Originally Posted by BHArt

These things you are wanting (upgrades aside) as others have pointed out come with the Gold and higher Delta Amex. This would include boarding a little early, free checked bag and probably more spare miles with a signup bonus than you'd get in 2-3 years of flying, especially with the miles for dollars rolling out in 2015, you may want to look into it. The $95 fee on the gold version is waived in year one and if you are checking a bag on 2-3 RTs a year, you'll recoup the $95 AF in two trips of checked bags. I bolded your earlier post but it seems the key to happiness is in your hands.