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The above is my current Delta Air Lines Million Miler lifetime status. Before COVID hit I fully expected, with my normal yearly Delta flights, to be near 2 million miler status by now or at least nearing that large number.
Well, like most of us my flying has been very much limited over the past two years. Not only that but as regular readers here on the blog have seen, I am done chasing Delta Diamond Medallion status after this year (I will make it for 2023 but then I am done). Why? Delta is no longer my airline of choice and I have found myself as a “free agent” this year and very much enjoying flying any airline that gives me real value for my points vs. the ghastly Delta redemption for international business class travel.
I do really want to be lifetime (I know – Delta calls is “annual” gifted status) Gold status granted to me each year with no effort needed on my part other than my past travels. Why do I want this?
Skyteam.
I have no idea where I will land one day when I fully retire. It may be in the US but it is just as likely to be outside the US. Right now as a Delta lifetime Silver medallion it means almost nothing. Once I am Gold (and above) it opens up a number of doors with Delta partners when flying coach tickets.
But as you can see I have a ways to go. I am still in need of almost half a million elite points or MQMs to get there. Again, in the past, hammering spending on my Delta Amex Reserve card(s) yielded a boatload of MQMs each year but currently, I don’t hold either of the two I had before. Normally a few partners’ cheap business class mileage runs also yielded a huge haul of MQMs but I am less inclined to do so going forward.
My biggest frustration is Delta could fix this. They could walk back the devastation they have inflicted on the SkyMiles program but I doubt they will.
You tell me. What do you think? If you were me would you slog on and for the next few years still focus on Delta to reach my goal or has Delta shown themselves to be so untrustworthy with their elite program that they may just pull the rug out from under me when I get there? – René
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As a Two Million Miler, and Diamond on Delta I can say The last two flights to SFO and OGG I was truly treated like a peasant. So I will not be a Diamond this year which hurts because I been a Diamond since the beginning and before that a Platinum… What happen to KEEP CLIMBING …
I think you Should “keep on slogging “ you and Lisa are young. And have many years of wonderful travel ahead
Of you. After having come so far… why would you dump what you had worked for when you are really relatively near.
Even if you do NOT fly delta, their partners have some lovely flights and the perquisites you could enjoy at
2 million.
I wonder if I will
Make it to two million ???? Hmmmm I’m going to try just for the heck of it without going crazy because, I
Am already!!!!! Hahaha enjoy happy 4th
The quality of service on alliance partners can vary but, if I were in your position, I’d give it a shot. There have been multiple occasions when I’ve needed to pop over to Europe on little notice and my status really helped. I also focus on Comfort+ options on international hops as valuable. My math may be fuzzy but the value I assign there is high.
I was a road warrior with Diamon status for years before COVID. Last year, they changed the program to 2 levels (paraphrasing my understanding):
1. Full Diamond – meet both requirements and continued as normal
2. Sub Diamond – Delta extended status but one or both requirements weren’t met which meant Full Diamond was ahead of sub Diamond.
All this to say, I didn’t do much work travel last year but did family trips to include a big one to Hawaii. We purchased 1st class tickets for 3x major trips. One nice thing is Delta finally allowed us to earn our requirements if we used points (which we did).
For anyone only doing 1-3 trips a year, why bother with status? To earn status, a lot of money has to be spent to achieve. Domestically, it should costs less to simply purchase 1st Class tickets to get similar experience. If trips are business related, sometimes the uplift costs from a lower class to 1st Class is worth it (pay on your own). You get Sky Club, 1st boarding and more.
For road warriors, I do get the ‘chasing of status’ and it’s definitely worth it if you can forecast getting to Platinum or Diamond.
I still feel that you should select a single airline based on which one(s) designate your airport of choice as a hub and concentrate on earning miles, status, etc for the duration. They will change their programs and increase the cost in points for tickets over time so the more you have on one airline, the better options you’ll have.
If you move to another city with a different airline/hub, you can call the new airline and may be able to work a plan to get you in their top tier because you’re transitioning to them.
I was not aware if full diamond and sub diamond. Perhaps this is why I’m spending double on fares but rarely getting upgraded to FC. I’m a sub-diamond.
@Steven – Delta states those who earned Diamond last year get upgrade priority over those gifted Diamond for 2022.
