CloudCoder

Status report: It was a bit rocky at first but things are finally going smoothly. A few early mistakes were soon corrected. Hopefully my experience can help others who choose this same path.

1. I assumed that when you check in, you can tell the front desk which traveler gets the points. Nobody is trying to "cheat" or "get double points". Two guests are in the same room. They each have an account. One set of points will be awarded. Who gets those points? I mistakenly believed that I get to choose. In fact, they prefer to post the points to the Primary Guest's account and only if it's paid with a credit card in that Primary Guest's name. No problem! Let's always follow the rules, commencing from the very minute that we know what the rules actually are. I called My Hyatt Concierge and had her switch a bunch of reservations to my spouse's name and to be paid with her credit card. Smooth sailing from then on.

2. I mistakenly assumed that I'd get the welcome amenity even if the reservation is not in my name. I still believe that the HGP terms are vague on this point: the official rules say "Diamond Members Receive". However the Concierge posted into this thread that the welcome amenity is only given once per room and only if the primary guest is a Diamond. No problem! Let's follow the rules, starting immediately after we know what they are. I might suggest that a clarification to the HGP terms could be helpful.

3. Hotels have been gracious about allowing us Club Access even when the Diamond is the secondary guest. That matches my experience for the past several years and I believe it's normal operating practice. It will be a moot point in just 4 more days, as we'll both be Diamond.

4. I mistakenly believed (due to a post in the WIki about earning points) that if the hotel posts the points incorrectly, it's an easy matter to just call Gold Passport and get them to correct it. Not so! It's exceptionally difficult to get the points moved to a different account, after checkout. Therefore, the single most important advice I can give to others is this: make sure the invoice posts to the account you want, BEFORE checkout. This is extremely important.

5. There was one occasion when we had club access, the club was closed, and I felt that the 2500-point bonus was earned. Gold Passport said they could only give that bonus if a Diamond is the primary guest. I nicely asked them to please change that one bill for that one night to my name, so that I could get that "DN" bonus (2500 points). They gladly agreed. The reasoning is that if I had known the club would be closed and that 2500 bonus points would be awarded, I would have had the stay in my name (of course).

6. Hotels have told me of other couples who use the same procedure. One person checks in today then checks out tomorrow . The spouse checks in tomorrow and checks out the next day . They'll stay several nights (in the same room, of course) as a series of one-night stays. I plan to use that same strategy whenever it's to our advantage. Currently ,we check out of one hotel and into a different hotel each day, in order to maximize stay credits. I do not feel that this is "gaming the system". It is entirely my choice where I stay each night. I choose a hotel based on a combination of factors, including stay credit.

7. After we are both Diamond, I certainly intend to book multi-night stays as a series of alternating one-night stays ... just like other Dual-Diamond couples do. I will do this until we each have our 25 stays for the year. At that point, stay-count won't matter as much and we can then book multi-night stays.

8. I learned of one couple who wanted to use a Diamond Suite Upgrade in Hawaii. They live in a condo in the same building which houses a Hyatt Place hotel. They book a room on the weekends (when it's cheap), come down the elevator and pay for the room, then go back to their own condo. They did this just enough to get the Diamond Suite Upgrades they wanted for Hawaii.

9. I feel that the rules are not always well-defined, however once the rules are clarified and everyone knows what they are, I do try to follow them to the letter.

10. If you often travel as a couple, and if you have enough stay activity so that both of you can qualify for the year, it makes perfect sense to become a two-Diamond couple. I hope this info makes the path easier for others.

m0hamed

Except most of your points are covered in the T/Cs. You just refuse to accept them.

RTW1

While it's nice that you keep posting updates.... this argument is getting a bit tiresome. The T&C's are perfectly clear for 99+% of members, everybody knows what they mean... even if you argue specific wording. You are simply trying to read them to your advantage while any reasonable person would understand them just fine.

You are doing everybody a disservice with your maximizing. Do it in private and try not to piss of the properties too much. That's always the first step in getting benefits reduced for all of us reduced in the long term, especially when it all starts with a challenge....

CloudCoder

I'm always receptive to better ways. Do you have any relevant suggestions for how to structure hotel stays? This whole discussion applies to a narrow niche market: couples who can get 50 stays a year but not 100 nights a year.
Actually, it all started 28 years ago with a job which had me travel constantly. I got tired of being away from family all the time. My current situation lets me travel often with my spouse. I welcome advice on how to get the best benefit from loyalty programs in that situation. I'm also eager to share advice with others. That's one of the main purposes of this website.

sam_goh

At the OP - I've found that FT is a great sounding board. We're all for maximizing here, but if you have received a ton of negative feedback from other members then maybe it's time to seriously consider your actions.

chad75

Dear Hyatt Lurkers

I'm going to game the system as much as possible and push the terms and conditions to the breaking point. I'm also going to keep a public diary of how I'm doing this. I'm sure it will end well.

