I have had Platinum status for a few years but last year i did not qualify and hence my status has dropped to Gold (due to soft landing). I am debating whether to cash in 40K points to buyback my platinum status as i don't see that much additional value over Gold atleast for domestic stays. However i do have a stay coming up at the JW Marriott in Shanghai next month (with family) and was wondering if having Plat status would be of significant help during that stay.