For us, getting the Hilton Aspire card is relatively "easy/no brainer," but not a lot of people are willing to pay the $450/550 a.f. I agree on flying business mostly, first class can be a bit lonely for me as I like a little socializing on the plane when everybody is a bored on those long haul flights.
That high annual fee can definitely be a bit much, and it's important to do a cost/ benefit analysis. I've only flown a fancy first class once (Singapore Airlines) -- it was fantastic , but I'm happy with flying business class most of the time too.
I never thought hilton was underrated. Its my go to for hotels, second is marrriott, last would b hyatt. Globalist just doesnt compare to diamond with hilton or even platinum with marriott. Points redemption wise hyatt shines but the bang u get with diamond status (hilton) is unmatched
I have diamond and globalist. Globalist beats the pants off of Hilton. Confirming suites at time of booking for a family trip is unmatched by any other program. 50k plus the upgrade cert for two nights in a suite in Huntington beach on labor day and memorial day? Yes please. 16k Hyatt points per night for a suite during the Canton fair with access to a huge breakfast buffet and evening all you can drink alcohol in the lounge? Fantastic. Domestically Hilton sucks with upgrades. Only time I have been upgraded domestically is at the Vegas crockfords. Most Hiltons I have to go don't have lounges any more. They shut down during COVID and never opened up. Whereas the Hyatt's I have been to still do. Even level 4 properties in New York. I always get 4 pm checkout whereas Hilton plays the subject to availability which guess what? It's never available.
The best churning was the us mint deals. I remember depositing $1 uncirculated coins at my bank on my business account $5k at a time 😂 the best part was the mint would overnight them to me via ups . Got to the point where tellers were asking for the coins because they would collect them. The golden age points and miles.
some credit cards have no annual fee. For timing when to sign up, Southwest cards are the other one where it makes the most difference if you want to go for Companion Pass. For calendar vs. policy year credits, Amex cards like Amex Platinum credits are something where this would apply as well.
The F&B credit is U.S. Hiltons only. All international Hiltons give full breakfast. Really wish Hilton switched back to giving full breakfast back in the U.S.
@@geobreezetravel Is there a definitive guide to doing the whole MyVegas thing? Trying to get myself into doing that, but it all seems kind of confusing especially with all the different apps!
Hilton offers much better value internationally, especially Asia. Domestically, it's pretty weak. International properties tend to value Diamonds much more - they don't understand how blindingly easy it is to get status, so they actually offer great perks and value elites. Back in the day, Grocery was 6x on Surpass and you could knock out hundreds of thousand of points easily at low cost (less than 0.2cpp). Top properties were commonly 60K a night, so your net cost would be about $120/night for $600-$1000/night properties - your cpp value was tremendous. Plus you'd earn Free Night Awards for card spend (they were weekends only, unlike now). And there is/was 5th night free, so you could stay 7 days and pay for 4 if you worked it optimally. Then Hilton went to dynamic pricing and ability to get outsized value dropped drastically. It's still a decent program, but not as good for luxury stays as Hyatt, especially since churning gift cards is mostly a thing of the past. Hilton's 5th night free and Free Night Awards make it a top program for cost-conscious travelers.
For us, getting the Hilton Aspire card is relatively "easy/no brainer," but not a lot of people are willing to pay the $450/550 a.f.
I agree on flying business mostly, first class can be a bit lonely for me as I like a little socializing on the plane when everybody is a bored on those long haul flights.
That high annual fee can definitely be a bit much, and it's important to do a cost/ benefit analysis. I've only flown a fancy first class once (Singapore Airlines) -- it was fantastic , but I'm happy with flying business class most of the time too.
I never thought hilton was underrated. Its my go to for hotels, second is marrriott, last would b hyatt. Globalist just doesnt compare to diamond with hilton or even platinum with marriott.
Points redemption wise hyatt shines but the bang u get with diamond status (hilton) is unmatched
I agree. I often get over .01 per point and upgrades
Yup! A lot of people getting into points look for a end-all-be-all answer, but there are actually lots of different ways to play the game!
I have diamond and globalist. Globalist beats the pants off of Hilton. Confirming suites at time of booking for a family trip is unmatched by any other program. 50k plus the upgrade cert for two nights in a suite in Huntington beach on labor day and memorial day? Yes please. 16k Hyatt points per night for a suite during the Canton fair with access to a huge breakfast buffet and evening all you can drink alcohol in the lounge? Fantastic. Domestically Hilton sucks with upgrades. Only time I have been upgraded domestically is at the Vegas crockfords. Most Hiltons I have to go don't have lounges any more. They shut down during COVID and never opened up. Whereas the Hyatt's I have been to still do. Even level 4 properties in New York. I always get 4 pm checkout whereas Hilton plays the subject to availability which guess what? It's never available.
The best churning was the us mint deals. I remember depositing $1 uncirculated coins at my bank on my business account $5k at a time 😂 the best part was the mint would overnight them to me via ups . Got to the point where tellers were asking for the coins because they would collect them. The golden age points and miles.
that was a great one back in the day!
Do all credit cards charge AF on an annual basis like the Hilton or depends? Are there any other cards that matter when we sign up besides Hilton?
some credit cards have no annual fee. For timing when to sign up, Southwest cards are the other one where it makes the most difference if you want to go for Companion Pass. For calendar vs. policy year credits, Amex cards like Amex Platinum credits are something where this would apply as well.
The F&B credit is U.S. Hiltons only. All international Hiltons give full breakfast. Really wish Hilton switched back to giving full breakfast back in the U.S.
I definitely miss the full breakfast days in the US!
Hilton. For the Stay.
Definitely a great option!
#teammyvegas over here too. Actually when we’re out there next week at the Aria are a couple of comp rooms.
yay!!! It's one of the best apps for getting free hotel nights without really needing to do much at all!
I absolutely love Kabul.
I've never been, but I've heard great things!
Julia, I do the MyVegas app on an old phone! Really no biggie 😊
nice! That's actually a great idea now that you mention it: connect an older phone to wifi and run the MyVegas app on that to earn free nights!
@@geobreezetravel Is there a definitive guide to doing the whole MyVegas thing? Trying to get myself into doing that, but it all seems kind of confusing especially with all the different apps!
Hilton offers much better value internationally, especially Asia. Domestically, it's pretty weak. International properties tend to value Diamonds much more - they don't understand how blindingly easy it is to get status, so they actually offer great perks and value elites.
Back in the day, Grocery was 6x on Surpass and you could knock out hundreds of thousand of points easily at low cost (less than 0.2cpp). Top properties were commonly 60K a night, so your net cost would be about $120/night for $600-$1000/night properties - your cpp value was tremendous. Plus you'd earn Free Night Awards for card spend (they were weekends only, unlike now). And there is/was 5th night free, so you could stay 7 days and pay for 4 if you worked it optimally. Then Hilton went to dynamic pricing and ability to get outsized value dropped drastically. It's still a decent program, but not as good for luxury stays as Hyatt, especially since churning gift cards is mostly a thing of the past. Hilton's 5th night free and Free Night Awards make it a top program for cost-conscious travelers.
One of my first complimentary hotel breakfasts was Double Tree in Kuala Lumpur and it was absolutely spectacular.
Hilton is great abroad. In the US, the free night certs are good, but everything else with Hilton sucks.
I definitely also get upgraded more with Hiltons abroad
Too long of video
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