Starwood Preferred Guest: Platinum Status

I’ve maintained Starwood Preferred Guest Platinum status for 5 years now and have stayed over 190 nights at SPG hotels around the world. It’s the best hotel loyalty program in my opinion. The hotels and their locations are ideal for almost 100% of my travel. Starwood contains 9 brands ranging from an entry level hotel all the way to the most luxurious hotel which include a butler with your room. The brands include: Four Points by Sheraton, Element by Westin, Aloft, Sheraton, Westin, Le Méridien, W Hotels, The Luxury Collection and St. Regis. In 2013, I was fortunate to been able to stay at all 9 brands in one calendar year which gave me the opportunity to enjoy the Starwood brand.

My 2013 SPG Stats

To qualify for Platinum status, you must complete 25 stays or 50 nights. This does mean that you could qualify with just 25 (1 night) stays. To make it even easier, you can earn credit for up to 3 rooms per stay. This means with just 9 single night stays (3 rooms per stay) you could earn Platinum status. Note, those nights can’t be consecutive. There is an advantage to staying the full 50 nights as you earn 10 Suite Night Award upgrades to apply to future reservations to confirm a Suite up to 5 days prior to your stay.

Platinum Benefits:

• Earn three Starpoints for every U.S. dollar spent on eligible stays — a 50% bonus over Preferred.
• Your choice of welcome gift upon arrival — choose from bonus Starpoints, continental breakfast or local amenity.
• An upgrade to best available room at check-in — including a Standard Suite.
• 4 p.m. late checkout, when available.
• Complimentary in-room, high-speed Internet access.
• Complimentary health-club, Club-level and Executive-level access.
• Guaranteed room availability when your room is booked by 3 p.m., 72+ hours prior to arrival.
• Earn one Starpoint per dollar spent with Delta Crossover Rewards on eligible Delta flights. Plus, enjoy elite benefits when traveling with Delta, such as Priority Check-in, Priority Boarding, Unlimited Complimentary Upgrades, and first checked bag free.

The best value for your welcome gift is selecting the breakfast option at hotels where a club lounge or breakfast isn’t included with your stay as some hotels charge up to $40 per person. Otherwise, go with the bonus Starpoints.

Using Suite Night Award upgrades outside the United States can yield amazing value. My successful upgrades include:

• Westin Grand Munich – Junior Suite
• Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Bangkok – Grande Suite
• W San Diego – Fantastic Suite
• The Westin Tokyo – 1 Bedroom Suite
• Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa – Water Bungalow
• The Gritti Palace Venice – Sestriere Suite
• Sheraton Salzburg – King Suite
• Le Méridien Chiang Mai – Executive Suite
• Le Méridien Budapest – Business Suite

Brand Reviews:

• Four Points by Sheraton – Basic hotel room
• Element by Westin – Large modern rooms with kitchenettes
• Aloft – Modern rooms and a hip vibe
• Sheraton – Standard hotel room with nice amenities
• Westin – Business class hotel rooms with amazing bedding
• Le Méridien – Very unique locations and special rooms
• W Hotels – Young, hip and modern
• The Luxury Collection – Very unique locations and special rooms
• St. Regis – Top notch butler service and the best of the SPG brand

Full Details of the Program

Should I go for SPG Lifetime Platinum Status? I need to achieve 500 eligible nights total and 10 years of Platinum status to earn SPG Lifetime Platinum status. I’m ~40% of the way there…

I highly recommend obtaining SPG Platinum if you travel often and would like to be treated well during your hotel stays.