FlyingAussie

Hey y'all,
Just trying to work out my work/fun travel for the rest of the year and will definitely make Platinum SPG with 50 nights - but could get to 75 - or even 100 if I dedicated all my travel to SPG. I'm currently a Gold Member.

I don't understand the difference between the Concierge service you get when you hit Platinum, and the Ambassador when you hit 100 nights? Both sound very similar (will try and save you time, make it special, get upgrades etc) so I'm not really sure what the additional Value Add of the Ambassador is?

Thanks a bunch!

UA-NYC

75 nights gets you a bonus 4th point on every $ spent with them and Your24 access...worth it to me for sure.

Can't speak to having an Ambassador though...

kudroz

deleted

iflyjetz

I read this post as you looking for the sweet spot in the SPG program. Plat now has 4 levels:
25 stays
50 nights
75 nights
100 nights

I'd definitely shoot for 50 nights (vice 25 stays) for the 10 suite upgrades.
Now let's look at 75 and 100 nights.
75 gives you an extra Starpoint/$ earned and a 24 hour checkin/checkout clock. Nice but I've got to look at what I have to give up in another program to hit this level.
100 gives you a Starwood Ambassador. Personally, I don't see the big benefit there.

If it were me, I'd shoot for 50 nights at Starwood properties and then work on elite status with another program. If I hit a certain elite status with another program (for instance Hilton or Marriott Gold), I'd look to see if I could hit 75 Starwood nights. But I personally don't find 100 Starwood nights worth the effort. Your mileage may vary.

PanAmWT

+1

Makes sense to me.

The 4th point for the P75 amounts to one (1) free night a year. People probably will not give up a higher elite level in another program for this.

Have no idea how the Ambassador at P100 is worth significantly more.

FlyingAussie

Thanks everyone for the input. Makes sense

Kudroz did you ever use the Platinum concierge service before you were upgraded to Ambassador? Is there much difference?

ihdihd

I think the multiple program strategy works well for some. For me I have three points that would keep me booking at Starwood:

1. I don't have a lot of time to on-board and keep up with a second program's rules, promotions, etc. You have to factor that opportunity cost into the mix

2. The additional nights you spend at SPG do count towards your overall lifetime total

3. SPG has hotels in most of the places that I frequent/would love to vacation in. (except for las vegas- what the hell SPG?)

iflyjetz

I completely understand. I was a Starwood Plat 2003-2005 and then switched all of my loyalty over to Marriott in order to get lifetime plat there. Now that I have lifetime plat pretty much in the bag with Marriott, I'm concentrating on Starwood and Hyatt. If Marriott has an aspirational property at a location that I'm going to, I'll stay with Marriott. Otherwise, I'll simply book with someone else.
And while most hotel programs have increased loyalty perks, Marriott seems to be reducing perks for being a loyal customer. I expect that to change eventually but I want to have other options.

I've made all of the hurdles for SPG lifetime Gold; I now need another ~140 SPG nights and 7 years as Plat for lifetime Plat. I plan on getting SPG lifetime plat.

If the original poster stays ~100 nights/year, he will have no problem getting to lifetime plat. In fact, his biggest hurdle will be having 10 years as a plat - he could easily accomplish 500 nights and 10 years as plat at the same time if he stays 50 nights/year. Same with lifetime gold - 50 nights/yr gets him 250 nights and 5 years as an elite at the same time.

wizzy

Biggest difference is level of personal attention. Before I knew better, I sent an email to the general CS email. It was automatically routed to my ambassador who quickly responded. Two days ago I cancelled a free night 2 hours after the deadline (I thought it was 24 hours, it was 48). I emailed my ambassador, she was out, but within 10 minutes I had a note from her backup saying that she had contacted the hotel, they had waived the charge, and BTW, she was backing up my regular ambassador.

I see the Ambassador level much like the higher tiers with airlines. You don't generally need it, but when you do, it sure feels good to have that human touch.

KSA_USA

no difference , it all depends on the person you are dealing with.

FlyerBeek

^ Definitely my plan as well. My only other consideration is trying to build credit for lifetime Plat. Still about 4-5 years away at my current rate of Starwood stays, but just something else that'll probably make me focus back on Starwood properties towards the end of the year once I've achieved top-tier with another program (promotions depending).

-FlyerBeek

iflyjetz

Of the 3 major hotel loyalty programs with lifetime status, SPG is the most attainable.
Hyatt - only lifetime level is Diamond. Requires 10 years as a Diamond and 1 million base points. That's a $200K spend.
Marriott - requires:
1) 12 years as a Marriott Rewards member
2) 600/600/1000 nights for lifetime silver/gold/platinum
3) 1.6/1.8/2.0 million points for lifetime silver/gold/platinum
4) attaining the lifetime level (silver/gold/platinum) at least once on an annual basis.
... Marriott silver has very little benefits so I'd consider lifetime silver to be worthless; the lowest level worth shooting for is gold.

Depending on what your objective is, either program would be an acceptable second to SPG. Personally, I'd lean toward Hyatt due to lifetime status being more easily achievable AND that they have a high number of aspirational properties. If you want to have broad worldwide coverage, Marriott is the way to go. However, I've come to realize that lifetime Marriott Gold is almost as valuable as lifetime Platinum.

From my personal experiences as of late, Marriott is very stingy on the more desirable room upgrades (there are some properties that are exceptions). If I were to rank order those hotel programs with lifetime status, I'd go with:
1) SPG
2) Hyatt
3) Marriott

We road warriors have a finite amount of working years to accumulate lifetime status. The major reason I see to achieve lifetime status is to be able to use the perks in retirement when I'm only taking a couple of vacations a year, unable to achieve elite status with any hotel chain.

Again, your mileage may vary.

jspector

Personalized service and additional attention. She calls ahead to any property I am staying at to let them know when I am arriving and what I like, e.g. welcome gifts in the room etc. Any time I have an issue, she resolves it quickly. And I can call or email her whenever - if she's not in, it goes to her backup.

bouncingbug

Big difference between ambassador and plat concierge. Personal treatment (like your personal planner) vs regular hotel concierge.

I, like some others on this thread, don't value this that much since I'm a very hands on guy. However, I definitely see how many others would value the ambassador though. Peace of mind

yosithezet

I'm also very hands-on with my travel plans and whatnot. However, my Ambassador lets me be hands-on with steroids.

Some people have identified a Plat concierge that they work with on a regular basis. The difference is that those Plat concierges don't have the same reach and levels of access throughout the organisation. Ambassadors can also go outside Starwood for things that Plat concierges are unlikely and probably not authorized to do.