Both Hilton + Marriott cards for status?
Dec 1, 2023, 1:26 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2023
Location: NYC
Programs: I wish :'(
Posts: 219
Both Hilton + Marriott cards for status?
Hey FT,
As I'm reevaluating my status for 2024 - mostly giving up work travels and thus Globalist (unless a new Fast Track opens up) and accepting that you can use credit cards to get many of the functional benefits - are there FTers that are relative free agents that just hold the Hilton Aspire + Marriott Brilliant cards?
With Hilton Diamond + Marriott Platinum, you're covered in basically every city in the world. No more trekking away from the hot tourist sites because the only PH is that far away. Globalist is definitely better, but I'm imagining that Hilton/Marriott isn't that bad especially for leisure travel and likely not in business focused areas/peak seasons. And having CC status means that there's no pressure to requalify one way or another, so being able to pick local hotels and niche ones whenever necessary.
As a follow up - are there folks who still stack them? Imagining a setup with 2-3x Aspires and 1x Ritz + 1x Brilliant will give more FNCs, and 2-3 nights at a place is a ton more flexible than just 1 (although points help with this).
As I'm reevaluating my status for 2024 - mostly giving up work travels and thus Globalist (unless a new Fast Track opens up) and accepting that you can use credit cards to get many of the functional benefits - are there FTers that are relative free agents that just hold the Hilton Aspire + Marriott Brilliant cards?
With Hilton Diamond + Marriott Platinum, you're covered in basically every city in the world. No more trekking away from the hot tourist sites because the only PH is that far away. Globalist is definitely better, but I'm imagining that Hilton/Marriott isn't that bad especially for leisure travel and likely not in business focused areas/peak seasons. And having CC status means that there's no pressure to requalify one way or another, so being able to pick local hotels and niche ones whenever necessary.
As a follow up - are there folks who still stack them? Imagining a setup with 2-3x Aspires and 1x Ritz + 1x Brilliant will give more FNCs, and 2-3 nights at a place is a ton more flexible than just 1 (although points help with this).
Dec 1, 2023, 3:38 pm
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Pacific Northwest
Programs: UA Gold 1MM, AS 75k, AA Plat, Bonvoyed Gold, Honors Dia, Hyatt Explorer, IHG Plat, ...
Posts: 16,857
Hey FT,
As I'm reevaluating my status for 2024 - mostly giving up work travels and thus Globalist (unless a new Fast Track opens up) and accepting that you can use credit cards to get many of the functional benefits - are there FTers that are relative free agents that just hold the Hilton Aspire + Marriott Brilliant cards?
With Hilton Diamond + Marriott Platinum, you're covered in basically every city in the world. No more trekking away from the hot tourist sites because the only PH is that far away. Globalist is definitely better, but I'm imagining that Hilton/Marriott isn't that bad especially for leisure travel and likely not in business focused areas/peak seasons. And having CC status means that there's no pressure to requalify one way or another, so being able to pick local hotels and niche ones whenever necessary.
As I'm reevaluating my status for 2024 - mostly giving up work travels and thus Globalist (unless a new Fast Track opens up) and accepting that you can use credit cards to get many of the functional benefits - are there FTers that are relative free agents that just hold the Hilton Aspire + Marriott Brilliant cards?
With Hilton Diamond + Marriott Platinum, you're covered in basically every city in the world. No more trekking away from the hot tourist sites because the only PH is that far away. Globalist is definitely better, but I'm imagining that Hilton/Marriott isn't that bad especially for leisure travel and likely not in business focused areas/peak seasons. And having CC status means that there's no pressure to requalify one way or another, so being able to pick local hotels and niche ones whenever necessary.
I used to be Hyatt Diamond in the good old Gold Passport days, but without fast track promo Glob status is just not a realistic goal for me without spending a ton of extra money and making a ton of location compromises. And I really don’t want Hyatt’s footprint to dictate my travel destination choices.
All my travel is self funded. This approach - free agent with status primarily from credit cards - works for me. I am actually shifting at least some of my hotel spend over to AA Hotels so I can earn AA status and redeemable miles. This opens up independent hotels and also lets me earn AA currency at lower end properties where my Hilton status wouldn’t make any difference in my experience on site.
