We’re a little over halfway through the year, which means plenty of us are doing our best to requalify for that ever-elusive elite status. To celebrate, we asked several different Upgraded Points members how far along they are — and how far they’re willing to go by the end of the year.
Our team members updated us on their efforts, including hotel elite status, airline elite status, and even Amtrak status. Let’s see how they’re doing!
Juan Ruiz, Editor
Hyatt Globalists are entitled to suite upgrades! Image Credit: James LauronisThe 2 elite statuses I covet the most right now, I happen to have. Top-tier World of Hyatt Globalist status and American’s AAdvantage Gold status are the 2 elite statuses I’m after … again.
American Airlines AAdvantage — Gold
Even at the lowest tier, AAdvantage Gold benefits, such as complimentary preferred seats (and complimentary Main Cabin Extra seats 24 hours before departure), free checked bags, priority boarding, and an elite status helpline, are incredibly valuable — especially when traveling with kids.
Right now at mid-year, I am about halfway towards my goal of retaining AAdvantage Gold and plan on earning the required 30,000 Loyalty Points by redirecting a lot of spend towards my AAdvantage® Aviator® World Elite Business Mastercard®.
World of Hyatt — Globalist
On the hotel front, I love my World of Hyatt Globalist status, but this year I’ve traveled less than last year and I find myself about 40 nights away from requalifying for 2023.
Organically, I have a few more stays this year at Hyatt hotels and I earn 2 qualifying night credits for every $5,000 in spend on my The World of Hyatt Credit Card. This means I’d probably need about 20 nights or so to qualify for Globalist status again. If that’s the case, I may consider a mattress run (or 2) to retain one of the most valuable hotel elite statuses in existence.
Katie Seemann, Senior Content Contributor
Southwest’s Companion Pass allows your companion to travel for free! Image Credit: SouthwestWorld of Hyatt — Globalist
It’s easy for frequent travelers and points and miles enthusiasts to get lured in by the promise of elite status benefits and perks, and I am in the thick of it for sure.
At the beginning of the year I decided I wanted to go for Hyatt Globalist status after having major FOMO for not going for it last year when the requirements were half of the normal amount. Now, halfway into the year, I am about halfway there, but I am pretty sure I won’t make it without a Hail Mary pass from Hyatt. I currently have 26 qualifying nights with 3 more coming soon, and I’ll probably get another 2 nights from spending on the World of Hyatt card.
That’s enough to secure Explorist status for another year, but nowhere near Globalist.
My original plan was to earn nights from spending on my World of Hyatt Business Credit Card, but I decided I don’t want to dedicate so much spend on just 1 card. So for now, I’ll take my Hyatt Explorist status along with the Club Access Awards I’ve earned through Hyatt’s Milestone Rewards and call it a day…unless Hyatt comes out with a fantastic quadruple elite night promo!
American Airlines AAdvantage — Gold
I decided to go after this one because, with the ease of the new Loyalty Points program, it seemed like an achievable goal. Since status can be earned through a combination of the AAdvantage Shopping Portal, Simply Miles, American Airlines credit cards, and flying, it just feels like a big game to me…yes, kids, you can earn airline status by shopping online!
To achieve AAdvantage Gold status, I need 30,000 Loyalty Points and I am about 80% there now. I just got the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard® so I should reach my goal pretty soon with a little spend on that card.
While earning this status has been mostly about the fun of it (wow, that’s a true miles and points nerd thing to say, huh), I do fly on American at least a few times a year so hopefully I’ll get to take advantage of a perk or 2.
Southwest Airlines — Companion Pass
Lastly, while it’s not technically a status, it’s a great perk nonetheless, so I wanted to mention it. I have already earned the Southwest Companion Pass this year. I did it by earning sign on bonuses for both the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card and the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card at the beginning of the year. Now, I’ll get buy- one-get-one-free on Southwest Airlines through the end of 2023! This is a perk I’ve gotten thousands of dollars of value from over the years.
Alaska has great relationships with its partners. Image Credit: Alaska AirlinesI think this year I may have bitten off more than I can chew. I started the year with World of Hyatt Globalist (thanks to those reduced requirements in 2021), Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite, and United MileagePlus 1K, which I had re-earned after a ton of promotions last year.
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan — MVP Gold 75K
I’m not especially fussed about re-qualifying for United. As a price-sensitive flyer, I’ll never be able to make the spend requirement needed to become a Premier 1K all over again.
Instead, I’m focusing my efforts on Alaska Airlines status. I matched status to MVP Gold 75K last year and the reciprocal benefits with American Airlines essentially double the value of the status. Plus, Alaska miles are my favorite to redeem and elite members are handsomely rewarded, so hitting MVP Gold 75K is definitely my goal.
Image Credit: Alaska AirlinesIn order to achieve this, I had originally booked several inexpensive business class fares to Israel. Most of these have been canceled, which is a shame since they would have easily gotten me to MVP Gold 75K elite status. Instead, I’ve opted for the Alaska Air Flight Pass, which grants me 2 round-trip flights per month to certain destinations on the West Coast.
I don’t have a plan for how I’m going to earn status beyond this. Likely, year-end will come and I’ll be frantically researching cheap British Airways flights for a last-minute mileage run. How else would I do it?
World of Hyatt — Globalist
I’m also looking to get Globalist with World of Hyatt again, though I’m not even halfway there yet and I’ve just got 1 reservation coming up, but I’m not overly worried.
