I’m declaring 2026 the year of freedom as, for the first time since I started traveling, I have absolutely no airline or hotel loyalty strategy apart from getting the benefits that come with credit cards that I already hold.
My airline loyalty strategy
When it comes to holding no airline elite status, this is fairly new territory for me. I’ve had elite status with an airline — and sometimes multiple airlines — since I first had enough money to travel (starting in 2007, after my 1st year of law school). And notably, I’ve had elite status with United, usually United Gold, in all but a few years between 2009 and 2025.
I was so close to getting United Silver status for 2026 that all I needed to do was take a single extra United flight, as I had the PQP but only 3 out of the 4 flights need on United metal, and I couldn’t even be bothered to do that. If you would have told me just two or three years ago that I wouldn’t go out of my way to take that extra flight, I wouldn’t have believed you — but here we are.
I’ve written about this before, but here’s what ultimately broke me: in order for me to obtain United Gold status or above, I would essentially need to book all my cash flights in business or first class and if I’m going to be paying for business or first class tickets, then I get pretty much all the benefits that I would want from status anyway.
I have almost all my flights book for the 2026 and they’re almost all long-haul international business class flights paid for with miles (booked either with Air France, British Airways, or Alaska miles). I do have one paid first class ticket with American Airlines, flying roundtrip from LAX to Miami to Anguilla in February, and anticipate that for any other travel I book with cash that I’ll be paying extra for business or first class.
There is a small chance that I’ll go for status on Alaska by putting enough spend on one of my Alaska credit cards, but given the bad experiences I’ve had with Alaska Summit card so far, it seems unlikely.
My hotel loyalty strategy
Basically, I only ever hold hotel elite status if I get it through credit cards and that’s going to remain the same for 2026. With the credit cards I currently have, that gets me the following hotel elite status:
- Hilton Honors Diamond (through my Amex Hilton Aspire Card)
- IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite (through my Chase Reserve for Business Card)
- Leaders Club Sterling Status from The Leading Hotels of the World (through my Amex Business Platinum card)
- Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status (through my Amex Business Platinum card)
I generally get the most value of my Hilton Honors Diamond status as it’s the hotel chain that I stay at the most, including recent stays at the Waldorf Astoria New York, Grand Hotel Victoria, and Hermitage Bay, with upcoming trips to Malliouhana and my 4th trip to Conrad Bora Bora Nui.
Bottom line
United officially broke me and while I’m partially sad to lose my status, I’m also excited about being a free agent. I’m also excited to use this is an opportunity to burn through the points and miles I have, as I have hefty balances that need to get spent before they’re devalued.
What’s your hotel and airline loyalty strategy for 2026? Let me know in the comments!
