Why I’m giving up Hyatt Globalist status (& my other 2026 Elite status plans)

My wife and I got super lucky in 2018.

Prior to 2018, only paid nights and Points + Cash nights counted for elite status in the World of Hyatt program, but that changed in 2018. On January 1, 2018 – the same date we set off on our 7 year, 50 state road trip – Hyatt award nights also earned elite night credits.

Our very first hotel on the road trip was a category 1 Hyatt Place and we ended up staying at tons of different Hyatt properties on our road trip. Seeing as we were living in hotels and Airbnbs, that meant I earned Globalist status every year of the road trip with no effort whatsoever. That put us in a ridiculously fortunate position and it was made even better when Milestone Rewards were introduced as we often exceeded the 60 nights needed for Globalist status. Milestone Rewards meant we continued to be rewarded for every 10 elite nights we earned beyond 60.

Our road trip finished on December 31, 2024, but we ended up having a bunch of Hyatt stays early in 2025 which meant we wrapped up Globalist status fairly early in the year. After eight years of earning Globalist status with ease though, we’re preparing for life sans this valuable and sought after elite status.

Thanks to the way World of Hyatt elite status works, I’ll still be Globalist for another 14 months. When you earn 60 elite nights in a calendar year, you get Globalist status for the rest of that year, all of the next year, and then through to the end of February the year after that. That means that the Hyatt status I earned in the first half of 2025 will be valid through February 28, 2027.

There are two key reasons why I’m unlikely to earn Hyatt Globalist status again any time soon.

Too many other hotel nights

Now that we’re not traveling full time, we obviously don’t need to book as many hotel stays. Despite that, we have all kinds of hotel stays we “need” to book each year. That’s due to the following free night certificates and credits from a plethora of credit and charge cards if we don’t want them to go to waste:

• 14 x $300 Fine Hotels + Resorts® (FHR) credits. My wife and I currently have seven American Express Platinum Card® and Business American Express Platinum® cards between us, so we get seven credits of up to $300 to redeem from January to June and another seven to redeem from July to December.
• 6x Hilton free night certificates. Shae and I have six Hilton Aspire cards between us, so we get six free night certificates each year at renewal.
• 5x Marriott 35K free night certificates. Between us we also have five different Marriott credit cards, each of which provide a free night certificate at renewal that can be redeemed for a night worth up to 35K points and can also be topped up with up to 15K further points if needed.
• 2x Hyatt category 1-4 free night certificates. Shae and I are both World of Hyatt cardholders, a card that offers a category 1-4 free night certificate at renewal each year.
• 4x IHG 40K free night certificates. We also have both an IHG Premier and IHG Select card (the latter of which is no longer available for new applications) for each of us. The IHG Premier certificates can be topped up by an unlimited number of points, while the certificates from IHG Select cards can only be redeemed for nights costing up to 40K points with no topping up.
• 2x $50 Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card hotel credits. Another card that we each have is the Sapphire Preferred. One of its benefits is an up to $50 statement credit for hotel stays booked through Chase Travel℠ per cardmember year.

That’s a total of 31 hotel nights each year which covers a lot of our hotel needs for the year, as well as the two $50 Sapphire Preferred credits. That list doesn’t even take into account the various Hilton credits we have on an assortment of Amex cards, from $200 resort fee credits on the Hilton Aspire card to $50 quarterly credits on Hilton Surpass and Business Platinum cards. Those can be used for incidental charges, so we don’t necessarily need to spend them on room rates, but paying for hotel stays themselves is one potential use.

Not enough Hyatt nights. Probably.

The other key reason why I’m unlikely to earn Globalist status again any time soon is that we’re simply not going to earn enough elite night credits with Hyatt each year.

That’s not to say that we won’t get fairly far along the road to Globalist status. My Hyatt credit card comes with five elite night credits each year. I spend $15K on it each calendar year which gets me both a category 1-4 free night certificate and six elite night credits (the card offers two elite night credits for every $5K you spend). That’s 11 nights each year by default without heads in beds.

