Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Barcelona, London, on a plane
Programs: IB+ Gold, TK E+, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LTP, IHG Diamond
Posts: 14,192
Gold is indeed easy to obtain. And it seems that I have soft-landed to Silver.
Redemptions are terrible. Everything is non-refundable, and only UX flights allow date changes. You need to call to make partner award bookings, something I've never done because it's really hard to me to ever have 100% firm plans that I'm willing to risk my miles for.