Hyatt Gold Passport Update

Old Dec 10, 2014, 5:32 pm
  #16  
 
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Originally Posted by skunker
If you are guaranteeing every bed choice but there are no points for non-compliance, then what's to stop the hotel from not giving a confirmed bed? How do you enforce the guarantee? As a GP member who has had to claim the bed guarantee twice let me say "Thanks for the 'enhancement.'"
Also, if Hyatt is so certain about its ability to ensure that virtually all guests have gotten, and will continue to be given the bedding arrangement of their choice, why eliminate the 5,000 bonupoints, if there is an an anomaly? If the misses were < 0.01 percent, the cost to Hyatt is and would continue to be negligible.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 6:03 pm
  #17  
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Glad to see C+P continuing, but it's a shame to see MER go, though AAA rate is typically fairly close. I did notice it was getting harder and harder to use MER as the year went on for many properties.

You know what I would really love to see as an alternative to MER -- waive cancellation fees for Diamonds or make all rates cancellable for Diamonds with a couple of days notice. Typically the MER was about the same as the non-cancellable rate, so this would basically be the same net effect for Diamonds without all the complications of a whole separate rate structure.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 6:39 pm
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by steve65341
This benefit would be tremendously more useful if it had the same availability as traditional points only awards. Allowing individual hotels to decide if they want to offer it or not tremendously dilutes this benefit.
^^^
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 6:40 pm
  #19  
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Originally Posted by SCEflyer
Why not just join AAA? An individual memberhip nearly everywhere cost < $100, and virtually every hotel chain worthy of your business offers a AAA rate. There are also other benefits, starting with road service.
If it's only needed for the 10% Hyatt discount, you can join the Freelancers Union in about two minutes via online form for free.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 9:30 pm
  #20  
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Originally Posted by RTW1
So just bad news for GP members (no more MER and in practice no guarantees) compensated by just a promise of a new promotion..... Great going.
That pretty much sums it up.

Add to that: Horrible IT that has not improved all year long.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 10:14 pm
  #21  
 
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Originally Posted by SCEflyer
Why not just join AAA? An individual memberhip nearly everywhere cost < $100, and virtually every hotel chain worthy of your business offers a AAA rate. There are also other benefits, starting with road service.
Is AAA rate close to 20% discount? I thought it's 10%.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 11:14 pm
  #22  
 
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While I have never been denied my reserved bed type, I have to agree with others that stating that something is guaranteed but has not backing for failure to fulfil is a terrible misuse of the English language.

In any case, I would refuse to pay the full booked room rate if the contracted type of room was not provided.

But other than that, it is good to hear that they are, at least at present, intending to make C&P permanent and, hopefully, enhance it. As others have stated, it would certainly be nice, not to mention logical, to be able to book C&P just as easily as booking a all-points award.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 11:34 pm
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by Kacee
Thanks for the update.

While I'm sorry to see MER go, this is a remarkably candid and comprehensive explanation of 2015 program changes and the underlying rationale.

You will hear no whining here
This was my first thought as well; it's nice that he speaks to us like adults and says that they tried something that was beneficial to customers, but it turned out not to be in the best interest of the company so they're not proceeding. No problem.

Contrast this with, say, United Mileage Plus, with its ham-handed announcements of "enhancements" that are almost always just spin in futile efforts to obscure changes that devalue the program.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 11:57 pm
  #24  
 
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Mixed feelings about MyEliteRate. As a regular guest, it was a nice option to get the advance purchase rate without having to pay straight away, although BRGs are generally cheaper.

However, as a travel consultant, 95% my clients have at least Platinum status. The MER is non-commissionable (although it doesn't say it is) and caused me a headache on quite a few occasions before I realised this. It isn't ethical to book a higher rate just to receive the commission, so this dropped my Hyatt earnings significantly. Financially overall, I am better off without MER.

I think the idea of a diamond cancellation fee waiver would be great. Even if it was so that advance purchase rates could be cancelled until 2 weeks before booking, that would help. It would also be great to have the option to delay paying an advance purchase rate until nearer check-in date.
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Old Dec 10, 2014, 11:57 pm
  #25  
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Originally Posted by hailstorm
To be fair, last year's promotional promises worked out pretty well for us.
Really.... two promotions that were pretty mediocre (I know that's the standard in this economy) of which one was intended to be targeted.

And if you mean P+C plus MER. One is now cancelled and the other is even more limited in properties that offer it, plus it's still not available online.
So I see little to be very happy about, even though GP doesn't devaluate as much as the rest.

Looking back a few years the changes are mostly negative and there is also a trend that the newer (aspirational) properties opt out of some of the GP benefits like DSU's. Or do not participate anymore in things like P+C at all (Andaz Maui) or even offer basic features like point redemptions (PH NY, a fully owned Hyatt property). So at the higher-end I don't see much to be happy about. Maybe that will change if the newly announced properties come online.

Last edited by RTW1; Dec 11, 2014 at 12:16 am
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 12:30 am
  #26  
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Originally Posted by RTW1
And if you mean P+C plus MER. One is now cancelled and the other is even more limited in properties that offer it, plus it's still not available online.
P+C saved me over a thousand dollars at the Andaz Maui this summer, well worth the three minutes on the phone required to set it up, and may yet be useful if your beloved Diamond Challenge makes a comeback. MER has also served me well at the Park Hyatt Tokyo this year.

Next year's issues are next year's concern, and I'll judge them when I see them. This year's offers worked out well for me.
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 1:01 am
  #27  
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Originally Posted by hailstorm
Next year's issues are next year's concern, and I'll judge them when I see them. This year's offers worked out well for me.
And how does someone else dare to feel different :-).

I agree that GP still offers major benefits, and I'm happy for that. But I'm not that brainwashed yet that I don't see that things haven't been devaluated in the last years. A significant increase in either club/suite upgrades and regular point redemptions for most properties I consider spending points at, something that also affects P+C.

And your illustration is the perfect example, wouldn't work for this year. So I fail to see how this "feel good" aanouncement is something to be applauded. Even if it's might be the way the industry is going....

Not offering P+C online might be an IT issue, but the cynical side of me suspects it's implemented this way to prevent people from analyzing the actual availability. Now I'll go back to planning my next years stays :-).
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 1:23 am
  #28  
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Not sure where you guys have issues with the availability of C&P but at the properties where I used this feature it always matched the general availability.

I just booked the last room available at a Tokyo property for NYE and even that was available on C&P.
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 1:26 am
  #29  
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Originally Posted by RTW1
Not offering P+C online might be an IT issue, but the cynical side of me suspects it's implemented this way to prevent people from analyzing the actual availability.
I think that argument is moot, SPG has this feature readily available online for years. If there was a disadvantage I'm sure Starwood would also take measures. That being said, the C&P availability with SPG sucks compared with Hyatt.
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 1:43 am
  #30  
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I'm very disappointed that the MER is going away. I found it a great benefit, and made me choose Hyatt more than other brands.

The whole guaranteed bed type thing just sounds strange. It's guaranteed. And that now means what? Okay, and if bed type not given, the night will be free, since you no longer get points? I'd have to think hard the last time I didn't have my correct bed type, but it does seem a rather weaselly change.
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