Dec 1, 2023, 6:53 pm
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Pacific Northwest
Programs: UA Gold 1MM, AS 75k, AA Plat, Bonvoyed Gold, Honors Dia, Hyatt Explorer, IHG Plat, ...
Posts: 16,857
Dec 1, 2023, 9:45 pm
#5
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 3,528
An IHG card can also be worth the investment if you go this route.
Dec 3, 2023, 2:34 pm
#6
Moderator: Chase Ultimate Rewards
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 2P, MR LT Plat, IHG Plat, BW Dia, HH Au, Avis PC
Posts: 5,457
I am a fan of this line of thinking. Probably makes sense to pick two out of three of Marriott, Hilton, or IHG based on your travel patterns. Stack free night certs if you can get sufficient value. Takes a lot of the pressure off but you are pre-paying for stays. I've occasionally gotten really poor value from a cert because I had too many.
Also agree with nall: In my experience, Hilton Gold has been just fine in most circumstances and the Suprass can be a useful card. Amex has been unwilling to offer me the Aspire with any bonus but the benefits of Gold get you most of the way there anyway. And IHG Platinum can be handy in Europe or more remote areas of the USA. Lots of potential for upgrades, especially away from large cities.
There are restrictions as to how many of each time of card you can carry and they have tightened up over time. But this is quite doable if you have a travel companion who can also accumulate certs and points.
For reference, there is a long discussion in the Choice Hotels forum that their status is mostly worthless for points stays, because you can book directly into upgraded rooms, so no point in holding the card just for status. And Best Western tends to run status promotions periodically (and status isn't worth much anyway) so not much point there either.
Also agree with nall: In my experience, Hilton Gold has been just fine in most circumstances and the Suprass can be a useful card. Amex has been unwilling to offer me the Aspire with any bonus but the benefits of Gold get you most of the way there anyway. And IHG Platinum can be handy in Europe or more remote areas of the USA. Lots of potential for upgrades, especially away from large cities.
There are restrictions as to how many of each time of card you can carry and they have tightened up over time. But this is quite doable if you have a travel companion who can also accumulate certs and points.
For reference, there is a long discussion in the Choice Hotels forum that their status is mostly worthless for points stays, because you can book directly into upgraded rooms, so no point in holding the card just for status. And Best Western tends to run status promotions periodically (and status isn't worth much anyway) so not much point there either.
Dec 3, 2023, 3:13 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2023
Location: NYC
Programs: I wish :'(
Posts: 219
I don't know what your spend is, but consider maybe the Hilton Surpass in addition to the Aspire. The quarterly Hilton credit is easier to use (I'm assuming you don't stay at a bunch of resorts every year), there's 6x on gas and grocery, and an FNC after $15k spend.
An IHG card can also be worth the investment if you go this route.
An IHG card can also be worth the investment if you go this route.
Dec 3, 2023, 3:57 pm
#8
Moderator: Chase Ultimate Rewards
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 2P, MR LT Plat, IHG Plat, BW Dia, HH Au, Avis PC
Posts: 5,457
I will add a caution: The annual fees can add up more quickly than you might expect.
I tracked our gross cash outlay for fees this year, not taking into account the travel benefits. Just cash out of pocket. It was almost $5000. We got good value from most of it and it's part of the budget, but I didn't expect to see a number that high at the end of the year. It's definitely given me pause and we may trim down some of the free certs next year. Those, in particular, we're sometimes only breaking even. Lots of options for cheap overnights near an airport compared to a $95 cert you never found a good use for all year.
I tracked our gross cash outlay for fees this year, not taking into account the travel benefits. Just cash out of pocket. It was almost $5000. We got good value from most of it and it's part of the budget, but I didn't expect to see a number that high at the end of the year. It's definitely given me pause and we may trim down some of the free certs next year. Those, in particular, we're sometimes only breaking even. Lots of options for cheap overnights near an airport compared to a $95 cert you never found a good use for all year.