ORD-TGU

A lot state that there is very little difference between HH Gold/Diamond. Accurate most of the time, until they deny you lounge access or upgrade. This would hurt in a fancy European location! I saw Golds being denied lounge access in Conrad Seoul. It was a nice lounge. Well worth the MS troubles.

But my in-laws traveled as Gold to Stucky and Florence were you are going, they got upgraded to nice views and lounge access, so you are good. This was last May.

exarkun

Go figure, went to apply for the wyndham 45k offer today and it expired overnight...

36902BRF

I figured they might kill that once the 15k/night policy was announced. Probably too lucrative. I was tempted to apply immediately but their hotel coverage for decent hotels in places I want to go in the next couple of years was low/non-existent.

sosamo

Awesome. Thanks.

ILGfly

Where did you hear said rumblings? I agree it would be absolutely huge if it were true. I'll be applying for the Hyatt card the minute it's announced.

In my dream scenario Hyatt doing that would lead Starwood to offer top tier status with SPG Amex spend alone and I'd have top tier status with my two favorite chains every year.

iflyjetz

Early this year, Hyatt sent out a questionnaire to select HGP members and one of the items asked about was their opinion of awarding Diamond status with $50K spend. I was not surveyed. If I find the exact thread(s), I'll post link(s).

Obviously, for MSers, hotels offering top tier elite status with a certain annual spend would be nirvana. I only need 20 more nights but several more years as Plat with SPG for lifetime status; I'd love them to come in and match the policy IF Hyatt decides to adopt it.

As it currently stands, I'm MSing on my Hyatt card to hit $40K annual spend for the 5 stay/10night credit to reduce my need for hotel nights to keep Hyatt Diamond.


Edit: Start with Post #2490 in this thread; it was a survey done by Hyatt: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hyatt...l#post24298401
Take it however you like, but I'm figuring that if Hyatt's doing a survey of making this a benefit, they're considering making that a policy.

Edit2: Separate thread devoted to the survey, including a screenshot (post #2) confirming that the concept is/was being kicked around: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hyatt...edit-card.html

iflyjetz

I understand your point on spending more than one night in Versailles, especially if you stay at the Waldorf. The lower price compared to Paris makes it a great deal.

I made the suggestion because the lines get very long to get into Versailles and being there first thing in the morning, taking a 5 minute walk from your hotel, would save a TON of time seeing the palace.

We did this on one of our vacations, but we stayed at a less expensive Accor property. When we arrived at ~730PM midweek in late May, they had already figuratively rolled up the sidewalks; the town was completely dead. I don't think you could find much to keep yourself 'busy' in Versailles for two days, but it would be a relaxing place to spend a bit of extra time. My staying in Versailles suggestion is merely a way to reduce travel time (or, more appropriately, travel on the metro system in the evening when time's not a factor) for a morning visit to the Palace, as lines get very long for entry.

I also posted to make SURE that you don't plan on visiting Versailles on a Monday, because I wasn't aware that it was closed on Mondays. We may have arrived on a Monday night so I was lucky - I would have caught a lot of heat for planning a visit to Versailles and staying there when the palace was closed.

Hindsight's 20/10, not 20/20. Don't worry about it now; just enjoy your vacation. You can plan your next major vacation with top status.

Domestically, the difference between Hilton Gold and Diamond isn't that big. Internationally, top tier status with hotel chains can make a HUGE difference. My suite upgrade percentage is MUCH higher internationally than domestic.

I'm only speaking of Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, and Starwood. Most other hotel chains don't have as many elite benefits/treatment or are too small to take the time to discuss.

Sorry to anyone who thinks this type of discussion is inappropriate in the MS forum but what's the point of MSing if you're not going to reap the benefits of MSing? I hope that my suggestions help everyone, including those that disagree with me, when they take vacations.

Mamibear

I got email from Club Carson Visa that they are replacing the Bonus Award Night feature with a free night earned after $10K annual spend that takes effect June 1. May 28 is the last day for me to use the B.A.N For me, the elimination of the Bonus award night is a devaluation I may possibly ditch this card.

36902BRF

I wish I could say I was surprised. I nearly posted in this thread that I thought CC was ripe for a devaluation. I'll probably keep the card but it does change the math significantly.

littlewinglet

It's good for 6 free nights now, if you keep both personal and biz, get the 40k x2 free and MS your way to another 2 free nights and 2x 50k points. Considering the limited footprint of CC outside US and north Europe, I honestly can't even burn more than a weeks worth of nights in this program with my travel patterns.

I wonder if they'd wave annual fee for this year, since I just paid mine 2 months ago and now they pull this stunt out of nowhere.

36902BRF

I am guessing you are a single or a couple so probably only need one room/night. I travel with family so I need 2-3 rooms/night (especially the smaller rooms in Europe) so while I too can only burn up a week a year on average I really need two-three room weeks/year. So for me this is pretty big though I expected it was coming.

littlewinglet

Correct, I'm single and I have zero interest in resorts, so I've made good use of CC in cities like London or Paris, but in South America, Asia and Australia their presence is so slim I've never had use for it. Even south east Europe has minimal selection.

I'd probably still keep the card as I can now get 6 free nights across my 2 cars for the same "ms cost" as previously got me 8 nights.

36902BRF

I am going to keep ours but I am going to shift my spending away from these cards entirely this year. Looking at redemptions in Rome next year this card effectively is giving me less than 2% back so totally not worth it. The math still works for other locations though but they aren't on my short list next year (this year is already covered).

Fly1Away1

I recently received the club carlson card. I was afraid to ms heavy on it because the benefits were so good and I read us bank doesn't like ms. I will be hitting it hard and get whatever I can.

36902BRF

Unless less you intend to spend those points on reservations made by 5/28 (they can be for later than that date) I suggest you run some numbers on the effective cash back you are getting. A number of CC properties I looked at in Europe are giving 2.2% or less effective return when compared to the cost of a refundable reservation once you remove the free nights. At that point you have to think harder about straight cash back/Arrival card (I realize their may be upgrades, etc., that are hard to calculate). Some properties are still good values.