Everything you need to know about Sonder hotels and apartments as it joins Marriott Bonvoy

Sonder, a short-term rental platform for apartment-style units and affordable boutique hotels, recently partnered with Marriott. Under the new “Sonder by Marriott Bonvoy” brand, Marriott Bonvoy members have early access to earn and redeem points at Sonder hotels and apartments through Sonder’s website. Full integration across all of Marriott’s platforms will come later in 2025. 

Here’s what you need to know about this new-to-Marriott brand.

What is Sonder?

Launched in 2014, Sonder owns and operates approximately 9,000 apartment-style units and hotel rooms in 10 countries across Europe, North America and the Middle East. The brand, which focuses on urban stays, operates in over 35 cities, including New Orleans, Paris and Dubai. 

Though the brand is geared toward apartments with amenities like fully stocked kitchens and in-unit laundry, it’s also possible to book competitively priced rooms in its boutique hotels. These hotels offer coworking spaces, 24/7 front desk attendants, and basic amenities like luggage storage and housekeeping upon request via its mobile app.

Because the company operates its hotels and apartments under long-term master lease agreements, it is not subject to Airbnb bans. 

Since I planned a trip to London this past February — and the British capital has 15 Sonder hotels and apartments with rates as low as $125 per night — I decided to book a few nights at each type of accommodation to see what the brand is like.

Related: Sneak peek at the first Apartments by Marriott Bonvoy Resort in the US

How to book Sonder hotels and apartments

Sonder had yet to begin its integration into Marriott’s digital platforms when I booked my February stays. But I was able to take advantage of the early access period, when I could book directly with Sonder and earn and redeem Marriott Bonvoy points for Sonder stays by adding my member number to the reservation.

I had to call Sonder (415-849-2740) to check redemption rates for these properties, but once the integration is complete, you will be able to book via cash or Marriott Bonvoy points through Marriott’s website or app.  

For a two-night stay in a one-bedroom unit at the Sonder Inverness Mews apartment in February, I paid $960.26 (about $480 per night). No points redemptions were available for stays at this unit in February when I called.

The earning rate at Sonder apartments is 5 Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent, but as a Gold Elite Marriott member, I earned a 25% bonus, or 6.25 points per dollar. I also earned 2 elite night credits for my two-night stay at Sonder Inverness Mews. 

For two nights at the Sonder Chelsea Green hotel in February, I paid $348.58 — or roughly $174 per night — for a 105-square-foot double room. (In comparison, other affordable hotels in London with similar amenities and room sizes were generally at least $200 during the same dates.) 

When I called Sonder, the agent on the phone told me I could book the same room for 89,000 Marriott Bonvoy points for the two nights. That would be a value of 0.39 cents per point, well below TPG’s April valuation of 0.7 cents per Marriott Bonvoy point. I skipped the redemption and opted to pay cash. 

The earning rate at Sonder hotels is 10 Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent, but with my 25% bonus as a Gold Elite Marriott member, I earned 12.5 points per dollar and 2 more elite night credits for my two-night stay at Sonder Chelsea Green.

For my four-night stay, I earned just over 10,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. Because I charged it to my Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees), where I get 2 points per dollar spent on travel purchases, I also earned 2,617.68 Chase Ultimate Rewards points. 

Limited-time offer: Chase Sapphire Preferred — highest-ever 100,000-point bonus after spending $5,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.

Another option when booking a Sonder property is to use one of the credit cards that earn the most points for Marriott stays, or one that offers automatic Marriott Bonvoy elite status for value-added benefits. 

Marriott elite status benefits at Sonder

Once Sonder properties transition to full participation, the following benefits will be offered to Marriott elite members on qualifying stays:

* Based on availability

** At Sonder apartments, 4 p.m. late checkout is based on availability, 2 p.m. guaranteed

*** At Sonder apartments, 48-hour guaranteed availability applies to standard rooms only

Ambassador Elite members will also have access to the Your24 flexible check-in and checkout benefit and Ambassador Service.

Checking in to a Sonder apartment in London

Things started out well with the Sonder Inverness Mews apartment I booked in London’s Bayswater neighborhood, just a seven-minute cab ride from Paddington Station and a five-minute walk to the northern side of Kensington Gardens. 

In addition to its central location, the one-bedroom apartment’s clean and airy decor appealed to me, with graphic art and fun wallpaper in the bedroom. It also had a modern kitchen, bathroom and in-unit laundry.

An unexpected upgrade

A few weeks before my stay, Sonder upgraded me to a three-bedroom unit in the same building for no extra cost. When I used the chat function in the Sonder app to ask about the upgrade, I was told I was relocated because of a maintenance issue. 

Though I was traveling solo and didn’t need the extra space, I was thrilled that they easily adjusted my reservation and didn’t cancel it. Photos on the Sonder site showed that the unit was decorated in chic pastels and quirky art.