Gold medallion with Delta does give you status with partner airlines, so slogging on might be worth it. In the past, just as you, I’ve found mileage runs in business on partner airlines to add miles plus meet the spending requirement on Delta. I haven’t seen one worth talking since the DFW- Dubai that I flew. (That was on KL/AF and the service was surprisingly good….even better than a Delta One flight to Europe that we just completed last month.)
I’m DM through 2023 with 3 million miles. Every year lately I too question if I’m going to continue, but it seems that I do.
My predictions for Rene in 2023:
* Rene changes his mind and pursues Diamond Medallion status for 2024
* Rene continues to pursue lifetime 2 million miler
* Rene fails to tell us of his change of plans to pursue Diamond Medallion status until late in 2023
* Renee gobbles up partner discounted business class tickets to undesirable locations all to gain status
* Renee continues to be disgusted with Delta points redemption rates and opportunities
If Rene gobbles up all the undesirable business class tix to undesired le locations, then I would hope he would share his cache of flights since we are providing great advice
In answer to his dilemma and having an important and pleasant chat to boot!
I have been following you for years and I always enjoy your posts and analysis. I do think you should go for it. Even if you don’t see any light at the end of the tunnel. New CEOs come along all the time and there could be changes in the future, just don’t know. Plus I do feel there are going to be more and more airlines who don’t exist in the future so maybe Delta will catch on to why this is happening
If you just spend $120,000 annually on a DL Reserve card (money you would otherwise normally spend) for the next 8 years without even one DL/ST flight you will achieve 2MM and lifetime Gold status. You are both young and your family will benefit for many years. 4 years if you and Lisa both spend $120,000 each and she gifts you her MQMs without you even taking one flight.
@Frankie – Yeah but the opertunity cost to put that spend on better cards is hard.
It depends on what you want out of a FF program. I’m at 2.5 MM (“annual” gold) and my business travel has stopped (covid was the final nail in the coffin) and retirement is just around the corner. For me, travel will now be 2-3 times a year domestic, where DL’s redemption is pretty good. Gold, along with a DL AMEX card, gets you the essential benefits and you are not treated like total dirt. Sky Clubs are WAY overrated.
If free DL One international redemptions are your only goal, then I can understand why DL might not be your first choice. You also really didn’t say whether your travel to chase status is on OPM or your own dime. If the latter, it is definitely not worth chasing status as, as previously mentioned, you could use that money and just buy your upgraded ticket.
I think you should transfer all your worthless Delta miles too me and dump Delta.
@Bob – Ha. You would! 😉
I agree with Nina above. Keep on keeping on.
Also Gold does mean something, as noted above, access to Clubs and Partner Clubs on Internatioal tickets no matter what class.
A nice Diamond Run for early 2023 would be nice…
Steve
I am at 1.8 Million so will probably keep on climbing for now….You and Lisa should also !!!for the fun of it!!!
@Dee – Lisa is only at .5MM and there will be almost zero benefit for her to push for 1M (other than for fun). We almost always travel together so she can be my Gold +1 if I reach 2MM.
Why did you stop traveling the last two years?
I hit 50 countries since 2020, best time of my life.
Will hit Diamond for the first time this year too.
Not sure why you made the choice you did, but, I would absolutely keep traveling.
Just pay for F, and who cares about status. That’s my view these days (although Delta is still my preferred airline)
@Dean – I did not set foot on a jet until I was fully vaccinated. The risk was way too high for getting COVID.
Rene, I share your frustration. The frustration we’ve had while watching Delta service and offerings fall and SkyMiles program lose benefits, is what alternatives are there? I just moved to DFW. Do I want to go to AA? For some direct flights, yes. But, probably not overall with their less reliable offering and less supportive policies and passenger interaction. If you are going to fly, what can you do? I do wish someone at one of the airlines would realize the airline that sacrifices a bit of stock price temporarily to build a solid reputation for service (including frequent flyer program) will reap much more loyalty and increase their stock price for the long run.
I have Gold for life from CO, now UA. It is worth having that because I get treated very nicely on all the Star Alliance partners. Lounge access when outside the US. Worth it! But it only took me 1,000,000 at the time to achieve this. Now I fly DL and have around 1.8 million lifetime MQM. I’m going for it, but will definitely become a free agent after that for the reasons you cite. I have been a DM for 7 years. You have taught me a lot, and I THANK YOU.
