As with Starwood's other nine brands, SPG members will be able to earn and redeem Starpoints ® at Tribute Portfolio hotels and enjoy in - hotel
elite tier benefits, such as upgrades, welcome amenities, late check - out and more.
Not exact matches
Costing an astronomical $ 100,000, membership to this
elite tier gives you the
benefit of a fully customized sugar dating approach.
While not an
elite status
tier, the Companion Pass allows you to earn the
benefit of bringing a companion on any flight with you for just the cost of taxes and fees.
So while Rapid Rewards does have
elite tiers, its perks and
benefits are quite different from other programs.
With the
elite membership
tiers in the program, you can unlock even more rewards and
benefits with the AAdvantage program.
This timing ensures that I'll have my top -
tier elite benefits with American this year, and Delta's next year when my AA
elite status has expired.
The real
benefits here are found on the cards that will let you charge your way to the higher
tiers of hotel «
elite.»
The MilleMiglia program has 3 levels for annual
elite status qualification (there is also a 4th level for those that have achieved top
tier status for at least 10 consecutive years, but this is not relevant to our discussion of reciprocal
benefits).
Standout
elite benefit: Top -
tier Diamond members get enhanced upgrade availability and deferral of mileage expiration.
Don't forget to include SPG Gold, which may Starwood's lowest
elite tier but probably deserves to be compared with more rarefied company due to greater
benefits and qualification criteria.
Before we look at the new
elite level
benefits, let's examine Virgin's new third
tier of seats called Main Cabin Express, which should not be confused with its Main Cabin Select seats on bulkhead and exit rows in coach.
Most hotel loyalty programs give their top -
tier elite status holders the same
benefits regardless of how they qualified for their status.
If you only have the lowest
tier of
elite status however, upgrade
benefits generally only apply to you and not your travel companion.
As top -
tier elites, SPG Platinum members are eligible for additional
benefits on their Delta flights, including:
I read that as meaning that airlines can reward their very top
elites however they wish to and in whatever way works best for them... but oneworld will stick with three
tiers and do a better job of letting the top -
tier elites know just what
benefits they have.
I've since checked the full list of
benefits that are given to Hyatt's top -
tier elites and nowhere can I see mention of this
benefit....
Hilton does, apparently, offer upgrades to their top -
tier Diamond Members at check - in although there doesn't appear to be any mention of this on their Diamond
benefits page and IHG's
elite benefits are laughable so that just leaves Starwood and their Suite Night Awards.
As you can see, now that Hilton is doing away with Points + Points, this means those at the lower
tiers of
elite status (or those without
elite status) will be hurt by the changes, while those at the top (Gold and Diamond) will
benefit or at least remain unaffected.
Hilton Diamond is the top
tier elite Hilton Honors level and will offer you the following
benefits.
Although the annual fee is a bit high at $ 195, 70,000 miles is a lot and the oppurtunity to climb
elite tiers view credit card spend is a unique and valuable
benefit.
Since I touched on
elite status, it's worth noting the window for accumulating
tier points and
benefitting from
elite status is different with M life than with many traditional hotel programs.
Similar to other award program changes, these
benefit top
tier elites the most and make it (slightly) worse for casual members.
I've already compared the
benefits of Marriott and Starwood's
elite tiers in an earlier post.
The
benefits of
elite status may not seem like much in the absence of a first class cabin, but if you listen to the top -
tier elites at other airlines complain about the stress and uncertainty surrounding their spot on the upgrade list, it doesn't seem so bad.
Basically, anyone with
elite status in the upper
tiers of MileagePlus and who doesn't need United Club access can get many of the MileagePlus Club card's secondary
benefits and more by signing up for two other cards: the Hyatt Visa and the American Express Platinum Card.
So while Rapid Rewards does have
elite tiers, its perks and
benefits are quite different from other programs.
Either way, it's a bad sign for top -
tier elites who get minimal
benefits from the Explorer card.
But Starwood Preferred Guest has a few
benefits that set it apart and make it my favorite program for top -
tier hotel
elite status, including a few that were introduced last year when SPG updated its
elite benefits — and the fact that there are over 1,000 properties (with more coming online every month) in brands I enjoy like St. Regis, Westin, the W and Sheraton where I can enjoy those
benefits puts Starwood Preferred Guest firmly in first place in my hotel
elite status quest.
Top
tier elites from both airlines will get the American AAdvantage
benefit of 8 sytemwide upgrades, international upgrades that can be confirmed at booking (subject to availability) or waitlisted on any paid fare.
Pros: All Gold Card
benefits, plus 10,000 MQMs when you reach $ 25,000 in eligible purchases during a calendar year and an additional 10,000 MQMs with $ 50,000 in spend within the same calendar year — this can make all the difference in achieving that next
tier of
elite status.
Hyatt's Guest of Honor
benefit to gift
elite status to friends or family when giving them an award stay continues, as does Hyatt's sending out 2 United club passes each year to top
tier elites.
If you're looking to get the next
elite status
tier, 4,720 miles will put you that much closer, and with most entry level
elite status levels starting off at 25,000 miles, you may find it worth it to take several of these trips to
benefit of what's to be provided at the entry - level (frankly, most entry level
tier benefits can be earned via credit card
benefits).
In a rare win for travel hackers, recent changes to the Delta Medallion program actually increase the value of top
tier Diamond
elite status, without reducing
benefits for lower levels of status.
Learn more about the qualification requirements and
benefits of each
elite tier, or see how they compare to other carriers.
As I said in yesterday's post, many of its
benefits are equal to the lowest
elite tier of Premier Silver.
Benefits of AAdvantage Gold that put American in second place were priority security access and waiver of the $ 75 same - day standby fee and the $ 75 award - processing fee for short - notice award bookings for lowest -
tier elites, the site said.