Now that Hyatt lets you easily transfer awards between loyalty program members, the anniversary free night certificate my wife earns on her Hyatt card can be sent to me. Both her anniversary certificate and mine takes us up to 13 nights, with the certificate I earn from $15K spend putting us at 14 if it’s redeemed within the same calendar year as it’s earned.

We’ll also likely have some number of Hyatt stays each year. For example, during 2026 we already have 14 Hyatt nights booked, with at least three more nights I plan to book at a Hyatt property through Fine Hotels + Resorts now that those credits have reset. That means this year I’ll end up with a minimum of 30 nights organically. That’s handy because that’ll mean I earn an additional category 1-4 free night certificate. If I put more spend on my Hyatt card and we have one or two more stays, I could probably get to 40 nights with relative ease, thereby earning a valuable Guest of Honor award which can get us Globalist benefits on a stay of up to seven nights, as well as the option to pick a Suite Upgrade award that could be redeemed on a different stay (you can’t redeem both a Guest of Honor and Suite Upgrade award on the same reservation).

Unless Hyatt comes out with a premium card that comes with a more significant chunk of elite night credits than five each year, I’ll likely make do with 40 – or maybe 50 – elite nights from 2026 onwards. I could try to spend my way to Globalist status using my Hyatt credit card, but the effort and opportunity cost of that could be questionable.

On the one hand that’s a real shame because it’s been lovely earning Globalist status since 2018 without having to break a sweat. On the other hand, we’ll be having far fewer Hyatt stays in the future, so the upside of having Globalist status will be limited. Besides, now that Hyatt lets members easily transfer Suite Upgrade and Guest of Honor awards, I’ll hopefully be able to get my hands on any additional ones I need from March 2027 onwards.

What would be nice is if Hyatt offered rollover elite nights, perhaps by having members forgo Milestone Rewards if they want to take advantage of that benefit. For example, provided I haven’t messed up in my calculation of spend on my Hyatt card, I’ll have earned 80 elite night credits for 2025 by the time my next statement closes. If Hyatt gave the option to give up the 70 and 80 night Milestone Rewards, I’d be very tempted to take that exchange in return for 20 elite night credits in the next elite status year (i.e. the number of nights in excess of the 60 needed for Globalist). Seeing as I think I might reach 40 nights this year, getting to add those extra 20 nights would put me at 60 – the exact amount needed to reup Globalist through February 29, 2028.

It’ll also be possible to get Faux-balist status on Hyatt stays through Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts. FHR stays include complimentary breakfast for two people and guaranteed 4pm late checkout. Those are two of the Globalist benefits that I value most, so if we book Hyatt stays that way, it won’t be quite as jarring. That said, we would still miss out on suite upgrades, lounge access, and free parking on award stays.

My other hotel elite status plans

OK, so my Hyatt plans are highly unlikely to include trying to earn Globalist status again in the near future. That’s not the only hotel elite status in town though, so here are my other plans.

Marriott

Thanks to Marriott taking over Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) a number of years ago, elite night credits from credit cards, elite night boosts during COVID, and organic stays and subsequent status earned, I earned lifetime Platinum status at the end of 2024. That gets us complimentary breakfast (subject to Marriott’s byzantine rules) and lounge access for as long as Platinum status includes those benefits.

That means there’s not really any need to try earning Platinum or Titanium status in the future unless I also want to earn Choice benefits such as Nightly Upgrade Awards.

Having said that, I currently have a (very nice) dilemma over whether to try to qualify for Titanium status or not. I’m fortunate to be in a somewhat unique position where I can earn a large number of elite night credits each year, albeit at a relatively high cost. I’ll be exploring that in a separate post in the next week or two, so stay tuned for that.

