Arizona + Atlanta + Grand Canyon + 30,000 Bonvoy Points | $500 Trip WHEW

So for this travel post, it’s gonna be a little different than the others (mainly it’s not international) but I wanted to showcase this one because of the perks coming out of it. So let’s get to it.

For $500, I got a 5-night stay in an amazing luxury villa suite, a side trip to Atlanta, a visit to the Grand Canyon, and 30,000 points. Not bad. So I booked 3 one way flights: BWI -> ATL: $80. ATL -> PHX: $110 and PHX -> BWI: $125. My flight total was $315. Compared to my international flights this was expensive but I was able to turn one trip into two by visiting my friends in ATL for two days in between the Arizona trip. Once in Arizona, I checked into the resort and enjoyed some much-needed relaxation. I got a free spa package and the resort is close to great shops and restaurants. The resort has a lot of amenities and was definitely for families and retirees.

Last year, I got an offer from Marriott because I’m a Gold Member, to come to their resort in Scottsdale, AZ for 5 days / 4 nights for only $199. At first I was like ehh I dont wanna go but the resort looked nice and I’d never been to Arizona before so I considered it. After talking with the representative, she walked me through the promotion: Stay at the Westin Kierland Villas and attend a timeshare presentation for 60 minutes and I’d get 30,000 Marriott Bonvoy points and the entire stay for only $199. No brainer for me.

Attending the presentation didn’t mean I had to buy or purchase a timeshare and it was literally just 1 hour out of my ENTIRE 5 day trip. I looked at flights and found a great deal but surprisingly in April, Arizona wasn’t cheap. I did find that doing a multi-city trip was though. So I booked 3 one way flights: BWI -> ATL: $80. ATL -> PHX: $110 and PHX -> BWI: $125. My flight total was $315. Compared to my international flights this was expensive but I was able to turn one trip into two by visiting my friends in ATL for two days in between the Arizona trip. Once in Arizona, I checked into the resort and enjoyed some much needed relaxation. I got a free spa package and the resort is close to great shops and restaurants. The resort has a lot of amenities and was definitely for families and retirees.

I decided to schedule my presentation early in my trip to get it out the way. The presentation was really short, didn’t even take the full 60 minutes. Tbh, if you have the money you should consider it, it wasn’t for me though.

I got my 30,000 points and was on my way. I did some sight seeing while in AZ including the Grand Canyon and it was a trip to remember.

For $500, I got a 5 night stay in an amazing luxury villa suite, a side trip to Atlanta, a visit to the Grand Canyon, and 30,000 points. Not bad.

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