Delta provides the best domestic economy class product and service. The illusion is that bus/1st class are awesome too and loyalty will be rewarded with upgrades to the best. International trans-Atlantic/Pacific premium cabins & service aren’t special. Unfortunately, the juice ain’t worth the squeeze. Delta remains my fav airline for domestic travel, but I will be a free agent if Delta doesn’t offer a nonstop or has prohibitive pricing. Appreciate what Delta does well, but their status isn’t worth an obsession or a compulsion.
I am above 2M and certainly dont see any difference from before. A few years back I was both Diamond and Exec Platinum on American, but could not maintain both. Delta pissed me off about something (dont even remember what) so I went full time in to American. After 1 year I returned to Delta. it may seem petty, but American served drinks in first before takeoff less less than half the time. I complained in writing and received confirmation they were always supposed to serve drinks. On Delta it was about 90%, and if not there was an obvious reason. Very petty I realize, but my age and 1/8th ton weight demand I travel in first. I want what I am paying for. I have found the Regional upgrade availability useful for this year. I could never count on the complimentary upgrade (even as Diamond) so I either RUC or pay for first. I also like the access to phone service that Diamond brings. My only concern is I am not buying as many transoceanic tickets and wont make the MQD requirement this year. So my response is go for Diamond, but forget about the 2M. The gifts are pretty lame compared to past luggage offerings (at least at 1M).
Like Jeff, I too am a 2 Million Miler and earned Diamond for several years running. There is nothing special about being a two million miler. I use Delta just because it is the major carrier nearest me. Don’t waste a single dollar going for it. I have friends that are five million milers and could care less also. If you have an international business class trip, pick the airline based on price, schedule, and service. Domestically, I only buy first-class tickets, and paying $800 more to fly Delta is not worth the money. Paying what Delta wants for some international business class tickets is crazy too. Why the heck would I want to connect through CDG, when I can fly Swiss non-stop to Zurich? I still do fly Delta if it is within the range of other airlines and will pay a little more if it is an Atlanta-based crew, but It is like buying a watch. You think that owning a Patek Phillipe will get you somehow better acknowledgment or something, it doesn’t.
I’m at 1.1 MM and I think I will try to find a way to hit 2MM before I retire. Status always helps me when things go wrong.
Interesting question, R. I’m one of those who keeps on going, but sometimes wonders why. Years ago, my big goal was getting to 4M and then relax after being platinum for life. Hit that one maybe 5 years back, and then for some reason kept thinking there will be more some day….so kept going….then hit 5M a couple years ago, and then thought for what….finally DL announced Diamond for life (well, “gifted”) at 6M….I thought, damn, finally!!….keep going….then read that on UA, one could be UA Global Services (DL 360, but better, with more guaranteed benefits) for life, at 4M…wishful thinking for DL….I do love how I’m “usually” really well treated at DL, and do agree that overall they are a cut above AA and UA… so after being loyal to DL since 1990, since I first became a then “Royal Medallion” and loving benefits like being able to spend 25,000 miles for a domestic first class ticket anywhere in the US and no inventory controls, I was hooked and something has always just kept me going since…..now, business travel is reduced, but paying for premium cabin tickets is more common for me, personally…so now, at nearly 60 years old and 5.3M MQM’s, I’m honing in on 6M in the next 3 years or so, before I retire, and can hopefully live long enough to enjoy those continued Diamond benefits in retirement 🙂 So for you, who knows….like others have said, depends on what you value and how you view things….no perfect answer, I’m afraid.
g
As a 2+ million miler, I’d say it’s probably worth it, but you can tell I’m not fully enthusiastic. I’ll lose platinum after this year, then gold for life, most likely. I do like the option of clubs when flying internationally (gold gets you in to most), and sometimes I assume gold will help get me some priority along the way when trouble comes, at it surely will. But my world did not shift when I hit 2 million miles, and I don’t think Delta cares even a tiny bit about what I’ve done in the past, only what I’m doing currently and in the future. Therefore, I’m a slacker in the Delta universe. Yet, probably worth it if it does not take Herculean effort!