All The Ways To Earn World of Hyatt Globalist On The Cheap Next Year
Today World of Hyatt made some big news with their new 2021 World of Hyatt elite status requirements. I won’t rehash those details since you can read it all here. But I did want to deep dive into earning Globalist status for 2021 as cheaply as possible. I will break it down for new World of Hyatt credit card holders, current cardholders and people without the credit card. Since each option plays out differently. Our goal is to get to the required 30 nights for Globalist status.
New World of Hyatt Cardholders
Until 12/31/20 Chase and Hyatt have a promotion where new World of Hyatt cardholders get 10 elite night credits on top of the 50,000 point welcome offer. That means we only need to get 20 more nights.
If you had some stays from October 1 – December 31st of this year then subtract 20 by that number. I am going to assume 0 nights for most people so we need to earn 20 more still.
Via Stays
With the extension of Bonus Journeys and double elite night credits till 2/28/21 you can earn two nights for every stay in the early part of 2021. If you booked 10 nights in January or February they would be doubled to 20, add that to the 10 from the welcome offer and you a newly minted Globalist.
You can earn this via cash stays or award stays. The other good news is the 25% back in points for cardholders on free night stays was extended as well. That means if you booked 10 nights at a category 1 property (5,000 points a night) that would be a total cost of 37,500 World of Hyatt points after the rebate. Remember that you could also transfer Ultimate Rewards to World of Hyatt. So that is like $7,500 in 5X spend on the Chase Freedom Flex of Chase Ink Cash card. Insane!
If you value World of Hyatt points at 1.5 cents (value of Ultimate Rewards via Pay Yourself Back) that is a cost of $562.50.
Via Spend
World of Hyatt cardholders can earn 2 elite night credits per $5,000 in spend. These will not be doubled and do no roll over from 2020. That means you would need to earn the full 20 nights in 2021. Those 20 nights would require $50,000 in spend. Resellers or big spenders may prefer this route versus burning points for status.
If you would have put that $50,000 in spend on a 2% card you would have earned $1,000. But that isn’t taking into account the 50,000 points you would get, at a minimum, or the $15K free night you would have earned. A break even number overall in my opinion.
Current World of Hyatt Cardholders
Current cardholders get a 5 elite night credit head start on status each year just for holding the card. That means we still need to earn 25 nights in 2021 to hit Globalist (minus any stays you have already rolling over from 2020).
Via Stays
If you are able to book the stays during the Bonus Journeys promotion dates (1/1-2/28) then you would need to book 13 nights. These would then be doubled to 26 and when added to the 5 nights from the credit card you are at 31 nights…hello Globalist!
If you booked the 13 nights at a tier one hotel (5,000 points per night) that would equal 65,000 points. Once you throw in the 25% rebate for cardholders you are looking at a 48,750 point investment in Globalist status. That is like putting $9,750 of 5X spend on the Chase Freedom Flex of Chase Ink Cash card.
If you value World of Hyatt points at 1.5 cents (value of Ultimate Rewards via Pay Yourself Back) that is a cost of $731.25.
Via Spend
World of Hyatt cardholders would need to spend $65,000 in 2021 to get the required 25 nights, after accounting for the 5 night head start. The $65K in spend would earn you 26 nights. When adding in the 5 night head start you are sitting on 31 nights.
If you would have put that $65,000 in spend on a 2% card you would have earned $1,300. But that isn’t taking into account the 65,000 points you would get, at a minimum, or the $15K free night you would have earned.
Non Cardholders
For anyone not holding a World of Hyatt credit card you would need to earn the full 30 nights. You would also only get 15% back in points on your free night stays. That makes this a much less lucrative offer and you would probably be better off just chasing it via regular stays throughout the entire calendar year.
Booking 30 nights at a tier one hotel would cost you 150,000 World of Hyatt points. After taking the 15% credit into account that is 127,500 points. That is like putting $25,500 of 5X spend on the Chase Freedom Flex of Chase Ink Cash card.
If you value World of Hyatt points at 1.5 cents (value of Ultimate Rewards via Pay Yourself Back) that is a cost of $1912.50.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully this makes the picture a little clearer for you. New World of Hyatt credit card holders definitely come out on top but current cardholders will also be sitting pretty with the 25% back promo. If you don’t have a card, and can’t get one, you are better off playing the long game here.
I will most likely chase this in January and February. I will even try to burn my 3 free night certificates, if it makes sense. That would bring my point totals down to 37,500 points needed at a category 1 hotel. With those 3 nights booked by certificate being doubled I would only need 10 more nights via points bookings. World of Hyatt Globalist status until 2/2023 is worth $500+ to me but it may not be to you. Be sure to crunch the numbers yourself and see what makes sense.
Some people will likely still chase the 60 nights and all the milestones that come with it, including the now much more valuable suite night awards.
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I did it … Thanks!
Great stuff as always, Mark!
I’m curious to get your thoughts: it seems like it’s harder to redeem hotel stays via Hyatt points recently. E.g., in looking at Andaz Maui (amongst other properties) for a very safe, 1-year-out (in other words, shouldn’t be sold out yet) Jan/Feb 2022 stay often yields a “Unfortunately, this hotel is not accepting World of Hyatt points or award during those dates. Explore our other rates or modify your search” womp-womp message. Have you looked into/experienced this as well? Does this sway you either way in chasing Globalist?
There are a few hotels notorious for this in the Hyatt portfolio but it is only a couple so it has never really swayed me one way or another. I think people have had luck reaching out to Hyatt trying to force open space but that may not still work.
