I do not understand, for during that switch over, they kept me at Silver despite my having qualified only later the "normal" way.

On the other hand, Silver is virtually worthless in my opinion, except for the 20% bonus, as you are neither given an upgrade nor a breakfast for free. You just have to hope and get a nice front desk rep.

On the other hand, as a Hilton Gold, you get a 25% point bonus (in addition to the 5 points/$ for your stay if you pay with their AMEX) and you get, at the very least, a free breakfast, and perhaps if available, upgraded accommodations. Now what's wrong with that?

It is not that I have been such a booster for Hilton, indeed, their program until recently was not as good as Marriott's and I, therefore, had accumulated most of my stays in Marriott Rewards. It is just that I feel that now Marriott has fallen so far behind Hilton in their promotions. Hopefully, they will change this situation and then I might resume my Marriott habits!