Regards xxxxxx

That's some serious chutzpah SquareDanceGuy

iflyjetz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCqm4H3m3Ew

http://www.gocomics.com/bloomcounty/2013/03/10

CloudCoder

The negative feedback was all about just one point: the Diamond Welcome Amenity. The T&C's say "Diamond Members Receive ..." and other people on there say that it really means "A room which is paid for by a Diamond Member and in which the Diamond Member is the Primary Guest receives ...". I apologize that I was not able to see all those extra words (mainly because they in fact are not present). But it's a moot point. I have already conceded (at least half a dozen times) that the welcome amenity is given just once per stay, and only to a certified Diamond, etc. I'm ready to talk about other points if you are.

Other than the well-beaten fact that the welcome amenity only applies once per stay, is there any other helpful advice you can offer?

nhwiki

Yes - please don't let a sense of entitlement coupled with a large dose of a "legalistic approach to things" ruin "it" for the rest of us. And lest you think that this is hyperbolic, take a look at the significant changes to GP over the last few years. The best example is the diamond challenge. It was meant to be a way for folks who travelled a lot to switch over to Hyatt. Too many people who did not even come close to the spirit of the offer took advantage of it, and now the challenge is gone. Okay, you say, no big deal since I'm already a diamond. (Even though, as you say, you took advantage of it, but at least you now actually stay at Hyatts.) But the collateral damage of this is, for instance, that diamond benefits, especially the suites one gets using a DSU, have eroded significantly at the properties where many of us have been going for years.

So let's follow your logic to the trough and see how this plays out. You and your now diamond wife do a one week alternating stay at a property during the off season with a closed regency club - maybe the Tamaya which is fabulous during the winter, or Palm Springs. Check in and check out every night. Instead of being reasonable, and taking the 2500 points for the one week stay (probably on a C+P with one DSU) and one 1K amenity, you do the check-in and check-out, so now you wind up with 17,500 closed regency club points and 7K Diamond welcome points. And at the first check-in, you give 'em your DYKWIA spiel about being "ooooooh a double diamonds couple" and only one of us is getting the amenity, can't you just comp us a suite" and away you go. And even if you don't get the suite you deserve, I'm sure at each check-in and check-out you remind the hired help of everything you're entitled too.

Of course, you would be correct in asking for those extra 21K points, and the GP bonuses for stays, but how long do you think it would be before the property complains, especially after you brag to all your friends to come over to the points trough, before the property complains to GP, and GP notices all these folks doing the week-long stay as a couple switching back and forth, before there is even more fine-print added to the T's and C's just because of folks like you, or, even worse, GP says "enough" as they have with some really decent parts of the program that are no longer there because some diamond challenge clown invites all his 18 friends to the club and drinks the "free alcohol" and loads up on the food- (remember the time when decent American clubs had free drinks - I do!) or churns the card to get the suites (used to be suites for diamonds).

I'm all for expecting what is promised from a FF or FZG program, but stretching the spirit of things and then whining about getting what one is entitled to is slowly eroding some really nice things. I hope they make you switch rooms every night, and force you to check your bags at check out and come back when your room is ready.

RTW1

Than you must have missed all those posts that gave you negative feedback on your attitude. But I guess you simply don't see the greed you are displaying or how annoying the repeated "the T&C is unclear" is.

Andrea Waters

This is where you're dead wrong. The negative feedback was and continues to be all about trying to scam a program, especially since you posted in the other thread about the Diamond Challenge and how your wife had never stayed at a Hyatt hotel in her life. I was disgusted by your behavior before I read those things. Now that I know neither your nor your wife are not at all loyal Hyatt customers, I'm even more so.

I think we've made it more than obvious these sort of postings here are not welcome, yet you continue to post. It seems to me that you thrive on negative attention. I find that rather sad and alarming.

CloudCoder

I'm not quite sure how the inaccurate info gets started. Alas, once it starts, it tends to grow.

Some folks seem to be worried about people who aren't "real" frequent travelers, swooping in and earning a bunch of points. Here's a news flash: If they don't travel frequently, they're not gonna earn massive quantities of points.

Over the years, I've probably been in ALL the hotel programs at various points in time. I like the Hyatt program much better than other hotel programs. I only wish they had a larger footprint.

I first came to Hyatt several (5 to 7??) years ago because of their credit card offer. IIRC they offered immediate Plat status, 2 free nights anywhere and 2 suite upgrades. I remained Plat for a couple of years before deciding to go for Diamond. I've been Diamond for 5 years (and have already requalified).