Image Credit: HyattSince I’m based in California, it’s a short little jaunt over to Las Vegas. As an MGM Rewards Gold elite member, I can take advantage of very low weeknight rates and credit these to Hyatt without paying any resort fees. If need be, I’ll fly over on a Monday, check-in for the week, and take off. I’ll then rinse and repeat. Globalist status is worth that much to me.
IHG One Rewards — Diamond Elite
I also registered for the new IHG One Rewards status match to Diamond Elite status. I’m about halfway through the 15 required nights to get there, but I’m not sure I’ll be doing so, especially since I’m trying to focus on Hyatt.
In the meantime, I’m happy to let my Marriott Bonvoy status drop back down to Gold Elite, and I’ll keep my Hilton Honors Diamond status as long as I have the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card.
Nick Ellis, Editor and Content Contributor
Delta’s new first class aboard the A321neo. Image Credit: DeltaI typically focus on achieving and retaining status with Delta Air Lines SkyMiles and Marriott Bonvoy. Currently, I have Diamond Medallion status with Delta and Platinum Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy.
Delta Air Lines SkyMiles — Diamond Medallion
I achieved Delta Diamond Medallion status several years ago, and thanks primarily to the extensions the airline gave due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I still have it through early next year. To date, I have 108,519 MQMs and 4,513 MQDs. I need to reach at least 125,000 MQMs and 15,000 MQDs to earn Diamond Medallion status for another year. However, since I haven’t yet reached the 6,000-MQD threshold for Gold status for next year, my plan is to avoid reaching 6,000 MQDs altogether for this year. Delta rolls over MQMs at the beginning of each year, so assuming I don’t fly any more flights with Delta or its partners for the rest of the year (I’m sure I will, but nothing concrete is in the books yet), I’ll roll over about 83,000 MQMs into 2023.
Then, early next year, I’ll leverage Delta’s partner-earning chart to quickly re-qualify for Diamond Medallion status, hopefully by the end of February. If you fly with a Delta partner, you’ll earn MQDs according to your fare class and the distance flown. And thankfully, some Delta partners offer very attractive business class fares. The goal is to find the cheapest premium fare(s) that will take me as far as possible so I can earn a large number of MQDs from a single trip. Depending on the exact fares I find, I could re-qualify for Diamond Medallion status with just 2 or 3 of these trips.
And finally, since Medallion status is valid from when you earn it through the next year, if I earn it through this strategy in early 2023, I’ll also have the status through 2024!
Bottom Line: Taking advantage of mileage runs with Delta’s partners will help me earn status quickly and easily.
Marriott Bonvoy — Platinum Elite
My path to re-qualify for Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status is much more straightforward. I hold the Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Card (no longer open to new applicants), which awards 15 elite night credits each year. Since the start of the year, I’ve stayed just 12 additional nights with Marriott, which means I have a total of 27 elite qualifying nights.
While I’m still 23 nights away from hitting the 50 elite nights required for Platinum Elite status, I have several out-of-town weddings that require hotel stays, which will net me an additional 12 nights total. And, I’ve booked a 7-night stay in Southwest Florida for this fall, which will leave me just 4 nights short of re-qualifying when I complete my planned stays.
With so much travel happening spontaneously/at the last minute these days, I suspect I’ll have no problem bridging the gap on 4 additional nights to get me to 50 total. However, if I don’t plan anything else, I’ll consider the cost and benefits of booking 4 nights at an inexpensive property before making a decision either way. The primary value I get from Platinum Elite status is having complimentary breakfast at most properties, and I’ll have to make sure I’m getting more value from that perk than it’ll cost me to mattress run to re-qualify for the status.
Hot Tip: Those who hold both the consumer and small business versions of Marriott’s co-branded credit cards will receive 30 elite night credits each year.
Elsewhere, I’ll maintain Hilton Honors Diamond status thanks to the Hilton Aspire card and World of Hyatt Explorist status thanks to the World of Hyatt card.
Amtrak’s credit card offers its own coupons and lounge passes, even without elite status. Image Credit: AmtrakWorld of Hyatt — Globalist
I’m dismally behind on chasing World of Hyatt status and it’s unlikely I’ll hit 60 nights for Globalist, but will probably hit 30. I have the World of Hyatt card, so I’ll at least keep Discoverist if all else fails.
Amtrak Rewards — Select
Amtrak Rewards elite status is a toss-up: I have enough trips planned, but if my math is correct, it may not be enough to keep Select after March 2023. I get some upgrade coupons, discount coupons, and a couple of lounge passes with my Amtrak Guest Rewards® Platinum Mastercard® (my most valuable card!), so I’ll at least feel like a Select or Select Plus without actually having status — if I do end up losing it.
American Airlines’ elite status is great for those complimentary upgrades. Image Credit: Daniel RossAmerican Airlines AAdvantage — Executive Platinum
I’m pursuing American Airlines Executive Platinum status again this year and so far am well over halfway there. Thanks to the partnership with Alaska Airlines, I’ve been able to use more flights to count toward status and will be good to earn status this year, in part thanks to the distance-based earning that American uses for Alaska Airlines flights.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, everyone is doing something a little differently this year to earn elite status.
Of course, the crowd favorite here is Hyatt Globalist, where suite upgrades, complimentary breakfasts, and waived resort fees attract loads of travelers.
We also see representation here for both SkyTeam and Oneworld, although most of us are sticking with Oneworld.
How are your elite status goals coming along? Feel free to let us know in the comments or share in our private Facebook Group, Level UP Travel!
The information regarding the Amtrak Guest Rewards® Platinum Mastercard®, Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, and Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
