits that someone could have earned on a regular award booking.
Transferring Points So the Guest Books Their Own Stay
Bonvoy members can transfer points to another member online at no charge. One account can send up to 100,000 points per calendar year and receive up to 500,000.
There is an account age requirement. An account must be open for at least 90 days, or at least 30 days with qualifying activity, before it can take part in a transfer.
Once the guest has the points, they book the award stay in their own account. They earn elite night credit for the stay, and their own status is recognized at the hotel.
The cap is the main limit. A two-night stay at 40,000 points per night costs 80,000 points and fits within one year’s transfer allowance. Three nights at 45,000 points per night costs 135,000 points, which is over the cap. In that case a gifted award stay is the workable route.
Elite Benefits: What Carries Over and What Does Not
Marriott Bonvoy member benefits are reserved for the member and apply only to the one room the elite member stays in. Your status does not give breakfast, lounge access, or upgrades to a guest who stays without you. Marriott has no feature for lending your status to another person.
The booking channel matters as well. Elite benefits apply to stays on qualifying rates, and reservations made through OTAs and other third-party sites do not qualify. Those bookings earn no points and no elite night credit. They also carry no status benefits, and adding a Bonvoy number afterward does not change that.
A front desk sometimes extends benefits on a third-party booking as a courtesy. That is the hotel’s choice, not a program rule, so do not plan around it.
If the guest holds Bonvoy status, the direct route works best. Book through Marriott, in their name, with their member number attached.
Adding a Second Guest When You Are Also Staying
If you will stay in the room yourself, the booking stays in your name and you simply add the other person. An award stay where you are present is a regular award stay, not a gifted one.
Marriott’s online “modify reservation” page sometimes shows a field for additional guests or a special requests box where you can list the name. If neither appears, contact the hotel directly.
A name on the reservation does not by itself settle who can check in. If your companion will arrive before you, ask the hotel to confirm in advance that they can collect the key without you.
Choosing the Right Method
For a cash stay, book in the guest’s name while signed out of your account. Sort out payment authorization with the hotel before arrival.
For a points stay, a points transfer is the better choice when the stay costs 100,000 points or less and the guest has an eligible Bonvoy account. They keep the elite night credit and their own benefits.
When the stay costs more than that, book a gifted award stay through Member Support. Keep the limit of five per calendar year in mind, and remember that neither of you earns anything from the stay.
In every case, the guest needs matching photo ID and a card or deposit for incidentals at the front desk.
All Comments (0)