Hilton

Having an Aspire card (well, two) means I have sort-of top tier Diamond status. I call it sort-of top tier because Hilton has introduced Diamond Reserve status, but it requires $18K spend at Hilton properties per year. Likewise, Marriott Titanium status is sort-of top tier for us mere mortals who aren’t willing to spend $23K per year for Marriott Ambassador status.

IHG

I’ve had top tier Diamond (and before that, Spire) elite status for several years. During COVID it was easier to earn due to reduced elite night requirements, then for the past year or two I’ve bought enough Elite Qualifying Points to retain Diamond status. That’s coming to an end though.

IHG is running that Elite Qualifying Points offer again this year and I’m targeted once more. I’ve been a little tempted, but the cost of the points is more expensive than last year. The main benefit of Diamond status is complimentary breakfast which can be valuable if you’ll spend a lot of nights at Holiday Inns, Crowne Plazas, InterContinentals, etc. However, our hotel plans for 2026 currently include zero IHG properties other than redeeming our credit card certificates and possibly a stay at a Holiday Inn Express in Newcastle later this year which will automatically include free breakfast. Overpaying for IHG points that I probably won’t need to redeem in the next 12 months and getting complimentary breakfast at hotel brands we won’t be staying at doesn’t make sense for us, but for others it could definitely be a good deal.

Wyndham

I have the Wyndham Rewards Earner Business card which comes with Diamond status. It’s my go-to card for paying for gas because it earns 8x worldwide – not just in the US – which is handy because a) we live in the UK now and b) gas is much more expensive here. That, along with the 15K bonus points earned when renewing the card each year, make it a no brainer card for keeping open and paying the annual fee.

Choice

Our stays at Choice properties are very rare and I don’t have a Choice credit card, so I only have Member level. That’s no big loss as Choice elite status counts for very little, although it is getting better than in the past.

Radisson

Choice Privileges bought Radisson Rewards Americas a few years ago, but Radisson Rewards still exists outside of the Americas. I took advantage of an instant upgrade to VIP status back in 2024 which lasted for 24 months. That means I still have VIP status and it’s not due to expire until August 2026. I’ve not made use of it up until now, but I’d love to book at least one stay this year to experience it because I’ve heard that Radisson Rewards is very good about honoring status benefits worldwide. VIP status includes free breakfast for two, free room upgrades to the best category (including suites), late checkout, and more.

Leading Hotels of the World

Amex Platinum and Business Platinum cards now offer Sterling status in the Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) loyalty program called Leaders Club.

Sterling status awards five pre-arrival upgrades each year, free breakfast for two, and more. I’ve come across quite a few LHW properties when searching for Fine Hotels + Resorts stays, so we might get to stack that status with FHR benefits in the future.

Accor

At the start of 2025, Bilt offered a status match to Accor, with that status lasting through the end of the year. My wife and I both matched to that which meant we both had Silver status all of last year. We could’ve maintained that status for a further year by staying three qualifying nights last year, but neither of us did that. As a result, I’ve dropped to their entry level Classic status.

Preferred Hotels

A couple of years ago or so I did some kind of status match with the Preferred Hotels iPrefer loyalty program. That status has long since expired, so I’m left with their entry level Silver status.

My airline elite status plans

I got to benefit from quite a few airline elite statuses during 2025, but my status in 2026 will be minimal, if not non-existent.

American Airlines

I took advantage of a limited time American Airlines status match from my Hyatt Globalist status which earned me Platinum Pro status for four months. That status expires in the next few days which means I’ll drop to regular member level. We have a few economy flights with British Airways this year, so I’ve already attached my American Airlines AAdvantage number to those reservations and selected my seats. Those selections won’t disappear when my AA status does which is why I took care of that already.

FWIW, I booked those flights using Avios. British Airways doesn’t let you enter your AAdvantage number when booking award flights like that, while afterwards I couldn’t change it on BA.com. In the past I believe it was possible to do it on the websites of Finnair and Royal Jordanian, but I was striking out with them. Thankfully the workaround was fairly simple; BA’s website has an online chat feature and I was able to get my AAdvantage number added to my reservations that way without needing to call.

