flyer4512

I have browsed this forum for years but haven't posted much. I see a lot of people prefer Starwood over HH

I may pay for 3 nights a year in a hotel so the way I earn is using my Visa/AMEX card for all of my purchases.

I spend about 25K a year on the Amex which gives me Gold status and about $7k on the Visa. There is no annual fee on either card which I believe I would have to pay on the Sheraton Amex and Marriot Visa

WIth Hilton I can 4 free nights a year at a cat 5 or 6 hotel for 125K points which is about the total number of points I get a year.

I can't see how I could possibly pull that off with Starwood or Marriot.

If I'm missing something please let me know

Thanks

REDSOX1

A few comments and questions. First, what are your goals and objectives?????

Do you want to vacation in a certain place? What hotels are there? So many hotels out there, so many options. But what properties are best for you? Do you have HH properties near your house that you can throw your sister-in-law and family in when they pop in unannounced? That could be a marraige saver!

You have a loyalty CC to Hilton. Yet some travel gurus consider the Starwood Property AMEX CC superior. (BTW, that CC and the Marriot Visa card are free too.) I travel for work and vacation where HH properties are dominate so I concentrate my stays with HH. But YMMV. Period.

Where do you want to go??? There are so many threads on this board about the "value" of the different programs. Some math wizards have it down to fractions of a cent. Opinions are like someone's rear-end, everyone has one! Again, with me, Hilton points work good. I use my HH CC and travel to HH properties and get award hotel stays that outside people spend from $100-600 per night. I have never paid for a stay in the past few years. No money out of my wallet means a good value to me.

I spend as much as you on CC's per year. If you like Hilton properties, then yes, you have the right credit cards. If you Up your CC spend to $40,000 and vacation abroad, I would think the AMEX Surpass card as a good choice, (even with the annual fee), as you can be a Diamond Tier and enjoy the overseas lounges. If you vacation and stay for free at your rich uncle's pad in Hawaii, then maybe the right CC would be an airline FF CC. If you go every year to the land of the big rodent, (Disney), then the right CC may be a Disney card. Right now, you get 4-5 free nights for using your HH CC. That's free money. You can also have credit cards for stores you like such as Home Depot, Harley Davidson, or get cash back. I use my HH free nights on award nights on beach front holiday weekends that would cost the average tourist $300-500 per night, or on NYC nights out at the Waldorf or Conrad. Good for me, a middle class guy. I enjoy my benefits and get 5-10 award nights per year. If you do not spend a dime on CC interest or late payments, then I would consider you way ahead of the game. I fully understand that many mom/pop stores do not take AMEX and the HH Visa is a good alternative. But with creative buying/shopping, you may be able to reduce the Visa spends and Up the spends on the AMEX card which has higher point bonuses.

Please consider where you want to go and get the CC that helps you with your dreams. Good luck with your travels.

darthbimmer

The Starwood Amex is free and grants you gold status for spending $25k/year.

Marriott offers 3 different Visas, all of which charge an annual fee. The fee is compensated by an annual free night certificate.

As REDSOX1 suggested above, think about where you want to go for your free nights and how long it will take you to earn the points.

As you compare how many points each credit card pays, bear in mind that points are not equal across programs. For example, 1 Starwood point is probably worth 3-4 HH points based on redemption costs at comparable hotels. So a Starwood Amex that pays 1 point/dollar might be a better deal than the HH Amex that pays 3 points/dollar. On the other hand, HH has way more properties than Starwood, so maybe it's the only program worth considering based on where you want to go. Only you can decide which best meets your needs.

flyer4512

Thanks for the reply, huge Sox fan here with seaon tickets.

We usually go to Florida every March ( guess for what, lol) and stay 4 days in Ft Myers and 4 days someplace else.

So far we have stayed in the Embassy Boca Roton and Hilton Clearwater Resort and this year we are staying at the Doubletree North Reddington Beach.

The 4 free nights (cat 5 or 6 for 125K) is very nice. As a gold member I have been upgraded at Embassy and Hilton Clearwater plus free breakfast. Doubletree says they will upgrade me if they have an open room but I won't know until I arrive that day.


