Chase stopped promoting the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card to new applicants in 2018, but there’s a workaround to get the luxury hotel card if you’re willing to play the long game. The card offers valuable benefits, such as an annual travel credit of up to $300 and Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status, but beware the $450 annual fee.

Put simply, to get the the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card, consumers must first open a Marriott Bonvoy Bold^® Credit Card or Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card, then request a product change. There are a couple additional boxes to check — whichever Marriott Bonvoy credit card you decide to start with, you must hold it for a full 12 months, and it should have a credit limit of at least $10,000 to be eligible for the upgrade.

• Rewards on Marriott stays, dining and more

  Earn 6X per $1 spent at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels, 3X points for every $1 spent on dining, car rentals and airline purchases, and 2X points per $1 on all other purchases.

• Annual travel credit of up to $300

  Chase’s website notes that the travel credit can be used “for qualifying airline purchases such as baggage fees, seat upgrades and preferred lounge memberships or passes.” To apply the credit, first pay with your card, then call 1-855-896-2222. If you max out the $300 value of this credit each year, that effectively decreases the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card‘s annual fee from $450 to $150.

• Priority Pass Select membership

  Access more than 1,300 airport lounges worldwide, regardless of what airline you’re flying or ticket class you’ve purchased. Enrollment required for this complimentary Priority Pass Select membership.

• Hotel credit of up to $100

  You can put this credit toward qualifying activities during paid stays of two nights or more at the Ritz-Carlton or St. Regis hotels when you use the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card for your reservation.

• Free Night Award after account anniversary

  This can be redeemed for a one-night stay at a Marriott property worth 50,000 points or fewer.

• Global Entry fee reimbursement

  Global Entry can help you move more swiftly through security at select airports. And when you charge the application fee (currently $100) to the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card, you can get a statement credit to reimburse the expense. Plus, TSA Precheck is included when you get Global Entry.

• No foreign transaction fee

  The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is an excellent choice to take when traveling abroad. You don’t have to worry about a foreign transaction fee being added to every purchase you make because there is none.

• You can't apply directly for this card

  Because Chase stopped promoting the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card in 2018, you can’t apply directly for this card. Rather, you must apply for one of the other Marriott Bonvoy cards Chase issues, hold that card for a full year, then request a product change to the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card.

  The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card offers substantial value, so Marriott loyalists might be willing to go through the effort it takes to get the card, but that won’t be the case for everyone.

• The annual fee is high

  With a $450 annual fee, the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is not for the occasional traveler.

  But if you travel enough to take advantage of the annual travel credit (which is worth up to $300 per year), and if you rely on Marriott’s more than 7,000 properties worldwide for your home away from home, the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card offers enough value to offset what you’ll pay for the annual fee.

• There's no sign-up bonus

  While opening the Marriott Bonvoy Bold^® Credit Card or Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card does offer the opportunity to earn a sign-up bonus (assuming you meet eligibility requirements), you won’t earn a bonus when upgrading your Marriott Bonvoy card to the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card.

 

On the surface, the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card and the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card are very similar credit cards. The obvious difference is that the latter card is available to new applicants.

Cardholders with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card earn 6 Marriott Bonvoy points for each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy™ program. 3 points at Worldwide Restaurants and on flights booked directly with airlines. 2 points on all other eligible purchases.

There’s also a welcome offer: Earn 150,000 Marriott Bonvoy® bonus points after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases on the Card within the first 3 months.

Like the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card charges a hefty $650 annual fee, but comes with significant travel benefits that make it worthwhile.

For one thing, cardholders with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card can take advantage of up to $300 in statement credits per calendar year (up to $25 per month) for eligible purchases at restaurants worldwide. You’ll also receive a Free Night Award (redeemable for a one-night stay at a property worth 50,000 points or fewer) every year after your renewal month. And, when you use your card to book a stay of two nights or more at the Ritz-Carlton or St. Regis hotels, enjoy a Marriott Bonvoy property credit of up to $100.

That’s not all. You’ll also get a Priority Pass Select membership (enrollment required) which lets you access Priority Pass airport lounges regardless of which carrier or class you’re flying. In addition, get complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status and a fee credit of up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA Precheck.

Plus, you don’t have to worry about a foreign transaction fee, because there is none.

There are additional benefits with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card, too:

• 15 Elite Night Credits each year toward the next level of Marriott Bonvoy Elite status
• Car rental loss and damage insurance (secondary coverage)
• Premium Global Assist® Hotline when traveling more than 100 miles from home
• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance
• Baggage insurance plan
• Trip delay insurance
• Return protection
• Purchase protection
• Extended warranty
• Access to ticket presales and special events with American Express® Experiences
• *Terms apply

So, what’s the point of getting the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card through a product change rather than just getting the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card? For one thing, the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is a Visa, and Visa cards are more widely accepted in some countries than American Express cards.

For another, note that the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card restricts its elevated rewards rate on dining to U.S. purchases, while the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card does not. For the frequent international traveler, earning more rewards when dining abroad could be an important difference.

Lastly, for consumers who care about prestige, the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is a Visa Infinite credit card, which is one step above Visa Signature. Visa Infinite cards are rare, and tend to come with high annual fees and premium benefits. Along with the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card, the noteworthy Visa Infinite cards available in the U.S. are the Chase Sapphire Reserve^® and the UBS Visa Infinite Credit Card.

To see rates and fees for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card please click here.

The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card occupies a unique space in the credit card world. Frequent travelers who prefer to stay at properties under the Marriott umbrella will likely get enough value from this card each year to more than justify its steep $450 annual fee. But you have to be willing to put in the work and time to get the card. You must first get one of Chase’s other Marriott Bonvoy cards and hold it for a full year.

Before you rush to apply for the Marriott Bonvoy Bold^® Credit Card or Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card, check your Chase 5/24 status first. Due to the unwritten Chase 5/24 rule, if you’ve been approved for five or more credit cards from any issuer in the past 24 months, Chase will deny your application.

Once you’ve been approved for the card of your choice and have held it for a year, you’ll need to make sure you have a credit limit of at least $10,000 (that requirement is in place because the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is a Visa Infinite card). If your current card’s limit is lower than that, you can call Chase and request a credit limit increase, but know that this may generate a hard inquiry and can drop your credit score a few points.

With these boxes checked, you can call Chase and request an upgrade to the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card.

If all that sounds like too much time and hassle, Marriott devotees can enjoy similar rewards and benefits with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card — for an equally steep $650 annual fee.

To see rates and fees for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card please click here.
To see rates and fees for the Platinum Card^® from American Express please click here.

The information related to the Marriott Bonvoy Bold^® Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card has been independently collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of these cards prior to publication.