Although I’m going to lose my American Airlines status imminently, that might not be for long. I still need to pick my Hyatt 70 night Milestone Reward and will hopefully be getting my 80 night Milestone Reward soon. One of the options for each of those is the ability to select American Airlines AAdvantage Gold status. I’m tempted to select that, but I don’t know how much value I’ll get from it, so I might choose 10K bonus points or a Suite Upgrade award instead. Hyatt gives you 90 days to select your Milestone Rewards, so my 70 night selection has to be made by mid-January and I’ll probably choose the 10K points or Suite Upgrade award. However, provided my two elite night credits for spending $5K on my Hyatt card get credited to the 2025 year correctly, I’ll get my 80 night Milestone Reward in the next couple of weeks. That’ll give me until mid-April to decide if I want to select Gold status for that subsequent Milestone Reward.

United

I’ve earned Titanium status with Marriott for the last five or six years. One benefit of Titanium status is a match to United Silver status which has been very nice to have, especially with a large TravelBank balance.

With only 57 nights on the book with Marriott last year and 75 required for Titanium, I’ll be dropping to Platinum status for 2026. That means no Silver status in the United MileagePlus program, at least for now.

As I mentioned earlier, I have a fairly easy route to Titanium if I want to make the investment, so I could probably get that wrapped up by the end of April. If I do, I’d get United Silver status back pretty much instantly. I don’t have any travel planned with United – or any other Star Alliance airline – before then, so losing Silver status temporarily should have zero impact.

Aeroplan

Another benefit of Marriott Titanium status is 25K status with Aeroplan. That’s another benefit that’s just ended for me due to the drop to Marriott Platinum status, although it’ll return if I earn Titanium status again later this year.

Delta

Toward the end of 2024, I received a targeted offer awarding Delta Silver status. That was a little random as it came via Hilton Honors. That status lasted for six months, but it’s long since expired and I have zero plans to earn Delta status.

Alaska Airlines

I’m about to fall below 5/24, so I’ve been trying to hold off on applying for personal cards in recent months.

Once I’m below 5/24 and have applied for the Chase cards I’m interested in, I’ve seriously considered getting the Atmos™ Rewards Summit Visa Infinite® Card. The card earns 3x on dining and 3x on foreign transactions with no foreign transaction fee. Being based in the UK nowadays means a decent amount of my organic spending is overseas from the US, so earning 3x Atmos Rewards on that would be very nice, especially considering you can earn Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards status through spend.

There is a caveat to this though. I’ve not explored the opportunities to expand my spending potential in the UK yet, but I’m not convinced there’s all that much there compared to the US (such as buying groups). That’ll constrain my ability to earn status while simultaneously earning 3x on that spend, so this might not be a worthwhile route to Atmos Rewards status.

Singapore Airlines

Up until a few days ago, earning elite status in the Singapore Airlines Krisflyer program wasn’t on my radar. That changed though thanks to their new reciprocal status match offer with Marriott.

If you have Platinum, Titanium, or Ambassador status with Marriott Bonvoy, you can match to Krisflyer Silver status for 12 months, with the opportunity to fast track to Krisflyer Gold status after taking four flights with Singapore Airlines within six months of linking your accounts.

It’s highly unlikely I’ll be needing to book paid Singapore Airlines flights in the near future, so Silver status is the best I can hope for. I don’t have any Singapore flights planned any time soon, nor any travel on Star Alliance airlines. However, I’ve set myself a weekly calendar reminder about this opportunity in case it’ll come in handy later this year. Seeing as the status lasts 12 months, it doesn’t seem worth matching now.

Frequent Miler team status plans

Nick’s already published his 2026 status ambitions (see Looking ahead: My elite status plans in 2026 (on Nick’s mind)). Greg and Tim will be publishing their plans in the coming days, so stay tuned for those.

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