Earning Diamond Status for a Diamond's Spouse
Feb 28, 2015, 10:48 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
Earning Diamond Status for a Diamond's Spouse
I've been Hyatt Diamond for years. I'm considering whether it's worthwhile for my spouse to also earn Diamond. She accompanies me on about 35% of my trips. I can enroll in the promotion where she qualifies in 12 nights.
Pros:
- I'm maxed out on the Stay More Play More promotion. Spouse would be a brand-new HGP member and can get the full promo (50K points).
- We'd end up with 8 suite upgrades per year instead of 4.
- Possibility of earning the "per-stay" bonuses every night instead of just once per stay (more on this later).
Are there any other advantages to having two diamonds in a room?
Cons:
- I lose the 30% diamond points bonus (until she qualifies)
- I'm not sure if I still get the welcome amenity (I always choose points) while she qualifies
Questions:
- If two Diamonds check in to the same room, does each one get to choose a Welcome Amenity?
- If a Diamond (me) is staying in a non-Diamond (spouse) room, can I still choose the points as a welcome amenity?
- If a two night stay is booked as separate one-night stays (one per account), do we get the various "per-stay" bonuses each night? One example of a per-stay bonus is the Diamond Welcome Amenity. There are sometimes other per-stay bonuses which vary by hotel.
I'm specifically looking for advice from couples where both are Diamond. Would you recommend it? I'm staying about 15 nights a month at Hyatts and there are no expense accounts (i.e. I personally pay for all charges).
Pros:
- I'm maxed out on the Stay More Play More promotion. Spouse would be a brand-new HGP member and can get the full promo (50K points).
- We'd end up with 8 suite upgrades per year instead of 4.
- Possibility of earning the "per-stay" bonuses every night instead of just once per stay (more on this later).
Are there any other advantages to having two diamonds in a room?
Cons:
- I lose the 30% diamond points bonus (until she qualifies)
- I'm not sure if I still get the welcome amenity (I always choose points) while she qualifies
Questions:
- If two Diamonds check in to the same room, does each one get to choose a Welcome Amenity?
- If a Diamond (me) is staying in a non-Diamond (spouse) room, can I still choose the points as a welcome amenity?
- If a two night stay is booked as separate one-night stays (one per account), do we get the various "per-stay" bonuses each night? One example of a per-stay bonus is the Diamond Welcome Amenity. There are sometimes other per-stay bonuses which vary by hotel.
I'm specifically looking for advice from couples where both are Diamond. Would you recommend it? I'm staying about 15 nights a month at Hyatts and there are no expense accounts (i.e. I personally pay for all charges).
Feb 28, 2015, 11:53 am
#2
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: ORD, MIA
Programs: AA EXP, JL JGC, Hyatt Glob
Posts: 382
Silly question: how do you know for sure that she will get the 50k Stay More Play More promo as a brand new member? Instead of one of the other lesser ones?
Spouse would be a brand-new HGP member and can get the full promo (50K points).
Feb 28, 2015, 12:21 pm
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
Feb 28, 2015, 8:04 pm
#4
Join Date: Jun 2007
Programs: UA, AA, LH, Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott, Hertz
Posts: 1,759
Wirelessly posted (iPhone 5: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 8_1_3 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/600.1.4 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/8.0 Mobile/12B466 Safari/600.1.4)
This is a tricky one - for both to get diamond amenity you would have to check out after the first night and your wife would then have to check in. You won't be able to combine the folios into one, which may not be that big of a deal. However, this same scenario would prevent you from using just one DSU for the entire stay and that would (potentially) negate the benefits of getting 8 DSUs per year.
This is a tricky one - for both to get diamond amenity you would have to check out after the first night and your wife would then have to check in. You won't be able to combine the folios into one, which may not be that big of a deal. However, this same scenario would prevent you from using just one DSU for the entire stay and that would (potentially) negate the benefits of getting 8 DSUs per year.
