jamesteroh

Seeing the Tropicana in Vegas and a couple of the HGVC's in Vegas charge resort fees is the resort credits can be used there.

This credit card really is devaluing diamond status though. A $450 annual fee on a credit card that give you $250 in airline credits plus a free night that is easily worth more than $200 a night, they are literally saying it's worth nothing.

IcHot

Well, can you quantify what it is worth?

I have done mattress runs to make diamond, but the only value I can place on diamond itself is if I know I'm traveling to the UK and staying in a hotel with a lounge. I value the lounge at $60 per night because that is what it usually costs to upgrade to executive level per night. If I can at least break even on that calculation, I do it because we enjoy it.

For my US based travel, there is no measurable benefit to diamond over gold.

I don't feel particularly enticed or threatened by the diamond via CC. I don't see the general US population rushing to get diamond via this method. Diamond isn't otherwise impossible or overwhelmingly beneficial.

We all recognize the mind games being played with "status" and being told that any of us are a special customer. That seems to be the main point here. People want to feel rewarded rather than manipulated.

jamesteroh

Diamond is nice to have outside North American at a lot of properties. But some of them are starting to devalue diamond benefits like the Trafalgar in London.

I was gold back in 2001 and was treated a lot better back then than as a diamond in recent years. I think it's because there are so many gold's and diamonds now.

I am also a diamond at Hyatt where diamond status can't be earned by just a simple credit card spend (they will give a stay/night credit after $40K spend but you still have to have quite a few stays to qualify as diamond) and the treatment at Hyatt is amazing compared to Hilton.

By devaluing the benefits so much they are losing a lot of their road warriors. Most of my business stays go to Hyatt now and those are weekday stays usually on high rates. I'd think a hotel chain would rather have a business traveller who has 60+ nights a year at higher rates (and a lot of times using services like laundry and room service that are real cash cows) over a credit card holder who books cheaper leisure rates but maybe Hilton is making enough off of Am Ex that it doesn't matter.

uncertaintraveler

I'm unclear about obtaining Diamond status if one gets the Ascend Card.

If you have the card, do you get Diamond status only if you spend at least $40,000 using the card?

Or do you get Diamond status if you have the card and stay an additional 10 nights at Hilton family hotels (being the 30 stays required for Diamond less, I suppose, the 20 stays that are typically required to have Gold status but which are credited to you via the card)?

Or do you get Diamond status if you have the card, but don't spend $40K using it, but do stay the usual 30 nights at Hilton family hotels?

gottaluvNW

The biggest perk for regular travelers who used the Citi Hilton Reserve card to collect points, was to get 5x points for travel related charges. This seems to be missing from ALL the new Citi Hilton Amex card benefits...

BOSOGG

Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
• 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on U.S. restaurants, flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, and car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
• 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies and at U.S. restaurants

krazykanuck

The terms to me don't look ambiguous at all. The bolded is how this ought to work. You have automatic Gold status, and spend $40k+, you get upgraded to Diamond.

This will probably work the same way the SPG Gold via the Platinum card works. You're granted gold status, but if you want to earn Platinum, you start at the bottom. 0 elite nights and stays. It doesn't start you off as if you had earned Gold.

VA1379

Hyatt and Marriott will never offer top status with a credit card like Hilton. Hyatt prefers to give fast track offers to targeted customers, and Marriott will extend platinum status for long term customers who fall short for a given year. Marriott also allows customers who do not get a courtesy status extension to buy back their gold or platinum status for another year with award points.

The Ritz Carlton Visa from Chase gives gold status for one year, and you keep gold if you spend 10k/year on the card. Marriott already gives gold to United gold and higher elites.

krazykanuck

You can also obtain Platinum if you spend $75k/yr, so measurably higher than the Hilton spend level to earn Diamond and one that I doubt many people would hit anyway. But hey it is an option that's available!

hurnik

Lauren,

In regards to the Aspire One Weekend Night Reward at a hotel or resort in the Hilton portfolio with your new Card and each year of Card Membership:

Is that a particular certificate (I think there was a "be our guest" or some other certificate)?

Or is that a *reward* stay (standard room)?

Also, are there any other restrictions on that? Like some of the certificates could only be used at an actual Hilton (not Conrad, or Waldorf Astoria, etc.) hotel.

I'm assuming if it's a *reward* stay then it'll be capacity-controlled and other restrictions ?

thanks!

SanDiego1K

Welcome to FlyerTalk. I can't answer knowledgeably, but my guess is that the cards will not merge. Rather you will have several AMEX cards. I do not believe a no fee card can be converted unilaterally by AMEX into a fee card.

I know I am going to need to do some purging of my cards. Not only will I have dupe Hilton AMEX cards once the changeover occurs, but the number of AMEX cards I will end up having will prevent me from being able to apply for any other non Hilton AMEX cards that I want. AMEX puts a cap on the maximum number of cards we are able to have.

Eujeanie

I know some of you have had other cards that give the airline credit, so can you please explain some things to me...

Is it cumulative? Say I'm in Y and I want an extra cocktail (already get one free with AS) and something to eat, so a $15 charge. Do that several times throughout the year. Is it at the end of the year that they cover all these charges I have made? (say they add up to $100 or so). Or do they cancel them out every month until I reach $250?

Or does it have to be a one-time charge, say two $125 change fees? (which I don't have since with AS Gold status you have no change fees).

I'm really trying to see if the numbers work for this Aspire card.

Another factor would be the one that was just asked a few posts ago regarding the Free Hilton night - a fabulous $500/nt hotel ok? Or is it restricted to a certain dollar amount, etc.?

Eujeanie

One more question, Lauren...will an AU be free on the Aspire card?

Evo40

For the other AMEX cards with this benefit, you can have multiple incidental charges under the threshold with your selected airline...and should get reimbursed shortly after each charge is posted, up to the maximum $250 benefit.

See also: https://www.americanexpress.com/us/c...redit/platinum

Evo40

Under the current system with AMEX Surpass, you get automatic Gold, but no elite night/stay credits. If you want to earn Diamond (outside of Aspire, status-matching, etc.), you'll have to meet the full requirements.

This is NOT like the Marriott card which gives you 15 elite nights (and more with spending) or the SPG card which gives you a few elite nights/stays.