Fast-track to Hyatt & AA status

☀️ Good morning and welcome back to Daily Drop!

Today is a heavy-hitter, but if you pay attention, you might walk away with elite status and tens of thousands of extra points by the end. 😉

Here we go:

• ✈️ Fast-track to Hyatt or AA status

• 😱 Earn 56x points per dollar on IHG next month

• 💸 Alaska is offering flight credits for new flyers

✈️ Fast-track to Hyatt or American Airlines status

If you’ve got elite status with World of Hyatt or American Airlines AAdvantage, you might be eligible for a juicy status challenge in the other program — with the opportunity to keep or even upgrade that status long-term.

This is part of the ongoing partnership between Hyatt and AA, and it’s one of the better cross-brand perks in the loyalty world.

🏨 Hyatt status for AA elites

AAdvantage Gold, Platinum, Platinum Pro, and Executive Platinum members can register by October 31, 2025, to get instant Explorist status with World of Hyatt for 90 days.

Simply link your Hyatt and AA accounts on this page to get started.

During that window, you’ll unlock perks like premium room upgrades, late checkout, and a dedicated check-in line.

But the real gold (or Globalist, rather) comes if you’re willing to hit the ground running.

• Stay 10 qualifying nights in 90 days to keep Explorist status through February 28, 2027

• Stay 20 nights to unlock Globalist status — also valid through Feb 2027

That second option is kind of wild, considering that Globalist normally requires 60 nights in a calendar year. This shortcut trims the requirement to just one-third of that — and could absolutely be worth pursuing.

Since Hyatt award nights can cost as little as 3,500 points, you could theoretically hit Globalist status for as few as 70,000 points total.

For anyone sitting on a stash of Ultimate Rewards points or Bilt rewards (both transfer 1:1 to Hyatt), this could be a shortcut to top-tier hotel status at a deep discount.

✈️ AA status for Hyatt elites

On the flip side, if you’re a Hyatt Discoverist, Explorist, or Globalist, you can register for a four-month trial of AA status through the Instant Status Pass promo — available now through September 4, 2025.

This one’s super useful even if you don’t plan to pursue status long-term.

Because let’s be real — four months of perks like free upgrades, preferred seats, and priority check-in can go a long way if you’ve already got flights booked.

And if you’re granted Platinum status or higher, that’ll unlock Oneworld Sapphire, which includes business-class lounge access when flying with Oneworld partners (think British Airways, Qatar Airways, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, etc).

If you match to oneworld Emerald, you’ll even gain access to first-class lounges.👇

Just note that if you’ve registered for an AA Instant Status Pass in the last 24 months, you won’t be eligible again (I found this out the hard way — cue sad violin 🎻).

If you’re eligible, you’ll see this on the offers page of your AA account.

To keep your status beyond the trial period, you’ll need to hit specific Loyalty Point thresholds every four months. Thankfully, you can earn Loyalty Points through flying, shopping, credit card spend, and more.

😱 Earn 56x points per dollar on IHG next month (targeted)

IHG’s current global promo wraps up at the end of August — but don’t worry, the next one is already locked and loaded… and it’s stack city.

In September, targeted members can earn unlimited 2x points on paid IHG stays after registering for this new promotion.

Here’s why this promo is secretly insane if you stack it with the right strategy:

The base earnings

• IHG members normally earn 10x points per dollar

• This promo adds another 10x points, bringing your total to 20x points

• If you’ve got the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card, you’ll earn:

  • 10x more points from the card

  • 6x more from IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite status (which comes with the card)

Already at 36x points per dollar… and we’re just getting started.

Stack alert: +20x more at select brands

Don’t forget that IHG is also running a separate promo for 3x points on select brands like Voco, Atwell Suites, Garner, and EVEN Hotels.

That adds another 20x points per dollar if you book one of these properties.

Which means — yes — you could be earning 56x points per dollar spent on a regular cash booking. 🤯

Real-world example: Moab madness

Let’s say you book three nights at the new Voco in Moab, Utah, in September at $170 per night.

Here are the total points you’d earn:

• Total cost: $510

• Total earnings:

  • 10x (base points): 5,100 points

  • 20x (3x brand promo): 10,200 points

  • 10x (global double points): 5,100 points

  • 10x (IHG card): 5,100 points

  • 6x (Platinum elite status): 3,060 points

• Total IHG points earned: 28,560 points

But wait — there’s more. 😎

If you use the Rakuten portal to book, you can earn up to 10% cash back or, better yet, 10x Membership Rewards points instead.

That would earn you another 5,100 Membership Rewards points on top of everything else, stacking up to hundreds of dollars in value if you use your points for good value.

Alright, that was a lot to keep track of, so let me give you a quick checklist:

1. Register here on the IHG 2x Points Promo Page

2. Make sure your stay falls between September 1 and 30, 2025

3. Consider choosing a hotel brand like Voco to trigger the extra 3x promo

4. Book through Rakuten if you want to double-dip like a champ

5. Pay with your IHG Premier to squeeze every last drop of value

This is the kind of offer that turns a regular hotel stay into a points bonanza — but only if you register and stack things correctly.

💸 Alaska is offering flight credits for new flyers

If you’re not already an Alaska Mileage Plan member, you can sign up by December 31, 2025, and get a flight discount code just for joining:

• $50 off if you live in California or Hawaii

• $25 off for everyone else in the U.S. (except residents of Alaska — sorry, friends)

You’ll get the discount code in your account within 72 hours, and then you just need to make sure you abide by these rules to get your discount:

• Book a flight within 28 days of signing up

• Travel must take place within 90 days of enrollment

So yeah — this isn’t going to change your life, but here’s the thing: You should be joining Mileage Plan anyway. We’ve said it before (and I wrote a whole newsletter about it):

Alaska’s Mileage Plan might just be the single best airline loyalty program in the world right now:

• It still uses distance-based award pricing (rare these days)

• It has incredible partners like Starlux, Japan Airlines, Fiji Airways, Qantas, and Cathay Pacific

• You can earn status without ever spending a cent

That’s all for this week, folks! I hope you enjoyed learning about today’s travel tips as much as I enjoyed writing them.

Have a great weekend and see you bright and early Monday morning.

6.9175° S, 107.6191° E

With contributions by Tiffany Eastham, McKay Moffitt, and Benji Stawski