Adelphos

I have 9 qualifying nights, and will probably earn 2 more via credit card spend. Is it worth directing 4 nights to get Explorist over Discoverist? Unlikely I will be able to get Globalist, and also unlikely I will be able to get enough nights to move up to the next Marriott status (so don’t see a big opportunity coat here).

GTITAN

As between Discoverist and Explorist, if you don't stay a lot in Vegas and leverage the M Life benefits, I don't see an incremental benefit frankly that is worth that much, but the higher earn rate is nice. YMMV

Safe Travels

Matt4200

https://thepointsguy.com/guide/what-...-status-worth/

This is the official valuation

There have been a lot more upgrades and things with Explorist now at properties that aren’t busy even Suite upgrades I’ve seen but YMMV.

bwallet

When talking about the value of status, you need to consider how much you will utilize it. If you are staying so few nights that you are using credit card spend and then still stretching to make 15 qualifying (not even head on pillow nights), how much will you use any benefit?

Adelphos

I usually split my stays up and have just completed my first Hyatt stays this year (I have about 15 nights in other programs and expect to have about 15-20 more nights through the rest of the year at least). I also expect to stay about 50 nights or so next year at least, so status would have a benefit. However I'm not willing to commit to any program, I usually stay at the most convenient / best hotels, and a majority of time I am at a Marriott. However I would like to have useful status when I do stay at Hyatt. But it seems like people are saying the benefit of Explorist over Discoverist is pretty minimal (I feel the same way about Hilton Diamond over Gold)

59Impala

I would not call this valuation „official“. It is just TPG‘s viewpoint and has no official touch whatsoever. It is based on TPG‘s assumptions to generate a „value“
I have different views.

Adelphos

TPG's valuations always rely on an arbitrary number of stays, which I think is the wrong way to do it

CIT85

Hotel and airline program benefits award higher elite levels, so spreading your stays amongst multiple programs dilutes any potential gains. Hilton Gold is in a sweet spot with free breakfast, which you have. Marriott Gold is relatively worthless, Platinum is where real benefits start. Hyatt has the best benefits for Globalists which may be very difficult for you to achieve with normal qualifications.

The real deciding factor is what kinds of hotels do you expect to stay in 2022. If you have nice full service hotels planned, then having status that gives real benefits is worth going after. 2021 is the best year for Hyatt with reduced requirements, but you still need to reach 20 nights for Club Access milestone award, which are useful at full service hotels with Club Lounges.

If you ever want to experience benefits of higher level elite status and determine your own value, 2021 is the year to do so. But, spreading your nights and flights amongst multiple programs will guarantee no tangible benefits. I suggest evaluating your travel pattern and decide if you should consolidate.

Adelphos

It's unlikely I will consolidate my stays, especially at Hyatt, given Marriott, and to a lesser degree, Hilton, have a footprint in the US that works much better for me (I do a mix of stays from limited service to higher end luxury). My confirmed bookings over the next couple of months include independent (Wynn in Las Vegas), Hilton (Waldorf Beverly Hills), Marriott, and Hyatt.

However all of this debate on splitting stays has almost no bearing on my original question - is going for Explorist with a modest 4 night requirement through the rest of the year worth the effort, assuming I will get Explorist benefits at the Hyatt properties I do stay at through Feburary 2023. What everyone seems to be saying is no

EDIT - Also, my view is that if you choose a suboptimal hotel or plane routing because of elite status/card benefits/other inducements, you are diluting the value of having status as well, so I try to attain the highest level status possible in the most programs to maximize choice. But it sounds like moving up from Discoverist to Explorist isn't that meaningful

WasKnown

I agree. If you picked the hotels that work best for you, that sounds like the optimal path. For example, Hyatt doesn’t have anything in LA even close to the level of the WA Beverly Hills (rip PH LA). I would not switch to something like the Andaz WeHo (which is multiple categories worse than WA BH IMO) for even Globalist status. I’m not privy to the nuanced differences between various LS options but maybe there’s more potential for a swap there, prices permitting.

FWIW, my experience with Explorist earlier this year yielded no tangible difference in how I was treated. YMMV.

HoustonConsultant

While the benefit change from Discoverist to Explorist is relatively small, if there is no cost to moving a few Marriott nights to Hyatt, why not do it, assuming that the locations and quality of the the Marriotts and Hyatts on those stays are comparable? Don't move a JW stay to a Hyatt House 15 miles away, but given comparable hotels for those nights, the move to Explorist might get you an upgrade that you couldn't normally get at a low occupancy Hyatt in the future, where it most certainly won't get you anything with four additional Marriott nights.

pWei

Explorists gets you better non-suite rooms. Moving from a bleh room (eg. low floor, but with DISC, probably not the worst room next to a noisy hvac/loading dock) to potentially one of the best non-suite rooms in the house is a nice step up.

fastflyer1

Short answer- no

long answer- no

Adelphos

If you book a suite directly, no upgrade of any kind, right?

fastflyer1

correct