In my opinion, the Hilton Diamond VIP experience has been on the decline. Upgrades have become few and far between and some properties. The staff don't go out of their way to make sure your loyalty is recognized. Instead, you get the stock, "We thank you for your loyalty as a Diamond member. Unfortunately, [insert appropriate "no" response to your request here]." Most recently, that happened when checking in for my anniversary at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach (where we've stayed on average 3-4 times per year) and not getting an upgrade, special treat, or even the flexibility to switch from a room with two queens to one king bed! I guess I should be grateful for having my checkout time extended by a whopping 90 minutes (negotiated up from their initial offer of one hour).
This plus feedback from friends about their satisfaction with Starwood Platinum Preferred Guest status led me to want to focus on staying at Starwood properties. However, with only three stays logged on my Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) account since 2006, I'm a nobody. The thought of starting out from scratch to build up to Starwood's equivalent of Hilton's Diamond status seemed daunting.
Thinking it was a complete long shot, I called SPG last week. I simply explained that I am a Hilton Diamond VIP and I wanted to consider directing my business to Starwood going forward. I asked if there was any opportunity for them to offer me Starwood Platinum status to match my status with Hilton. The representative explained there was a program they offered to do just that. I was still skeptical that somehow I wouldn't qualify when they saw that I had only three stays in the past four years. The representative explained that I simply needed to fax in a screenshot of my Hilton HHonors account showing my account number and active status as well as the same for my SPG account. The information would be reviewed and I would be notified within 30 days.
Much to my surprise, within one day of faxing the information, I received an email from the the SPG Platinum Liaison informing me that I had been awarded Platinum Status. The email set our new relationship off on the right foot:
"Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to send in your Diamond level credentials with Hilton HHonors. We are excited to hear that you have considered making Starwood Hotels and Resorts the place for making your dreams come true.
As you are already an elite member with Hilton HHonors, we recognize your extensive travel needs. It is our pleasure to make a one time complimentary upgrade to our Starwood Preferred Guest Platinum Preferred Level for the remainder of 2011. In addition to the great benefits of our Platinum Preferred Guest Level, we simply ask that you maintain 25 eligible stays or 50 eligible nights each year. This minimum requirement is based upon a calendar year, January 1 through December 31."So, now we'll see what happens. Hopefully SPG Platinum will live up to my expectations and I'll be motivated to stay at Starwood hotels frequently enough to maintain my status after December 31. In the meantime, I feel a sense of newly found freedom by breaking things off for the time being with Hilton so I can "see other people".