Excellent article! I have the legacy Hyatt credit card which is getting converted to the new WOH card in January to give me the 5 nights I need to get to my goal of 30 for Globalist. That leaves me with a goal of staying 13 nights in Jan/Feb. Quick question… would any of my Hyatt stays from Oct 1 -Dec 31 2020; reduce the 13 needed (to achieve fast track Globalist) during Jan-Feb? I believe not.. but wanted to ask.
Yes you should get 1 night credit for each of the nights for stays from Oct 1 – Dec 13. So you would need to do even less than 13 if you had stays during that time 🙂
First of all, love the podcast … in regard to seeking Globalist status … “ If you booked the 13 nights at a tier one hotel (5,000 points per night) that would equal 65,000 points. Once you throw in the 25% rebate for cardholders you are looking at a 48,750 point investment in Globalist status “ … I booked 13 nights with a hotel in NJ for 5k per night, but they took the full 65k points … how do I get that reduced to 48,750.
Thanks for listening to the podcast Rick! The points should be credited back to your account a few days after checking out if they fall within the promo dates.
Thanks, I’m looking forward to obtaining that Globalist Status …
Me too 🙂
My 5/24 limit for Chase opens up on January 1, 2021, allowing me to apply for another Chase card, exactly one day AFTER the World of Hyatt promo ends. Any ideas for snagging that card (and its 10 elite nights) before January 1?
You could give it a try a few days earlier and it may go through (my wife’s last one did). If it is denied up front you could just call reconsideration after the 1st and see if they would approve it that way. I think it is worth a try if you want the 10 nights.
That worked! Applied today (Christmas Day) and was immediately approved. So appreciate your help.
In case it’s helpful to others: I opened five cards since December 14, 2018. With 5/24, I shouldn’t have been allowed to apply for any Chase card until my 24 months ended on 12/14/2020, but conventional wisdom and data points suggest to wait until the first of the following month to be sure you are eligible. Mark’s suggestion to try a few days early worked like a charm. And his idea to call reconsideration if it didn’t work was great and not something I considered.
Awesome – congrats Frank! Glad you were able to get it in and with an instant approval…makes it even better.
Been a long-time Marriott member, but now with lifetime titanium. Looking to build out the portfolio and this looks like a good option. I don’t have Hyatt CC, so starting from scratch. I have $20k in purchases to make either in December or January. Took advantage of Miraval promo, and have 2 nights already stayed in 2020. When is best to take advantage of the offer? Get the card now, spend in January? With the 50k promo, 20k in spend, and 30k earned in Miraval stay, that gives me 100k points as a starting point.
You can get the card now for the 10 nights and then do the spend after your December statement cuts or just wait till Jan 1st.
You would have 10 nights from the card, 2 from your stays, and 8 from the spend plus a Category 1-4 free night for spending $15K. If you used that in Jan/Feb then it would count as another 2 nights. Would only need 8 more nights in all of 2021 or 4 before the end of February to hit it 🙂
I think spending for WOH points is calendar year unlike the southwest credit caed. You would want to wait until January 1 to spend on the card.
It is based on the statement close date with Chase. Why people start spending for the Southwest card offers / companion pass after their December statement closes. It all counts towards the new year since it is on the January statement.
When do you think would be the best time to get the 50k spend in? I’m thinking at the end of December into January statement so status extends to 2023?
I think that is a good idea if you can swing it. Just make sure to start after the December statement cuts and you should be good.
What about people who have the Old Hyatt card that Chase is converting to the new World of Hyatt card. Are we considered new World of Hyatt members with 10 points or are we old members?
You would be considered old cardholder. If you are still under 5/24 you could grab a new one but would have to close the old one first. Otherwise you will get the 5 night credits like other World of Hyatt cardholders.
I’m not holding my breath but something similar from Marriott would be really welcome.
I’m currently a Globalist into 2022 and Hyatt is my first choice chain. Now I’m trying to figure my strategy with Hyatt for 2021. By hitting 60 nights I get the 4 suite upgrades, the category 1-7 night, the lower tier stuff and my rock-the-house concierge that I don’t want to lose. Prior strategy was a 10 night MR at a local cat 2 hotel over New Year’s Eve (20 nights), keep the Chase card (10), carryover nights from this year (5), and some nights through spending (10ish). That would leave me only needing 15 nights all year, which is super easy. I’d already figured on half that in Bali as well as some other prospects. Now I just don’t know if the juice is worth the squeeze to go for 60 nights. The only real “cost” in my view is the 80,000 points for my 10 night stay over NYE minus the 25% rebate, so 60,000 points. While I’m not firm in my decision I’m inclined to go big and do the 60+ nights. Four confirmed upgrades for up to a week are worth a lot to me and my concierge has helped me more than once in the past.
I think the confirmed upgrades will be worth even more than they used to be with the influx on new Globalists, many of which probably won’t hit the 60 nights and the perks that come along with it. The question is do you value them as much as 60K in points. Could you book into the suites for less than that? Most likely not if you are maxing them out but that is where the decision would be for me. Throw in the concierge as a bonus in there too.
30 nights is for Globalist or explorist?
Globalist – requirements are cut in half for 2021. More info on it –
https://milestomemories.com/world-of-hyatt-elite-status-requirements-in-2021/#comment-830095
Hi
I have a 14 night “work from paradise” trip planned in January at Hyatt Ziva Puerto Vallarta so was so pleased to see triple point promotion was extended through February. That trip alone could score over 100K points. Do you know if the milestone rewards are changing at all or will you still need 50 and 60 nights to get the 2 suite upgrade awards?
Milestones are staying the same so those suite night awards will be gold with the new influx of Globalist status.