Richmond_Surrey

Don't expect upgrades in Hawaii. HGI breakfast in Kauai is decent, don't know about kids. You will also get welcome drink, which will be two small Maitai. I just took one big ;-) Hilton Hawaii Village doesn't offer breakfast, just vouchers, so it will be $20 per night, don't think kids will get any vouchers.

It's question of calculating cost of extra 4 stays vs cost of expected benefits. If you were travelling to Europe or Asia, upgrades would be an option and Gold would be more beneficial.

pinniped

I didn't realize Kauai was an HGI. This might be a good thing, as most HGI's have reasonable breakfast prices to begin with and if they charge for the kids at all it might still be worthwhile. HGI is a brand that has often comped whole breakfasts...2 kids 2 adults...in my stays over the years.

HHV is in an area with many options within walking distance of the hotel. If it's just $20 credit x nights stayed, I probably wouldn't use any of it on breakfast. I'll be completely honest and say HHV isn't my favorite hotel and Oahu isn't my favorite island. If I were doing a 2-island trip, it'd be Kauai+Maui or Kauai+Big Island. If the Maui or Big Island stay was not a 5-night award, I also would not hesitate to look at Booking.com, VRBO, Homeaway.com, etc. and compare to what you're seeing from Hilton.

umieesa

Not to stray off topic, but we stayed exclusively in Oahu last trip (moved around from Waikiki to North Shore to Ko Olina in 10 days), but this trip I'd like to do 3 islands. My kids and hubby really want to go back to Oahu, but I think that's because that's all they've seen. Initially, I was thinking to do 5 nights in Kauai at the HGI then fly to Oahu and split the stay between Waikiki (maybe Hilton, just don't like they started charging resort fees now) and Ko Olina again (we loved the Marriott there) and lastly the Big Island probably at a Hilton property. Everyone tells me though Maui is a must, but hubby seems to have in his mind it's only for retirees and newlyweds. Otherwise I probably would have skipped Oahu this trip and visited just the other 3, but I guess I still have time to figure that out.

I was only silver with Marriott when we were there (dec 2017) but they gave me an amazing room. I booked an oceanview category, but couldn't have been happier with the building and the view. I hope Hilton is as generous with the upgrades, but from most of the comments here it doesn't look like I should hold my breath.

The HGI in Kauai seems like a decent value points wise, and that's why I figured if breakfast was also thrown in it would really sweeten the deal. The 80% bonus points also seems like a great value though I don't see many mentioning that. My son traveled for baseball quite a bit this year, but we haven't decided if he will play competitively again next year, so I'm still not certain how many nights we will be traveling outside of Hawaii. We stayed at a lot of HGI properties this year, and so if he does end up playing again then the free breakfast would be a great bonus.

jbeckett

Although the 80% bonus points sounds good, when compared to 20%, it doesn't amount to much compared to the breakfast benefit. Suppose that you stay 15 nights and spend $2000 a year. The extra 60% point bonus would amount to 12000 points, worth maybe $50. While the breakfasts for two people, 15 nights at $20 a breakfast, is worth $300.

cacj

Are day use stays still counted toward status? We got confused by T&C after August 2018 changes. We need 3 more stays to keep Gold, and are hoping to use 2 day use rates to fill the gap.

craigthemif

Did 4 or 5 day use stays in Oct / Nov and they all counted.

August 2018 changes? That was Marriott BTW...

cacj

Thanks for your report. Booked.

Staley Cornell

I did a road trip over the summer as a gold and got comped breakfast for 2 adults and 2 kids everywhere we stayed in the US. We spend two nights in Canada and got breakfast for four at one of the hotels but not the other. The breakfast selections were amazing and everyone got what they wanted.

As a gold I also got a room upgrade more often than not. I had to ask a few times and other times it was automatic. I'd consider taking your chances with Gold knowing there's a possibility for all of the things mentioned here.

diver858

Really depends on what you enjoy doing on vacation. South Maui (Kihei through Makena) is great for snorkeling, scuba diving and some surfing; some very nice golf courses, plenty of decent bars and restaurants - have been going for years, never get tired of it. Rather than spend big $$/points at the Grand Wailea, I rent a condo (in Kihei).

daloosh

I've been all levels, and while Silver is better than nothing, Gold is definitely a step up! Even modest Hilton use next year will gain you some nice bennies, mainly breakfast and occasional upgrades. And since your children will benefit from the staycations, it's not so bad a mattress run for the last four nites. All the forums are littered with FT brethren trying to make mileage or mattress runs this time of year, myself included!

Oahu offers a lot, especially when you get out of Waikiki, but you've done that already for ten days. My wife prefers Maui for a mix of everything from relaxing to nature to nightlife (it's not just retirees), while I prefer the calm, quiet and slow pace of Kauai, and our daughter likes the Big Island for its variety. So, skip Oahu this time and spend your three island trip on Maui, Kauai and Hawaii!

umieesa

Definitely will be doing some mattress runs! I have already two booked for next week!

This is what I would do, but this seems to be non negotiable. Mainly because their favourite restaurant is on Oahu (Fresh Catch) and food is a big draw for us. It would be amazing though if they comped the kids as well like Staley received. Definitely a valuable perk!

Like I said I don't really want to hijack the thread with another topic, but for me I'm really torn between Maui and the Big Island. Got some great tips from Pinniped and appreciate all the comments. We are big nature lovers and love to hike, but my kids love surfing and snorkeling. I do like the idea of the amount of diverse activities/ecosystems available on the Big Island, but Maui has some huge draws with the road to Hana and Haleakala especially. Decisions, decisions. 1st world problems for sure!

xooz

Don't forget that an award stay counts as a stay for status purposes.

RDU-Man

Just another data point on the digital check in/stay credit issue. I recently did this successfully with an HGI stay in Philadelphia that I had to cancel after the deadline - I figured since they were going to charge me anyway, I should do online check in and digital key request and see what happens. Got stay credit and points for the cost of the stay! That said, I need two stays to maintain Diamond this year, and I am going to do physical check in on two mattress run stays to make sure I requalify - don't want to risk missing the mark because of that, and I found a property 10 miles from me for only $80/night.

Explore SE Asia

Never mind - i see the OP is Canadian.

I think I must have missed the post that discusses why the Ascend ($95 fee, Gold status, 150,000 miles) or my favorite the Aspire card will not work for the OP. I would think a long time before doing a mattress run when I can get status and points with a credit card.

PS Don't forget to self-refer or get a referral when applying.

umieesa

Yeah, the Americans have all the good credit card offers that we don't get