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Express Lane To Elite Hotel Status Via Credit Cards [Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt, IHG, Wyndham]

Being an elite member at a hotel chain can significantly enhance your travel. There is nothing like getting free upgrades, late checkout, free gifts when you arrive, and much more! In this post we will discuss the different benefits you can get by being an Elite member at Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt, IHG, and Wyndham. And more importantly, how you can reach the top tier status via credit cards. 

Hilton - Honors

The Hilton loyalty program includes 4 tiers; Member, Silver, Gold, and Diamond. Here is the chart of benefits that you receive with each tier: 

Member Silver Gold Diamond
Hilton Honors Discount rate Yes Yes Yes Yes
No resort fees on reward stays Yes Yes Yes Yes
Free WiFi* Yes Yes Yes Yes (Free Premium WiFi) 
Access to Exclusive Hilton Honors Experiences Yes Yes Yes Yes
Bonus Points No 20% Bonus 80% Bonus 100% Bonus
Free bottled water No Yes Yes Yes
Free fifth night  No Yes Yes Yes
Daily Food & Beverage Credit (U.S. hotels only) or Continental Breakfast (non-U.S. hotels) No No Yes Yes
Milestone Bonuses No No Earn 10,000 Bonus Points every 10 nights (after staying 30 nights in a calendar year) Earn 30,000 Bonus Points every 10 nights (after staying 30 nights in a calendar year)
Free room upgrades upon availability)  No No Up to Executive Floor room types Up to a 1-bedroom suite
Executive lounge access No No No Yes
Status extension No No No 1 extra year of Diamond status (after being a Diamond member for 3+ years, or stayed 250 lifetime nights, or earned 500,000 Base Points
48-hour room guarantee No No No Yes
Gift gold status to another Hilton Honors member No No No Yes

Hilton is pretty generous with giving away their top tier status to their loyal credit card holders. You can go all the way to the top status just as a credit card perk. Here are the details.   

Which credit card offer Hilton Silver status 

Which credit card offer Hilton Gold Status 

Which credit card offer Hilton Diamond Status

How long does status last with Hilton?

  • During Covid Hilton has suspended status expirations and have not reinstated it yet

Marriott - Bonvoy

The Marriott loyalty program includes 5 elite tiers; Silver, Gold, PlatinumTitanium, and Ambassador. Here is the chart of benefits that you receive with each tier: 

Silver Gold Platinum Titanium Ambassador
Bonus Points  10% Bonus 25% Bonus 50% Bonus 75% Bonus 75% Bonus
Late Checkout  Priority Late Checkout * 2pm * 4pm ** 4pm ** 4pm **
In Hotel Welcome Gift No Points *** Points, Breakfast Offering, or Amenity *** Points, Breakfast Offering, or Amenity *** Points, Breakfast Offering, or Amenity ***
Enhanced Room Upgrade No Based on Availability Based on Availability Including Select Suites Based on Availability Including Select Suites Based on Availability Including Select Suites
Dedicated Elite Support No No Yes Yes Yes
Lounge Access No No Yes  Yes  Yes 
Annual Choice Benefit (see below) No No Stay 50 Qualifying Nights Stay 75 Qualifying Nights No
48-Hour room Guarantee No No No Yes  Yes 
Flexibility to choose your 24-hour check-in and checkout time No No No No Yes
Special personal assistance  No No No No Yes 

* Late checkout subject to availability at all hotels.

** Late checkout subject to availability at resorts and convention hotels.

*** In-Hotel Welcome Gift varies by brand.

***** Annual Choice Benefits at the 50 night level include your choice of suite night awards, 40% off of purchasing a bed, gifting Silver status to someone else, a charitable donation, or an additional five night credits. At the 75 night level, gift options are a free night certificate valid for stays of up to 40,000 points, or gifting Gold status to someone else. 

Marriott Gold is available on multiple credit cards as a benefit. But anything higher will require a nice amount of spend on your Marriot cards in order to achieve it. Here are the details. 

Which credit card offers Marriott Silver status? 

Which credit cards offer Marriott Gold Status? 

Which credit card offers Marriott Platinum Elite?

  • Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card ($650) – complimentary 
  • Marriott Bonvoy Bold Credit Card ($0)  – after completing 35 elite nights (to reach Marriott Platinum Status you need a total of 50 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Bold card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights)
  • Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card ($95) – after completing 35 elite nights (to reach Marriott Platinum Status you need a total of 50 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Boundless card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights) or spend a total of $175,000 on your card (you get 1 elite night credit for each $5,000 you spend on the card).
  • Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card ($125) – after completing 35 elite nights (to reach Marriott Platinum Status you need a total of 50 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Business card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights)
  • Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card ($450) – after completing 35 elite nights (to reach Marriott Platinum Status you need a total of 50 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Brilliant  card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights)
Pro tip

Each Marriott credit card product type that you get gives you 15 complimentary EQNs. These EQNs are stackable.  So if you sign up to multiple Marriott cards you will get the status faster and with less spend required.

Which credit card offers Marriott Titanium Elite?

  • Marriott Bonvoy Bold Credit Card ($0)  – after completing 60 elite nights (to reach Marriott Titanium Status you need a total of 75 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Bold card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights)
  • Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card ($95) – after completing 60 elite nights (to reach Marriott Titanium  Status you need a total of 75 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Boundless card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights) or spend a total of $300,000 on your card (you get 1 Elite Night credit for each $5,000 you spend on the card)
  • Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card ($125) – after completing 60 elite nights (to reach Marriott Titanium Status you need a total of 75 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Business card you get complimentary 15 Qualifying Elite Nights)
  • Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card ($450) – after completing 50 Elite Nights (to reach Marriott Titanium Status you need a total of 75 Qualifying Elite Nights. With the Bonvoy Brilliant  card you get complimentary 25 Qualifying Elite Nights)
Pro tip

Each Marriott credit card product type that you get gives you 15 complimentary EQNs. These EQNs are stackable.  So if you sign up to multiple Marriott cards you will get the status faster and with less spend required.

Which credit card offers Marriott Ambassador Elite

You cannot get Marriot Ambassador Elite via credit card spend (you need 100 Elite Qualifying Nights plus you need to spend $20,000 at Mariott properties)

How long does status last with Marriott 

  • Complimentary status lasts as long as you hold the card open
  • Status earned by Tier-Qualifying Nights lasts until the 28th of February two years after the year the status is earned (status earned in 2022 lasts until February 28, 2024).

World of Hyatt

The World of Hyatt loyalty program includes 4 levels: Member, Discoverist, Explorist, and Globalist. Here is the list of benefits included in each tier: 

Member Discoverist Explorist Globalist
Bonus Points 5 Base Points per eligible $1 USD spent 5 Base Points per eligible $1 USD spent + 10% Bonus on eligible purchases 5 Base Points per eligible $1 USD spent + 20% Bonus on eligible purchases 5 Base Points per eligible $1 USD spent + 30% Bonus on eligible purchases
Special member Rates Yes Yes Yes Yes
Resort Fees Waived on Free Night Awards Yes Yes Yes Yes
Resort Fees Waived on Eligible Paid Rates No No No Yes
MGM Rewards Status Tier Match Sapphire Pearl Gold Gold
Free Premium WiFi No Yes Yes Yes
Free bottled Water No Yes Yes Yes
Free room Upgrade (as available at check-in) No Preferred room within type booked  Upgraded Room excluding Suites and Rooms with Club lounge access Including Standard Suites
Dedicated Check-in  area  No Yes Yes Yes
Late Checkout (as available at some locations) No 2:00 PM 2:00 PM 4:00 PM
Guaranteed Availability No No 72 hours 48 hours
Club Access or Breakfast No No No Yes
Free Parking on Free Night Awards No No No Yes
Priority Access to Rooms No No No Yes
Share your in-hotel benefits with when gifting an eligible award to family or friends  No No No Yes

In order to reach the higher levels at Hyatt purely via credit card spend you need to be ready to swipe a nice amount on your cards. Here are the details. 

Which credit card offers World Of Hyatt Discoverist?

Which credit card offers World Of Hyatt Explorist? 

  • The World of Hyatt Credit Card ($95) – You get 5 complimentary Tier-Qualifying Night Credits each year,  plus you can get  2 additional Tier-Qualifying Night Credits for each $5,000 you spend on your card in a calendar year. You need 30 nights to reach Explorist status. So to reach it through credit card spend you will need to spend $65,000 on your card. 
  • World Of Hyatt Business Credit Card ($199) – You get 5 complimentary Tier-Qualifying Night Credits for every $10,000 you spend in a calendar year . You need 30 nights to reach Explorist status. So to reach it through credit card spend ou will need to spend $60,000 on your card

Which credit card offers World Of Hyatt Globalist? 

