My Crazy Hyatt Diamond Shortfall
The other day I was emailing with a couple of friends who were talking about last minute mileage runs they need to do in order to re-qualify for American Airlines Executive Platinum status. If you read the exchange it would sound crazy to an outsider, but for many of us it is all part of the game. I think we do it partly for the pursuit, but the more we experience the sweeter side of travel that elite status brings, the more we want it.
While my AAdvantage Executive Platinum status is secured for 2016 thanks to the Elite Status fast track and my mileage run to Panama, my Hyatt Diamond status is not. As of now I have only completed 21 out of the 25 required stays to re-qualify. I had three more stays planned that fell through, so now I must make up four stays instead of just one.
Las Vegas to the Rescue
I live in Sin City and thus have a plethora of options for completing these four stays thanks to Hyatt’s Mlife partnership. The weeks before Christmas also happen to be among the slowest all year which mean prices fall through the floor. Of course, I can’t stay in one hotel for the four nights, so it involves a little bit of work, but here is my tentative plan.
- Night 1: Excalibur $56 including tax & resort fee
- Night 2: ?? Maybe Mirage at $80 including tax & resort fee (or Luxor see below)
- Night 3: Â Excalibur $56 including tax & resort fee
- Night 4: Luxor $62 including tax & resort fee
The rates for Excalibur are less than $22 per night and the Luxor is $26. Of course the $30 resort fee is the real killer, but it still averages out to about $60 per night for the two. I may sneak the Mirage in one of the nights, since I have never stayed and I actually only plan to sleep in these hotels one of the four nights.
I used to live close to the Strip and thus popping over for a check-in and check-out was quite easy, but now it is a bit further away so I will stay one night to make things easier. I don’t know about you, but sleeping in the Mirage is preferable to the Excalibur or Luxor, although I found the Luxor perfectly fine during my stay there earlier this year.
The Points Earned
Assuming I forego the Mirage option and do an Excalibur, Luxor, Excalibur, Luxor combination, I will earn over 1,200 Hyatt Gold Passport points and will also earn 2,400 Southwest Rapid Rewards points (600 per stay.) That adds back about $50 worth of value, so I would say my net spend is going to be $186. Of course I will get to review the Excalibur, so there is that.
Our Crazy Pursuits
When I first started in this hobby, I used to look at people who did crazy mattress or mileage runs and would tell myself that it would never be me. For awhile I held out, but eventually a previous elite fast track took me to Paraguay and instant AAdvantage Platinum. Then of course the Hyatt Diamond challenge gave me a taste of that status and now my pursuit all year has been to re-qualify. A slippery slope indeed.
One thing I don’t do in life is blindly pursue things. I genuinely value and enjoy (something without monetary value) the elite benefits I get when traveling. As I prepare for these four nights on the Strip, I have looked back and determined that it has been worth it to qualify for Hyatt Diamond again. Perhaps I’ll feel differently at the end of next year, but I’m comfortable with this plan and the position I am in.
Conclusion
I had originally planned to do these Mlife stays this week, but the flu prevented that from happening. (I am all better now thankfully!) As of now my current plan is to stay Sunday through Thursday and to add a date night with the wife for the night I’ll actually be spending in a hotel. So a little fun, a little wasted time and another year of Hyatt Diamond. It is worth it for me, but then again I am crazy.
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[…] One interesting thing about 2015 was the amount of Vegas hotels I stayed in. It started with my Bellagio room full of hair that I booked during a 2014 Expedia Black Friday sale, continued through the middle of the year where I closed out the historic Riviera and finished this past week where I stayed at the MGM Grand on my final push to requalify for Hyatt Diamond. […]
Hey I have a status you should shoot for.
It’s called Flu Shot Diamond Premier.
You have to requalify every year in October. On the bright side it only costs $40, you have a lower chance of dying, and you don’t endanger the lives of the poor people around you
Amazing so you earn GP points AND RR points for your stay?
Yes both.
I’ll be doing the same next week Shawn. Check out lasvegasadvisor.com for rates that often beat Mlife’s Platinum rates. If you book back to back nights via Mlife, they “may” get kicked back since Mlife technically requires a few days between member priced stays. Check out MGM’s next week, some include $50 resort credit for a one night stay. Any chance you answer the SW questions discreetly? Almost certain this is not public knowledge, even though it was disclosed at your meet up in September. Good luck buddy!
Thanks Henry. Do stays booked through Las Vegas Advisor count for as eligible for Mlife and Hyatt credit? Also, in regards to SW I had already drafted the post that went live before this comment, but it is on the Southwest site. I don’t think putting it out there will hurt anything or I wouldn’t have mentioned it.
Curtis’ LVA site simply redirects you to (in this case) MGM, so yes, Milfe/Hyatt/SW creditS all post. I’ve long used LVA over all other sites because it lists deals competing sites are either slow to list or don’t list. As for the pre-drafted post, no worry buddy, but I appreciate your acknowledgement of my request.
Do the SW points count toward the companion pass?
@Owen – Yes, they do 😉
MLife is a Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Partner –
Details here: https://www.southwest.com/html/rapidrewards/partners/travel/hotel/index.html
are you having problems accessing MLife website?
I am surprised they don’t waive the resort fees for their higher tier members like CET does.
They only waive it if you gamble a lot. The Platinum level doesn’t mean much, since they always look at your play activity when determining what they give you in my experience.
Shawn If you need help book some stays in Addison Texas and I will be happy to be your guest, check in and stay for you…. Addison is saturated with hotels so rates are very competitive.
Wow!
I see a new niche service being born! #WillSleepForPoints
A new barter system?
Although I’m no newbie, here’s a newbie question: How are you earning Southwest points on a stay booked via the Hyatt site?
I was wondering the same thing
Same here 😉
Wow!
I see a new niche service being born! #WillSleepForPoints
Me 3…was just going to type that.
Here you go Jake! https://milestomemories.boardingarea.com/mlife-southwest-partnership/