Feb 28, 2015, 8:36 pm
#5
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: HKG
Programs: AA 3MM EXP, SQ Solitaire, LH SEN, CX DM, Hyatt CC, Marriott LT Titanium
Posts: 3,179
Even if my wife is traveling alone, I use my name to book her room + add her as companion as if we were traveling together... When she checks in, she just normally says that her husband (me) is coming a bit later... she gets all the perks and I get the points.... I thought about signing up an account for her as well before, but the incremental benefits of having 2 separate GP accounts don't seem worthwhile..
Feb 28, 2015, 8:46 pm
#6
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: SYD
Programs: QF WP (OWE), VA PLAT, EY GLD, SPG PLAT, Hyatt DIA, Hilton DIA, Hertz PC
Posts: 8,527
Even if my wife is traveling alone, I use my name to book her room + add her as companion as if we were traveling together... When she checks in, she just normally says that her husband (me) is coming a bit later... she gets all the perks and I get the points.... I thought about signing up an account for her as well before, but the incremental benefits of having 2 separate GP accounts don't seem worthwhile..
To the OP, no you do not get a Diamond amenity each on a single stay. Yes you can check in and out under different reservations each day but you will be assigned separate rooms. If you have the same surname any decent rooms division manager will merge all of your reservations and negate your objectives.
Feb 28, 2015, 8:53 pm
#7
Join Date: Feb 2007
Programs: Hyatt Diamond, SPG VIP, Marriott Platinum Premier
Posts: 21
Even if my wife is traveling alone, I use my name to book her room + add her as companion as if we were traveling together... When she checks in, she just normally says that her husband (me) is coming a bit later... she gets all the perks and I get the points.... I thought about signing up an account for her as well before, but the incremental benefits of having 2 separate GP accounts don't seem worthwhile..
Feb 28, 2015, 9:08 pm
#8
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Barcelona, London, on a plane
Programs: BA Silver, TK E+, AA PP, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 13,048
Intriguing concept. Worth a try if you have enough 5-7 day stays at nice hotels where a DSU provides lots of value.
Having 50K bonus points is almost surely going to be more than losing a 30% bonus for 12 nights. However, AFAIK the Diamond member has to be the one listed on the folio to get a welcome amenity, lounge access, etc. (otherwise I could just give my HGP number to people - they check in and get free BF/lounge and I get 1000 points. Win win...)
Are you sure you can enrol your wife in a Diamond Challenge though? Invitation only.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hyatt...vite-only.html
Having 50K bonus points is almost surely going to be more than losing a 30% bonus for 12 nights. However, AFAIK the Diamond member has to be the one listed on the folio to get a welcome amenity, lounge access, etc. (otherwise I could just give my HGP number to people - they check in and get free BF/lounge and I get 1000 points. Win win...)
Are you sure you can enrol your wife in a Diamond Challenge though? Invitation only.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hyatt...vite-only.html
Feb 28, 2015, 9:22 pm
#9
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Barcelona, London, on a plane
Programs: BA Silver, TK E+, AA PP, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 13,048
If during the stay it becomes apparent that Mr and Mrs Smith are both staying all nights and wish to keep the same room all nights, then the folio may well get merged, but only if convenient for the guests.
But that is easily avoided by fully checking-out each morning, leaving luggage in storage, then checking back in to a different room in the evening. (I've done that before to trigger Marriott Megabonus free nights)
Feb 28, 2015, 9:50 pm
#10
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: SYD
Programs: QF WP (OWE), VA PLAT, EY GLD, SPG PLAT, Hyatt DIA, Hilton DIA, Hertz PC
Posts: 8,527
Probably not. No manager who wants to keep his job will assume that just because a Mrs. Smith arrives the day after a Mr. Smith that the two are related and merge the reservations. Even if the two share the same address, Mrs. Smith might be there on separate business from Mr. Smith and need a separate bill.
If during the stay it becomes apparent that Mr and Mrs Smith are both staying all nights and wish to keep the same room all nights, then the folio may well get merged, but only if convenient for the guests.
But that is easily avoided by fully checking-out each morning, leaving luggage in storage, then checking back in to a different room in the evening. (I've done that before to trigger Marriott Megabonus free nights)
If during the stay it becomes apparent that Mr and Mrs Smith are both staying all nights and wish to keep the same room all nights, then the folio may well get merged, but only if convenient for the guests.
