I'm a Plat, and while I enjoy the point benefits, I also enjoy the unpublished things.

For example, I had a nearly pre-paid week-long stay at a European FS Marriott. I was supposed to fly from The States on the day all hell broke loose with the cancellations from the Icelandic volcano.

Would the hotel have changed the supposed non-refundable, no-cancel, no changes policy to that reservation for a Gold? I really don't know, it's the individual hotel's decision. But it's things like that which keep me striving for Platinum every year.

Another thing: I had two reservations at a FS Marriott, one was a two-night pre-paid, but I also added a standard reservation after my stay needed to be extended by three more days. When I checked-in, they said that I was upgraded to a Suite. Then the agent noticed the second reservation, she went and checked with her boss, said I was Plat, then cleared it for all five nights. Again, I don't know if that would have been done for a Gold, but another reason I prefer being Plat.