Originally Posted by
pinniped
I think even if I dropped all the way to a very infrequent traveler, I'd still play the loyalty programs. There's still *some* value there.
I have LT Gold on AA, so that's a checked bag + priority checkin on Oneworld.
I'd probably acquire and keep Aegean Blue by flying just enough UA/US for it: again, a checked bag and priority checkin on Star Alliance.
I'd keep all of my hotel credit cards. They're good general-spend cards, better than a cashback or mileage card, so I'm getting some free nights and (in the case of HH) elite status for no real cost. If hotel cards were worse than mileage or cashback cards, I'd probably say the opportunity cost isn't worth it.
I probably wouldn't change my hotel stay patterns much if any. In the places where I prefer a non-brand hotel (B&B, boutique, campsite, whatever), I already book them. In the places where I'm willing to pay a bit of a premium for a big-chain hotel (much of Asia, the Middle East, and many large cities), I'd at least have the status and some options like SPG, PC, or HH Cash & Points to use to stretch the pool of points across more leisure stays.
I wouldn't chase elite status at hotels via stays, of course, so I'd be giving up SPG Platinum. That's really the one status I'd miss.
That's sort of what I'd do too. Already, the easiest, fastest and usually cheapest way to rack up a lot of airline miles/points is to do so without getting on board a plane. Combine that with lifetime elite status in some airline programs and with cheap acquisition/retention of elite status and other benefits with some other airlines/airline programs, and there's not really much for me to miss on the airline side. On the hotel side, there's far more for me to miss, but that side has become sort of increasingly easy to cheaply get/retain mid-tier or high-tier elite status or otherwise really play an insanely good game.
Before the credit card angle changed the game as much as it has, the outcome of dropping out of the game in some ways would have come with a harder landing and increased missing out on status benefit goodies.