But that is easily avoided by fully checking-out each morning, leaving luggage in storage, then checking back in to a different room in the evening. (I've done that before to trigger Marriott Megabonus free nights)
Feb 28, 2015, 10:09 pm
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
Diamond Challenge: one must be invited by the sales manager of a hotel. Easy. One email or phone call gets it done.
Using DSU: On those occasions we'd book the entire stay on one account.
Checking in and out: I'd phone the front desk before arrival and tell them what we're doing. I would expect to stay in the same room, but it really doesn't matter that much. It's much easier for the hotel to keep us in the same room each night.
Diamond Welcome Amenity: In my experience, a diamond gets this amenity when staying in the room (no matter who pays). I would be disappointed if another Diamond in the room prevents you from receiving an earned (and promised in writing) benefit.
Using DSU: On those occasions we'd book the entire stay on one account.
Checking in and out: I'd phone the front desk before arrival and tell them what we're doing. I would expect to stay in the same room, but it really doesn't matter that much. It's much easier for the hotel to keep us in the same room each night.
Diamond Welcome Amenity: In my experience, a diamond gets this amenity when staying in the room (no matter who pays). I would be disappointed if another Diamond in the room prevents you from receiving an earned (and promised in writing) benefit.
Mar 1, 2015, 12:43 am
#12
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Between AMS and BRU
Posts: 8,852
It could work.... But it takes a bit of effort, and having a diferent reservation for each night will probably get you some different room types during a stay. Most hotels will also probably let you stay in the room, but when busy they might make you change to what you booked. Not being able to use a DSU for the whole stay where both accounts have booked might also be a problem.
For the rest I don't see any problems, having a Diamond stay in the room (you) would also get you the Diamond benefits during the trail period.
Expecting multiple diamond amenities feels like stretching it a bit for me. The Diamond who booked the room is entitled to it for that stay. Expecting multiple or even when alternating bookings feels a bit like gaming the system to me. Especially if a property lets you stay in the same room for the duration and handles all the administrative overhead already.
For the rest I don't see any problems, having a Diamond stay in the room (you) would also get you the Diamond benefits during the trail period.
Expecting multiple diamond amenities feels like stretching it a bit for me. The Diamond who booked the room is entitled to it for that stay. Expecting multiple or even when alternating bookings feels a bit like gaming the system to me. Especially if a property lets you stay in the same room for the duration and handles all the administrative overhead already.
Mar 1, 2015, 3:40 am
#13
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: California
Programs: Hyatt Global, Marriot Lifetime Titanium
Posts: 2,282
Is lifetime Diamond something you are pursuing? If so, then diluting that is a consideration.
Mar 1, 2015, 4:11 am
#14
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
I appreciate your feedback.
If a Diamond is entitled to the Welcome Amenity with every stay, then I'd be disappointed if you lose that benefit because your Diamond spouse stayed in the same hotel the night before. My philosophy is that I want every point to which I'm entitled, and not one point less (or more).
If I decide to go the Double Diamond route, I'll be sure to post here with the results of that experience.
If a Diamond is entitled to the Welcome Amenity with every stay, then I'd be disappointed if you lose that benefit because your Diamond spouse stayed in the same hotel the night before. My philosophy is that I want every point to which I'm entitled, and not one point less (or more).
If I decide to go the Double Diamond route, I'll be sure to post here with the results of that experience.
Expecting multiple diamond amenities feels like stretching it a bit for me. The Diamond who booked the room is entitled to it for that stay. Expecting multiple or even when alternating bookings feels a bit like gaming the system to me. Especially if a property lets you stay in the same room for the duration and handles all the administrative overhead already.
Mar 1, 2015, 4:16 am
#15
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Between AMS and BRU
Posts: 8,852
If a Diamond is entitled to the Welcome Amenity with every stay, then I'd be disappointed if you lose that benefit because your Diamond spouse stayed in the same hotel the night before. My philosophy is that I want every point to which I'm entitled, and not one point less (or more)
Don't be like Gekko.....
Last edited by RTW1; Mar 1, 2015 at 4:21 am