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Breaking News!!! Hyatt Makes Earning Elite Status Easier in 2018

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Hyatt Makes Improvements to World of Hyatt for 2018

Hyatt Makes Improvements to World of Hyatt for 2018

We received an email from World of Hyatt announcing a few changes they are making to the program for 2018.  I was shocked to see that they were all positive changes!  And one of them makes earning elite status easier.

World of Hyatt Changes for 2018

They are announcing two changes for the program in 2018:

  • Starting January 1, 2018, all nights on free night awards will count toward tier status. You can now earn elite status and additional benefits faster.
  • They’re extending the validity dates for the following free night awards. Starting with those issued January 1, 2018, you can use them up to 180 days for issuance (used to be 120 days).
    • Free night in Cat 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort when you stay 30 qualifying nights or earn 50,000 Base Points in a calendar year
    • Free night in Cat 1-7 Hyatt hotel or resort when you stay 60 qualifying nights or earn 100,000 Base Points in a calendar year

These are two positive changes.  Seeing the free nights awards validity dates extended 60 days is a good move but nothing earth shattering.  But allowing award stays to count towards status is HUGE.  You used to have to book a points plus cash room for it to count towards status.  Now you can gain elite status by staying at category 1 Hyatt Place for 5,000 points per night.

Conclusion

This is big news which makes earning Hyatt status easier in 2018.  I am guessing the fact that World of Hyatt was announced to a ton of criticism last year led to people jumping ship to other brands.  This may be a way for Hyatt to bring them back into the fold.

This change puts Hyatt in line with other hotel chains, like Hilton and SPG, that count award stays towards status.  Only Wyndham and Best Western resist joining the fold.

 

Does this make you more likely to stay at Hyatt hotels in 2018?  What do you think of the change?

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Mark Ostermann
Mark Ostermann
Mark Ostermann is a father, husband and miles/points fanatic. He left the corporate world after starting a family in order to be a stay at home dad. Mark is constantly looking at ways to save money and stay within budget while also taking awesome vacations with his family. When he isn't caring for his family or taking a weekend trip, Mark is working towards his goal of visiting every Major League Baseball ballpark.

Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.

5 COMMENTS

  1. […] Hyatt recently updated their elite status program, World of Hyatt, to allow for elite stay credits on award nights. Recently one of our team members reached out to Hyatt’s Twitter Concierge for clarification on how Hyatt’s recent policy changes would affect World of Hyatt bookings. Specifically we where curious who gets the credit when a “Guest of Honor” booking is made by an elite member for someone else since award bookings now count towards status. This allows the member with status to pass along the perks of their status for another Hyatt member. […]

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