I'm a Diamond, but I have made award reservations this year at my first choice of property without needing the Diamond Desk's intervention at some serious peak properties:

- Tempe AZ during Spring Training
- Anchorage duing early August

Last year, I got rooms in Milan and Vienna without any Diamond Desk intervention.

I've used 162,500 HHonors points in the last twelve months. To pay for those rooms would have cost me $1300+tax (say 11% to be conservative). Even as a general member, that would be an 8.8% ROI program, which is on a par with using airline miles from most non-mileage-runs in lieu of discounted (Z/I class) overseas business class flights.