Uh Oh: Hilton Selling More Upgrades To Elite Members At Digital Check-In

The Hilton Honors program isn’t exactly known for being the most generous when it comes to upgrades for elite members. Part of the issue is that the program doesn’t promise much when it comes to upgrades — it says it’ll upgrade elite members subject to availability, but that’s about it.

That leaves a lot of room for hotels to do what they want — maybe they will upgrade elite members one category, and then offer to sell them a further upgrade.

So along those lines, Hilton Honors has just announced that it’s “redefining the room upgrade experience for members with more choice and flexibility.” What exactly does that entail, though?

Hilton updates “Upgrades at Digital Check-In” feature

While most airline passengers check-in online nowadays, the concept hasn’t caught on quite as much with hotels, since it’s largely kind of pointless. You typically still have to go to the front desk, and a hotel check-in experience is generally more personalized than with an airline.

In fairness, Hilton probably has the most robust online check-in feature, as you can even select a specific room from within your assigned category. Along those lines, Hilton is promoting how it’s completely revolutionizing the online check-in experience, especially for elite members.

Here’s how Hilton describes what’s changing:

Recently rolled out across the Hilton global portfolio, Hilton Honors’ new “Upgrade at Digital Check-In” gives Gold, Diamond, and Diamond Reserve Members another complimentary upgrade opportunity, directly within the Hilton Honors app during the digital check-in experience. For the first time, eligible members can view both complimentary and paid upgrade options during digital check-in, rather than wondering what might be available or needing to ask at the front desk.

This experience builds on automated prearrival upgrades by clearly showing what’s available at the time of check-in, delivering happier arrivals for guests while streamlining the process for hotel team members.

Hilton claims that it’s continuing to “redefine the room upgrade experience to make it more transparent, more flexible, and more rewarding than ever, giving members greater choice and confidence while still leaving room for genuine moments of surprise and delight.”

Just for context on the overall upgrade system here:

• Hilton Honors offers its Automated Upgrade program, with the idea being that elite members can be pre-upgraded by hotels, starting 72 hours before arrival, based on availability
• While Hilton Honors has let members pick their specific room (from within the confirmed category) at online check-in, it sounds like there’s now an option to potentially get a further upgrade at online check-in, 24 hours before arrival, and even to pay extra to upgrade
• Hilton Honors has been selling upgrades between the time of booking and even at physical check-in for a long time, so the concept of trying to monetize room upgrades is nothing new for the program
• For what it’s worth, Hilton had started selling upgrades to higher tier elite members at online check-in back in late 2022, but that program was eventually at least partially paused, so the development here is that it’s going to be consistently available globally

This creates a conflict of interest for hotels

As I hinted at in the introduction section, hotel loyalty programs have different policies when it comes to upgrades. Unlike World of Hyatt, Hilton Honors doesn’t promise specific types of room upgrades to elite members:

• Hilton Gold elite members may receive upgrades to preferred rooms, and those upgrades may be all the way to executive rooms
• Hilton Diamond elite members may receive upgrades to preferred rooms, and those upgrades may be all the way to standard suites

So per the terms, a Hilton property doesn’t have to upgrade a Diamond member to a suite, even if it’s available. I think the conflict of interest here is obvious. Hotels are being encouraged to provide complimentary upgrades to guests in advance, but hotels are also being told they can greatly increase ancillary revenue by selling upgrades to elite members.

Presumably most upgrade options that hotels will try to sell to Diamond members will be to rooms that they may in theory be eligible to be upgraded to, at the hotel’s discretion. Following Hilton’s guidance, what property wouldn’t logically say “well maybe we shouldn’t upgrade elite members in advance, and instead should try to sell them an upgrade?”

As I see it, the bigger development here is the overall automation of upgrades, and getting rid of more discretion among front office staff. In the past, upgrades weren’t exactly automated, and front desk agents often had a lot of discretion as to how far to upgrade people, based on a variety of factors (including how nice you are to them).

With all of these changes, it sure seems like discretion is increasingly being taken out of the equation. The system will clearly reflect what kind of upgrades hotels are willing to offer to elite members for free, and if you want a better upgrade, get ready to pay, as the system will spit out a price for that.

I also have to point out how sometimes the execution of paid upgrades also sucks. For example, when I stayed at the Waldorf Astoria New York earlier this year, I was offered a “special” upgrade price at check-in. The price was so special that it was higher than the rate difference between the room I was in and the room I was being offered. 😉

Bottom line

Hilton is promoting how it’s redefining the hotel upgrade experience, though it’s not all good news. Perhaps the positive development is that elite members may now potentially be offered further complimentary upgrades during digital check-in, beyond the ones offered 72 hours out. However, Hilton is also selling more upgrades at online check-in, including to elite members.

The intent here is clear — expect more Hiltons to offer very basic upgrades to elite members on a complimentary basis, and to then ask for more money for additional upgrades.

What do you make of Hilton “redefining” the upgrade experience?