ftrichard

Personally, I'd look at it this way. Don't manufacture the 150 nights to achieve Lifetime in the shortest possible timeframe in this way. Let's say your average room rate is $100 so you will be paying 150 * $100 = $15,000 of manufactured spend for which you get no value. If you manage an average room rate of $75 then it will be $11,250 which is still significant. Not exactly mattress-run levels of expenditure. I know you talk about spending points but there's the opportunity cost of not spending those points on a high-end luxury resort vacation at an aspirational property you'd never pay cash for (which is what I save my points for). Anyway, keep with me...

I'm going to make a few assumptions based on the data you gave us and if they are wrong it doesn't matter because the exact same principles can be applied to your specific data points. The current rollover of status from 2020 to 2021 is irrelevant to this. You've told us you've got eight years (in 2020) and will achieve ten years with 450 nights.

It's 2020 and you have eight Platinum Lifetime years. You will do additional nights to qualify as Platinum in 2020 (for 2021) and 2021 (for 2022) reaching 450 nights and ten years Platinum qualification during 2021.

We are assuming you are doing the minimum 50 qualifying nights a year to get Platinum but you may do more. At this minimum it will take an additional three years to do the required 150 nights which sounds like a long time but how many nights a year will you normally spend in Bonvoy hotels? More? At Titanium qualification of 75 nights, your 150 nights is only an additional two years of natural stays without a cent of manufactured spending. Two years still sounds like a long time? Maybe but why are you so anxious about it? You want to gain Lifetime status and then... what? Stop doing the nights at Bonvoy hotels and try something else? In which case, why the strive for Lifetime? Let's assume you want the Lifetime because you're loyal and like the benefits.

So, this is how I would consider it: After 2021 (when you've got your ten years already) how many nights in Bonvoy hotels would you expect to do naturally in 2022, 2023, and 2024. If it's more than 50 each year then you've got your Lifetime in the bag without a cent of manufactured spend. If it's fewer than 50 each year then you know exactly how many mattress-run nights you need to manufacture in each year to reach Platinum. I guarantee it will be significantly fewer than the 150 you are currently facing (though only you know how many nights you would normally do each year though your current patterns seem to imply 50 a year meaning *no* manufactured spend to achieve Lifetime Platinum).

Just my view. I don't like to see the value of hard-earned cash being wasted. And during this time you don't know if you will receive a double nights promo or there's some other give-away like the one we just had to further accelerate your goal naturally.