A narrowly avoided entry mishap 

The day before my arrival, Sonder emailed me the key entry codes to access the building and the unit (which were also added to the Sonder app). I boarded my flight with no worries. When I landed at Heathrow in the evening and took my phone off airplane mode, I received an SMS text message from Sonder alerting me that the building and apartment key codes had changed.

Thankfully, I wasn’t using an eSIM on my phone for this trip — where I wouldn’t receive SMS texts to my normal phone number — because the key codes were never updated in the app and were never emailed to me. If I hadn’t received that text message, I would have shown up at the apartment building in the dark and struggled to enter the building.

Inside the unit

Once I gained access to the apartment, I went from room to room, marveling at how much space I had. It was clean, and the kitchen had a Nespresso-style pod coffee machine and a laundry machine.

Once I took a closer look, I started to notice that barely any furniture and art matched the photos on Sonder’s website for the unit. Instead of a round glass coffee table, I found a black metal one with dinged-up edges in the living room.

The blue velvet Chesterfield couch had been swapped for a bland tweed wool couch. On the Sonder website, it does note that “The layout, furniture, and decor of your space may vary from what’s shown here.” But this felt extreme.

None of the bedrooms had any art in them anymore, and most everything looked like it had been sourced from Ikea.

Getting rushed out

I reached the end of my rope when housekeeping attempted to enter the unit 45 minutes before my official checkout time two days later. Thankfully, I had showered and dressed earlier in the morning, but I was shocked when I heard someone fumbling with the door at 10:17 a.m. After answering the door and telling the housekeeper the official checkout time was 11 a.m., I realized he was waiting on the staircase for me to leave, so I finished packing and left early. 

After I explained the situation to a customer representative via the chat function in the Sonder app, they apologized and said they would speak to the housekeeping company about the miscommunication. 

Because of all these mishaps, I won’t be booking a Sonder apartment again since the experience felt too similar to an Airbnb.

A much better experience at a Sonder hotel in London

After being rushed out of the Sonder apartment, I took the Circle line 20 minutes south to Chelsea to check in to the Sonder Chelsea Green, a 54-room Sonder hotel that opened in 2020. 

In the Sonder app, you can request to check in early for a small fee (roughly 20 pounds the day I checked in). Even though I knew I would arrive early, I planned to store my bags and explore London until the 4 p.m. check-in time. But when I arrived at 11 a.m., the front desk attendant said my room was available and that I could check in early at no extra charge.

Before I went to my room, he informed me that all guests had access to a free continental breakfast in the lobby lounge each morning. He also took the time to let me know that in lieu of daily housekeeping, a small cabinet near the front desk contained extra toiletries and towels that guests could use whenever needed. And while there were 24/7 front desk attendants in the lobby, he also gave me a key code to enter the building after dark as an added layer of security.

A small but well-designed room

Instead of receiving a normal key or keycard, the front desk attendant gave me a key code to enter my guest room and walked me through setting up Bluetooth key access via the app.

I was happy to see that the room was exactly as advertised online. The 105-square-foot space was decorated with simple art on the dark green wall behind the bed, rattan lamps and a small desk. The closet stored a luggage rack, hair dryer, and kettle with coffee pods and tea bags. There was also a capsule espresso machine, a TV mounted to the wall and a full-length mirror secured to the back of the room’s door.

The bathroom was tiny and could only fit one sink and a shower, but the water got hot quickly and the pressure was good. The apartment and hotel used the same Davines bath products made exclusively for Sonder properties.

Though the room was small, it was clean and offered just enough space for me to move around comfortably. (The Sonder Chelsea Green also has larger rooms and suites up to 410 square feet with rates starting below $350 per night.)

Free continental breakfast

I enjoyed a basic but free continental breakfast in the morning, which included yogurt, toast, croissants, muffins, cheese, bananas and oranges. In addition to a DIY latte machine, there was also a fresh orange juice machine available. 

Breakfast was served in the lobby lounge in an airy atrium on the ground floor, which isn’t open to the public as other boutique hotels often are. The other guests spread out at cafe tables, comfy couches and armchairs. Because it was February, nobody used the outdoor garden area just off the lounge, but I imagine it would be lovely in warmer months.

Checking out

When it came time to check out two days later, I popped my luggage into one of the free lockers near the front desk and went out for lunch until I had to leave for my flight later that afternoon.

As a solo traveler who just needed an affordable, clean and safe place to sleep after long days out and about, the Sonder Chelsea Green provided exactly that. My only complaint was that since the bed was fairly close to the room’s door, I was woken up once people started going to breakfast in the morning. Thankfully, the other guests were respectful and quiet, so I wasn’t disturbed by the thin walls at night.

Bottom line

Though my stay at a Sonder apartment had some snags that affected my overall experience, it’s a fine choice for families and larger groups looking for an Airbnb-like experience who also want to earn and burn Marriott Bonvoy points. 

And despite the lackluster apartment stay, Sonder hotels are an excellent choice for Marriott Bonvoy loyalists who want to book charming boutique hotels in major cities for affordable prices.