I’ve Been a Hyatt Elite Since 2020 — Here’s Why I’m No Longer Pursuing Status

World of Hyatt has consistently been one of my favorite loyalty programs. In a world where major chains like Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy can charge hundreds of thousands of points per night for a redemption, Hyatt has consistently stood out to me for its loyalty program, ease in redeeming points, and favorable award chart.

But in recent months, my relationship with my favorite loyalty program (other than Amtrak Guest Rewards) has changed. After 4 years, I believe it’s time to move on.

Below, I’ll discuss what I like about Hyatt — and what I don’t — and explain why I’m stepping away from the program after several years as a loyalist.

World of Hyatt Overview

While World of Hyatt doesn’t have as big a footprint (especially abroad) as Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, and IHG One Rewards, its program is certainly nothing to scoff at. 

World of Hyatt points are among the most difficult to earn of the major hotel loyalty programs. Hyatt has 2 credit cards: The World of Hyatt Credit Card and the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card. Additionally, the program has just 2 transfer partners: Bilt Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards, and you transfer points from eligible credit cards to Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio.

Both hotel cards have pretty reasonable annual fees ($95 and $199, respectively). And, if you’re going to be loyal to Hyatt, you can’t go wrong with either card. Both come with entry-level Discoverist status, yearly elite night credits, and up to 9x points per $1 spent on Hyatt stays. Plus, a generous welcome bonus offer doesn’t hurt, either. 

Other ways to earn Hyatt points include:

• Staying at Hyatt properties (5 base points for every eligible $1 spent on stays, including dining, spa, and other services)
• Staying at a Homes & Hideaways by World of Hyatt property
• Booking FIND Experiences
• Purchasing World of Hyatt points
• Through the Hyatt and American Airlines AAdvantage partnership
• Book a rental car with Avis
• Holding a meeting or planning an event

Now that you’re familiar with earning Hyatt points, let’s discuss what I love about the World of Hyatt program.

Bottom Line:

With more than 1,300 hotels in over 75 countries, Hyatt has a solid portfolio of economy, midtier, and luxury brands. These include household names like Hyatt House, Grand Hyatt, and Park Hyatt and lesser-known brands like JdV by Hyatt and Caption.

What I Love About World of Hyatt

I’ve had World of Hyatt status every year since 2020, back when the program made it extremely easy for even casual fans of the brand to earn elite status. The program was incredibly generous because of the pandemic, slashing requirements for status.

Since then, I’ve held on to some form of status — whether it was top-tier Globalist or midtier Explorist — through promotions, bonus night credits, and more. 

Over the years, I’ve generally enjoyed having World of Hyatt elite status and have preferred staying with the chain even when cash rates were higher than other chains or if I visited a destination that didn’t have many Hyatt properties.

Hyatt continues to grow by adding more hotels — particularly in Europe, where the brand has historically had a smaller footprint — and converting existing hotels to the Hyatt brand. Indeed, World of Hyatt’s portfolio has quadrupled in the past 5 years, firmly establishing the program as a major player.

“[W]e are committed to reinforcing our position as the preferred hospitality brand,” Mark Hoplamazian, president and chief executive officer of Hyatt, said earlier this year.

Here are some of my favorite features of the World of Hyatt program and why, as Hoplamazian noted, it’s been my “preferred” hospitality brand.

Reasonable Award Chart

I alluded to it earlier, but one of my favorite features of the World of Hyatt program is its award chart (even with its move to peak and off-peak pricing). World of Hyatt is one of the last major hotel chains still using an award chart, which is much appreciated as more hotels abandon fixed pricing entirely. 

Hyatt awards are pretty reasonable, especially in destinations like Europe, Central America, and Asia, where even 5-star hotels fall on the lower end of the award chart.

The cheapest award redemption (for standard rooms) is just 3,500 points per night for a Category 1 property. I’ve redeemed points at Category 1 hotels worldwide in cities like Stockholm and Frankfurt and paid far less in points than I would have at other chains.

Last year, I had a fantastic 4-night stay at the Category 1 Story Hotel Signalfabriken in Stockholm. While this boutique hotel was nothing fancy, it offered a cozy room, ample communal space to co-work or relax, and an affordable breakfast spread. The low cost in points enabled me to splurge on other trips to cities like Paris and London.

While I’ve gotten great value at Hyatt’s lower-tier hotels, I’ve also found Hyatt’s more expensive (in points) hotels to be some of the best ways to spend points.

Even top-tier Category 8 properties — think Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme or Alila Ventana Big Sur — come out to just 35,000 points per night for off-peak dates. This is especially true in major cities like New York and particularly at luxury hotels like the Park Hyatt. 

I’ve found that luxe, 5-star hotels at other brands like St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton (both of which Hyatt acknowledges as Park Hyatt competitors) can cost double the amount of points Hyatt charges for hotels of similar stature.

For instance, award nights at the St. Regis in New York can cost over 100,000 points per night.

Thanks to its award chart, the Park Hyatt New York, a Category 8 hotel, charges just 45,000 points per night (on peak nights). While I acknowledge that earning World of Hyatt points is more complicated than, say, earning Marriott Bonvoy points, these points also stretch further. 

And while Hyatt did adopt dynamic pricing (a move many chains have been making for years), the program didn’t completely abandon its award chart. Hyatt’s award chart is one of the best incentives to keep earning points with the program.

Brand Explorer

If you aren’t familiar with the Hyatt Brand Explorer Award program, you should be.

