Not everyone has the appetite to stay 50+ nights in a hotel chain to earn elite status, so what are the ways to get something comparable?

Hyatt Guest of Honor

Let’s start off with an easy one–if you already know someone who is a Hyatt Globalist, that is. The Hyatt Guest of Honor award is a feature once you (or someone else) stays 40 eligible nights at a Hyatt hotel. This could also be earned with credit card spend on either the personal or business versions of the Hyatt co-branded credit cards. In theory, a member can earn up to 10 such awards in one year (1 at 40 nights; 2 at 60 nights; 1 each at 70, 80, & 90 nights; 1 each at 110, 120, 130, & 140 nights).

You can either use them for yourself or gift them to someone else for them to use. What do you get with the award? Pretty much everything a Hyatt Globalist would expect to get:

• Complimentary full breakfast (entree or buffet, coffee, and juice) for up to two registered adults and two registered children.
  • Tax and tip are included in the benefit
  • The child ages that qualify are up to each hotel to separately determine, but I think it’s reasonable to expect children up to age 12 to qualify.
  • There are a few hotels where the breakfast benefit does not apply, but there are only a small number of exceptions (such as vacation ownership properties).
• Guaranteed late checkout at 4PM except at resorts
  • But it doesn’t hurt to ask anyways
• No resort fees on any eligible rate, including cash rates
• Free parking on award nights
• Room upgrade, including up to standard suites
  • However, there is a limited inventory of suites and hotels need to prioritize upgrades, so some hotels might place Guest of Honor suites lower than other Globalist members.

I’d offer up some caution if you insist on buying these awards on the black market. Back when we were at the Baha Mar, I overheard someone bragging about spending upwards of $50 for the award off someone else on the internet. Buying these awards is against the terms and conditions of the World of Hyatt program and you don’t know how ethical the person is on the other end. It’s best not to risk getting in trouble and losing your Hyatt account all because of these awards.

Premium credit card options

If you have the right credit card, you can give yourself benefits that rival top-tier elite features at the major chains.

American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts

If you have an American Express Platinum card (personal or business versions), you’ll be eligible to book hotels through the Fine Hotels & Resorts (FHR) platform. We have used FHR rates a few times, most recently at The Seabird Resort in Oceanside, California.

You can typically expect the following set of benefits:

• Early check-in (12PM), when available
• Guaranteed 4PM late check-out
• Room upgrade, when available
• Daily breakfast for two
• Complimentary Wi-Fi
• $100 on-property credit (some properties offer more)

There are times where some hotels treat customers who booked through FHR as better than normal elites. The nice thing is that FHR rates typically do count as eligible rates for loyalty programs. That means you can earn elite night credit by providing your loyalty number. And if you have elite status already with the program, some benefits overlap but it’s still a help to get that on-property credit.

A side note: looking to earn elite night credit in one account but someone else has the American Express Platinum card? Just enter the name and loyalty number of the person who wants the credit into the reservation. It’ll still work despite the credit card not having your name on it. Just be aware that usually hotels require an American Express card to be presented to pay for the bill, but I’ve found it doesn’t have to be the Platinum used to book the room (I typically bring it just in case).

Chase “The Edit” or Renowned Hotels

The Chase equivalent to Amex’s FHR is called The Edit. You can book this rate if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve or JP Morgan Reserve cards. There’s actually an option called Renowned Hotels available to premium United Airlines cardholders (United Club Infinite, United Club Business, United Quest, United Presidential Plus, and United Presidential Plus Business).

The benefits are largely similar:

• Early check-in, if available
• Late checkout, if available
• Room upgrade, when available
• Daily breakfast for two
• Complimentary Wi-Fi
• $100 on-property credit

The benefit of Chase’s program is really the wide range of cards that have access to book these rates. Making the $250 annual fee United Quest card eligible is definitely a plus. On the downside, not having late checkout a guaranteed benefit is what you give up here.

We haven’t had a chance to test it out yet, but reports are that elite night credit and elite benefits are honored when entering your details.

Citi Hotel Collection and Luxury Collection

Have a credit card that earns ThankYou points? You’re eligible to use the Citi Hotel Collection. If you have the Citi Strata Premier or Citi Prestige (no longer available), you can instead book on the Citi Luxury Collection. In either case, you’ll log into the same place on Citi’s website.

Benefits include:

• Early check-in, if available
• Late checkout, if available
• Daily breakfast for two
• Room upgrade, when available (Luxury Collection only)
• $100 on-property credit (Luxury Collection only)

Citi offers the widest-reaching benefit, allowing cards that don’t have an annual fee (like the Citi Rewards+ card), though it also promises the least for these cards. Still, having free breakfast is certainly better than nothing. And don’t expect to earn any elite credit or use your elite benefits with these rates.

Capital One Premier Collection

Open to Venture X and Venture X Business cardholders, The Premier Collection is the latest entry into the premium credit card hotel platform.

Promised benefits are the following:

• 10x Capital One points earned on the booking
• Early check-in, if available
• Late checkout, if available
• Room upgrade, when available (for hotels only)
• An experience credit up to $100 in value
• Daily breakfast for two (for hotels only)

The one benefit Capital One has over others is the 10x bonus point multiplier. Of course, not having late checkout as a guaranteed benefit might be a turn-off for some. Also, don’t expect to earn elite credit or use elite benefits on stays booked through this program.

Book via special travel agents

Each major hotel chain has its own version of these programs. As of this writing, these are the ones that I could track down:

• Four Seasons Preferred Partner
• Hilton for Luxury
• Hyatt Privé
• Vita by Leading Hotels of the World
• Mandarin Oriental Fan Club
• Marriott STARS and Luminous
• The Peninsula PenClub
• Virtuoso (not affiliated with a specific hotel group)

To book these rates, you’ll need to track down a travel agent who is able to sell these rates. A simple internet search should turn up options for you, but of course each travel agent offers different levels of service.

The benefits offered are largely similar to what the major credit card companies offer. Why would you want to book with these hotel chains directly rather than through premium credit cards? Well, for one, it doesn’t require you to be dependent on expensive credit cards. But it also helps ensure you get elite night credit at your preferred chain and anecdotally it might help with upgrades. If a hotel wanted to prioritize upgrading two guests who would otherwise on equal footing, theory states that the hotel would give preference to the one booking the chain’s rates.