It takes 160K points for 5 nights at the Hilton Clearwater Beach resort while it takes 40,000 miles for 5 nights ( 5th night free) at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort(Clearwater Beach) which are very comparable properties.

I spend less than 30K on the Hilton Amex/Visa a year and come very close to the 160K miles

I would have to spend 40K on just the Amex for the same deal so I am guessing I have the correct card for me.

A lot of places don't take Amex such as utility providers, some insurance companies, quite a few restaurants, some hospitals, etc. The $7,000 I spend a year on Visa is all at places that don't take Amex. I could look around on the insurance for a company thet takes Amex but that's about it.


Thanks again !

pinniped

I look at SPG Amex as being worth slightly more for pure reward return, but the side benefit of HH Gold with the Amex (or Diamond for the $40k spender) is worth far more than SPG Gold.

I tend to flip back and forth between the two. Starting on Jan 1, 2010, I'll stop using SPG Amex and begin using HH Amex. On Jan 1, 2011, I'll go back to the SPG Amex.

I carry all three of the main hotel cards. The MR Visa is weak outside of Marriott hotels but I tend to get pretty good value from the Cat 5 Free Night every year. Worst case...we inevitably have a Chicago or DC use for it, where Pricelining a decent hotel on a desirable weekend would run over $100.

If I really had $7k per year in non-Amex spending, I might be tempted to look for a better rewards card for that spending. I have maybe $100/mo. tops - a local deli is the one example I can think of that doesn't take Amex. I just use the MR Visa for it.

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Not anymore. Category 6 hotels now require 145,000 HHonors points. And HHonors redemption rates are changing in January.

troyintn

What do use to decide on flipping back and forth? Just the Date or point totals. I have the AMEX SPG, & Hilton card along with the Hilton visa rarely used. I have been using mostly my SPG card for the last two years and thinking about the new hilton card. I am looking at point totals currently SPG 200k, & 1.1 M in hilton. With an average spend of 120k a year. I average 150 nights with hilton a year and 60 with SPG. Thoughts?

flyer4512

Yea I used the old Axon code fro the cat 6 for 125 K

I usually stay at cat 5's and those are staying the same (35K a night, 4 nights for 125K ) as far as I know

flyer4512

I can't pay my gas, Insurance, Gym, Chiropractor co pay or Charter cable/telephone, internet bill with Amex

That's 5K right there

sharkey

The Starwood Amex is free and grants you gold status for spending $25k/year.


How do you get the Starwood Amex for free? I have gotten the card a couple of times and always been charged $45 annual fee after the first year. When I call and ask if they will waive the fee, (otherwise I will cancel the card), Amex has always declined waiving the fee.

The Hilton Amex Gold and Hilton Visa have always been free.

flyer4512

One more question, do any of the hotel programs let you book free nights in another persons name similiar to how you can get someone else a free flight on the FF programs ?

aces

Can't pay a mortgage with Amex either.

schuby527

How do you get the Starwood Amex for free? I have gotten the card a couple of times and always been charged $45 annual fee after the first year. When I call and ask if they will waive the fee, (otherwise I will cancel the card), Amex has always declined waiving the fee



MY THOUGHTS EXACTLY!

please explain how it is free. I have 4 starwood cards-2 for me 2 for hubby and had to pay $45 for each of them recently.

flyer4512

Why are you each carrying 2 of the same card ?

I think he said the annual fee is waived if you spend $25,000 a year but I don't have that card so i'm not sure

pinniped

Basically, I held the SPG Amex first and used it as primary, thus ensuring perpetual SPG Gold status.

When I picked up the HH Amex - I forget the year - I began using it on January 1st of the following year. Once I was a little bit beyond $20k on the card, I went back to SPG. The following year I'd stick wholly to SPG, then on January 1st of the year after that...back to HH Amex for another $20k.

For me, it's a way to ensure near-perpetual Gold status in both programs without $50k spend per year. In theory, I should lapse a little in each program every other summer, but in practice it seems like I'm always Gold. (My main leisure travel seasons are Sept-Nov and Jan-Apr, and I know I've had Gold by then...)

If you spend $120k, then you've got HH Diamond and SPG Gold easily if you want 'em both. So for you, any flipping would simply be to achieve the two spending thresholds and beyond that whichever "currency" you value more.