Originally Posted by Shareholder
Nope, not at all. This is a quite separate program for stay benefits at the higher end IC branded hotels. Platinum is the top tier of the PC program and gets benefits at HI, HIX, CP, Staybridge and Indigo branded properties, but only cursory benefits at ICs. Ambassador is the latest incarnation of a program that started as the SixContinentsClub when IC hotels were not a part of the group that then owned HIs and CPs. So I suggest you do as your username says, and do a search to find out more about the Ambassador program...
As for Platinum benefits on stays at the appropriate properties, I have generally gotten regular upgrades including Club levels and suites at CPs and Executive rooms at HIs. The quality of properties is quite dependent upon location and age, and unfortunately benefits vary by property.
I would argue that the benefits are cursory at many HIs and HIXs also.
As a Platinum, I have gotten upgrades occasionally at HIs and HIXs too. The thing is, I got about the same rate of upgrades at HIs and HIXs when I was Gold, and even before I had
any status!
So, in other words, although I've gotten upgrades occasionally, I don't see a correlation between them and the status!
But I call the benefits cursory not just because of that, but because of how subtle the upgrades are. That's not because of the elite level, that's because so many HIs and HIXs don't have much they can upgrade you to. (At one HI I've stayed at often, the only upgrade possible is to a room with nicer bedding and such. At many HIXs, the only upgrade possible is to a room with a refrigerator
if not all the rooms have that.)
(Having said that, the vast majority of my stays have been in the US. It may be different in other territories.)