The program rewards members for trying out new brands. For every 5 unique Hyatt brands you stay at, you can earn a free Category 1-4 award, which can be used at a hotel or resort up to Category 4. 

Some solid Category 1-4 hotels offer excellent ways to spend your certificate. These include the Andaz Pattaya Jomtien Beach in Thailand, the Hyatt Regency Tokyo, and the Thompson Playa del Carmen Main House.

Hyatt has more than 2 dozen brands in the Brand Explorer program, and even if you’re a road warrior, it would take you a while to complete the entire program and stay at every brand. I’m roughly halfway through the Brand Explorer promotion, and I’ve earned several free night certificates simply by staying at different Hyatt hotels. Even if you aren’t a Hyatt loyalist, I recommend participating in the Brand Explorer program for an easy way to score free night certificates.

Why I’m Letting Go of Hyatt Status

With everything I like about Hyatt, you’re probably wondering why I’m giving up my status. Here’s why, as much as I’ve enjoyed the World of Hyatt program, I’m letting go of the program, at least for now.

Major D.C. Devaluation

Washington, D.C., has historically been one of the best U.S. domestic locations to redeem World of Hyatt points. That’s no longer the case.

Earlier this year, Hyatt announced its annual category increases. This year, 183 hotels changed their prices: 137 increased prices, while 46 decreased prices. According to our reporting earlier this year, 64 U.S. hotels moved up a category, while just 21 moved down. But a change that wasn’t widely covered was the complete evisceration of virtually every Hyatt sweet spot in Washington, D.C., which was hit particularly hard by the category changes.

Of the 10 Hyatt-flagged hotels in the District of Columbia, all but 3 increased in category. Of note, several Category 3 properties increased to Category 4.

That’s not all.

Category 4 hotels in D.C. were particularly impacted. Several favorites jumping in categories are the Hyatt House Washington DC / The Wharf and Grand Hyatt Washington, which have increased from Category 4 to 5.

This is problematic for a few reasons. Most notably, properties that increase from Category 4 to 5 are no longer eligible to be booked with Category 4 free night certificates. These certificates, as I mentioned earlier, are a boon for Hyatt fans, given how easy they are to earn. (You can earn a Category 1-4 certificate from the Brand Explorer program by staying 30 nights, earning 50,000 base points, or having a Hyatt credit card.)

Additionally, the Park Hyatt Washington, D.C., a beloved property among loyalists, increased from Category 5 to 6. 

Other major locations, such as Boston, Chicago, San Diego, and the state of Florida, were hit hard by the changes. I’m not sure what went into these decisions, but they weren’t well-received by Hyatt fans, particularly those who travel a lot to the affected cities.

Small Luxury Hotels and Mr and Mrs Smith Partnership

Earlier this year, World of Hyatt loyalists were surprised when the chain announced that it would end its partnership with Small Luxury Hotels of the World. SLH had some absolutely fantastic redemptions, like the former Category 8 Calala Island in Nicaragua and the Category 5 Château D’ouchy in Lausanne, Switzerland.  

This was far worse than MGM ending its partnership with Hyatt last year, which was disappointing (especially for frequent Las Vegas travelers) but didn’t have the wide-reaching effect of the split with SLH.

Shortly after the news that Hyatt would end its partnership with SLH, the chain announced a new partnership with the London boutique brand Mr and Mrs Smith. That news was received with much fanfare, with over 700 new properties joining the World of Hyatt loyalty program. On its face, this was great news, particularly as Hyatt would have a presence in new destinations such as Dominica and Fiji.

The reality was far less exciting.

For starters, Mr and Mrs Smith properties don’t fall under the World of Hyatt award chart and are instead priced dynamically. This is a notable departure from other brands Hyatt has acquired, such as Destination by Hyatt and Secrets, which fall under the traditional award chart.

And those prices can be astronomical — resembling the dynamic pricing of Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors properties. For instance, Secret Bay in Dominica (the only Hyatt property and just 1 of 2 points hotels on the island) is priced dynamically. Rates here start at around 110,000 points per night this fall — and many Mr and Mrs Smith properties are similarly priced!

Additionally, Hyatt loyalists don’t enjoy the standard World of Hyatt elite benefits, such as complimentary breakfast for Globalists. While I had high hopes for Mr and Mrs Smith (especially after SLH), it just hasn’t measured up so far.

Bottom Line:

SLH went on to form a new partnership with Hilton Honors. So far, 400 properties are now available to book with cash and points, and hundreds more will eventually join Hilton.

What’s Next?

I’m not entirely out of the game. I’ll still keep World of Hyatt Explorer status through February 2025, after which I’ll drop to Discoverist. Most of my hotel stays will remain with Hyatt, though I won’t make a concerted effort to mattress run (unless there’s a cheap deal).

I’ll still keep my World of Hyatt card, primarily because of the complimentary Discoverist status, the free night, and the 5 tier-qualifying night credits I receive every card anniversary. But I’ll likely be hopping around programs I’ve neglected for a while, like Marriott, and trying out some new programs, like IHG and Wyndham.

Final Thoughts

This wasn’t an easy decision to make, as I still generally like the World of Hyatt program. I still believe it provides tremendous value, especially for Globalists. However, the program has implemented changes lately that have left a bad impression.

I’m not entirely done with Hyatt, and I’ll still stay at Hyatt properties from time to time. But for now, I’m a hotel free agent.