  • The World of Hyatt Credit Card ($95) – You get 5 complimentary Tier-Qualifying Night Credits each year,  plus you can get  2 additional Tier-Qualifying Night Credits for each $5,000 you spend on your card in a calendar year. You need 60 nights to reach Globalist status. So to reach it through credit card spend you will need to spend $140,000 on your card. 
  • World Of Hyatt Business Credit Card ($199) – You get 5 complimentary Tier-Qualifying Night Credits for every $10,000 you spend in a calendar year. You need 60 nights to reach Explorist status. So to reach it through credit card spend you will need to spend $120,000 on your card

Which credit card offers World Of Hyatt Lifetime Globalist

Cannot be earned via credit card spend 

How long does status last with World of Hyatt

  • Complimentary status lasts as long as you hold the card open
  • Status earned by Tier-Qualifying Nights lasts through February 28 of the year after status is earned (status earned in 2022 lasts through February 28, 2024).

IHG Hotels

The IHG Loyalty program includes 5 levels: Club, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. One of the unique features of the IHG Loyalty program that isn’t found in other major hotel programs is that extra elite nights roll-over to the next year and apply to qualification for that year. Here is the list of benefits included in each tier: 

Club Silver Gold Platinum Diamond
Bonus Points 20% Bonus 40% Bonus 60% Bonus 100% Bonus
Elite Members’ Points Don’t Expire Yes Yes Yes Yes
Rollover Nights for Next Year’s Status Yes Yes Yes
Discounts on  Reward Night (variable, usually around 20%) Yes Yes
Dedicated Diamond Support Yes
Hertz Five Star Yes
Free WiFi Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Dedicated Check-in  area Yes Yes Yes Yes
Guaranteed Room Availability Yes Yes
Complimentary Upgrades (Subject to availability) Yes Yes
Welcome Amenity at Check-In Yes Yes
Early Check-In (Subject to availability) Yes Yes
Late Check-Out (Subject to availability) 2pm 2pm 2pm 2pm 2pm

These benefits look impressive. But the good thing is that you can go up all the way to Diamond status without even ever sleeping in an IHG hotel. Rather purely through credit card perks and spend.  

Which credit card offers IHG Sliver Elite? 

Which credit card offers IHG Gold Elite? 

Which credit card offers IHG Platinum Elite? 

Which credit card offers IHG Diamond Elite? 

Wyndham Hotels

The Wyndham Loyalty Program includes 4 levels; Blue, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Here are the benefits offered for each tier.    

Blue Gold Platinum Diamond
Member Savings Yes Yes Yes Yes
Free WiFi Yes Yes Yes Yes
Dedicated Member Services No Yes Yes Yes
Preferred Room Choice No Yes Yes Yes
Bonus Points No 10% Bonus 15% Bonus 20% Bonus
Late Checkout No Up to two additional hours Up to two additional hours Up to two additional hours
Early Check-In No No Up to two additional hours Up to two additional hours
Caesars Rewards® Status Match No No Yes Yes
Avis® and Budget® Car Rental Upgrades No No Yes Yes
Suite Upgrades No No No Yes
Welcome Amenity at Check-In No No No Yes
Gift Gold to family and friends (limit one per calendar year) No No No Yes

Here is how to push yourself into a higher status with Wyndham without even ever sleeping in a Wyndham hotel. Only by signing up to a Wyndham credit card.  

Which credit card offers Wyndham Gold?  

Which credit card offers Wyndham Platinum

Which credit card offers Wyndham Diamond? 

Cannot be achieved via credit card spend 

——————————

Thanks to the great Matthew Wood from Miles Earn And Burn for working with us to put together this post.

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Sam Sam has nearly a decade's worth of experience educating his many readers on everything credit. Sam spends his days checking out credit cards for a full report, from the minute benefit details to the shebang of welcome bonuses. Plus studying the ins and outs of building proper credit. It’s his favorite pastime and he loves sharing it with others.

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1 Comment

  1. Beautiful amazing post!!!!

    Next on the agenda is for car rentals
    And then airlines (if at all possible)

    Thank you for all the vast information you provide on a daily basis

    Reply
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Today's best offers

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