Boost Your Hotel Status (2019)

Hotel Strategies

Normally, the path to elite status is to stay a lot of nights at participating hotels over the course of the year. However, unless you travel a lot for work, it is hard to achieve elite status this way. Fortunately, there are some shortcuts to elite hotel status.

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Credit Cards
Airline elite status partnerships
Status matches and challenges
Ongoing status match programs

With the exception of getting Hilton Gold (or Diamond) status from one of several credit cards, it usually isn't worthwhile to get a hotel credit card, just for the extra benefits you get from credit card's elite hotel status. But, the elite status benefits are a nice side benefit of getting one of these cards for other reasons, such as their annual free night certificates. Lua error in Module:Link at line 366: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)..

Airline-Hotel elite status partnerships

Elite members of some airline programs are given automatic elite status in partner hotel programs. For example, every United Platinum member gets automatic Marriott Gold status. To receive the benefits, you have to register, and link your accounts.

United and Marriott	United Gold elites get automatic Marriott Gold status, which provides some minor benefits, but no longer provides free breakfast / club access at Marriott. United RewardsPlus.
British Airways and Langham	British Airways Gold elites get automatic Langham Voyager status. You’ll get room upgrades, late checkout, a welcome amenity, and several other benefits. Program webpage.
Singapore and Shangri La	Singapore Gold elites get Shangri La Gold status, and will be automatically upgraded to Jade with just a single stay. Gold status gets benefits like free fruit and free local calls. But, Jade members get room upgrades, late check-out, free breakfast, and other valuable benefits. All members will earn 500 Singapore miles, along with their hotel points, when they stay at Shangri-La hotels. Infinite Journeys.
China Eastern and Marriott	China Eastern has a partnership with Marriott similar Emirates’. China Eastern Gold elites get most of the benefits of Marriott Gold status, and all elites earn miles, along with points, on their stays. China Eastern elites earn 2 miles per dollar, and get a special discount at Marriott / SPG's China-based hotels. This program may not be preserved in the new unified Marriott / SPG program (which launches in August). Eastern Explorer Rewards.

Status matches and challenges

Hotels are obviously interested in winning the business of frequent travelers. To help woo customers who already have status in other programs, they will often provide a shortcut to status with their own program.

These come in two forms. A straightforward status match grants elite status in one program, if you have status in another. A status challenge allows you to earn elite status if you stay for a certain number of nights or visits over the period of a few months—usually far fewer hotel stays than would ordinarily be required.

They will even match status that you received from a credit card. For example, in 2016, we had Platinum Status from having the IHG Credit card, got Hilton to give us Diamond status based on our IHG Platinum Status, and then got Hyatt to give us Platinum status based on our Hilton Diamond status—all without making a single hotel stay.

Most of the larger hotel companies will only match your status once per lifetime, or once every few years—try to make it count. Wait until you have one or more trips planned where you expect to receive a lot of value from the additional benefits.
If you are staying with a hotel that belongs to a smaller loyalty program, that you don’t expect to frequently use, it is often worthwhile to try for status match, before any stay.
StatusMatcher is a good source of information about whether you are likely to be able to get a status match or not. StatusMatcher is a website where travelers share information about successful and unsuccessful attempts to get their status matched. It helps you see whether a program is likely to do any kind of status matching, and if so, which other programs it is likely to match, and what level of elite status you are likely to get.

Ongoing status match programs

A few hotel chains advertise status matching programs that are always available to take advantage of. In addition, some of the large hotel chains will periodically run status matching promotions. Even if you don’t read about a specific status challenge program or promotion, one may be still be possible with any given hotel program. You just need to contact them and ask.

	Best Western's “Status Match…No Catch” program will match your status from other programs. Best Western status match.
	Choice matches status from other chains. However, you are officially only permitted to status match once per lifetime. Choice status match.
	Radisson will match status from the major hotel chains. However, you can’t match to Platinum level (which gives breakfast), and they generally will only do this once in a lifetime. Radisson Rewards status match.
	Hilton's current policy is to match status from any other program for 90 days. If you want status for longer, you’ll need to stay four times during that 90-day period. If you have an upcoming stay at Hilton, you can take advantage of this to get benefits during your stay. However, you can only take advantage of this once. Hilton HHonors status match.