Now that you mention it, I did stay at the Tamaya Resort in January. I received one 2500-point bonus for the closed club for the stay. Not that it's anyone else's business, but I used a suite upgrade. Because of that suite upgrade, it made sense to book one long stay. But ... what if I wanted to check in to the Tamaya for one night, then stay somewhere else on night 2, then come back to the Tamaya on night three ... just to get more points? It's nobody's business but my own. What if I want to burn a DSU for a one-night stay? Again, I'm not likely to ask for permission.

Do you remember the HR Irvine? The club was _always_ closed on weekends. I made many a 3-night weekend trip where nights 1 and 3 were at the HR Irvine and night 2 was at the HR Orange County just a few miles away. The only reason to do this is to get more points. Wow, I just thought of something. Irvine is no longer a Hyatt. Do you reckon I earned all their points so they had to drop out?

I'm guessing that you won't like my airline routings either. Have you ever flown SAT-DFW-SFO-SEA-ORD-MIA-LHR-CPH, just to get more miles? I have, and I'd gladly do it again if I can find a routing which hits the MPM just right. Have you ever flown LAX to SFO via JFK? I have ... twice on the same day ... upgraded to First Class for free ... on an $88 fare.

Some people have expressed fear that because I travel a lot, I'll be rude to the staff and to other travelers. Let's just say those worries are unfounded. I'm probably better than most at greeting the staff members by name. I'm likely to help an infrequent traveler who looks lost in the airport or at a big hotel. I've given free rooms (on points) to people whose flight was cancelled.

What do you do with your soon-to-expire airline upgrades? I try to find friends and acquaintances who are going on a trip and can use the upgrade. When I still can't give them all away, I go down to the airport and give them to random people. Not that I'm keeping track, but I've given away 115 systemwide upgrades in my lifetime. Would you care to guess how many of those people wrote an actual thank-you note? Go ahead and guess. Out of 115 systemwide upgrades given away, how many thank-you letters?

Answer: One. About 11 years ago.

Would you care to guess what happened to that one person who wrote a thank-you letter? Go ahead and guess.

Answer: I married her. She's been at the top level of the airline for years. She's been to all 50 states and to 28 countries. On Monday she'll reach the top level of the Hyatt program. I'm pretty sure that she will be nice to the staff too. After all, 115 people had an opportunity to write a thank-you letter but she wrote the only one.

My very first post in this thread specifically asked for advice from other couples who are double-diamonds. So far, I haven't received any of the advice which I sought. No worries. Apparently there isn't an abundance of advice out there ... until now. As I mentioned before, I learned that it's very important to make sure the points are posted to the right account BEFORE you leave the hotel. It's very difficult and time-consuming to change it after checkout.

I'm in a nice (comp) suite right now, even though I paid the cheapest P+C rate I could find. There are two HGP members in the room. It's entirely my choice as to who gets the points. However, I'm happy to explain how I will choose. I'll figure out how many points each choice will bring. Then I'll choose the option which brings me the most points over the long haul. Some people might prefer that I choose the option which brings me the fewest points. Let's just say that I don't listen to those people.

If the points go to my account:
Base points: 275
30% Diamond bonus: 82
Diamond Welcome bonus: 500
Total 854

If the points go to my spouse's account:
Base points: 275
15% Platinum bonus: 41
Stay More Play More bonus: 2000 (it's 10,000 points after night #10, i.e. 2000 points per night)
Total: 2316

Plus she gets a night credit toward her eventual Diamond. I've already qualified for the year (and I've already maxed out the Stay More bonus) so I don't need the night credit.

It's a no-brainer. We will choose to earn 2316 points (and a stay credit we can use) instead of 854 points (and a stay credit we don't need). We'll also get a few more points from the Hyatt Visa card, but that's a wash (it's the same number of added points, and it goes to my Hyatt account anyway, no matter who gets the stay credit).

Yes, I do like to maximize points. That doesn't make me a bad guy. When you collect a bunch of points, you can do nice things with them. Perhaps I'm in the minority, but I do believe that posts about how to earn points are totally appropriate for this website.

Happy Travels to all, and Happy Points Earning and Redeeming as well.

iflyjetz

No, maximizing points doesn't make you a bad guy. What makes you a bad guy is the legalistic approach to abusing the program that you took. 'Four Diamonds in a room? Why, of course they should get four Diamond amenities.' No, that's completely abusive thinking and well beyond maximizing points. It causes companies to change their policies so that everyone loses out. Your points obsession negatively impacts many. But you're too selfish to see that.

And these diatribes of yours are silly. We don't care about the convoluted logic you're using to justify your behavior. Mixing legitimate, albeit shady, methods to maximize points with your twisted logic does not paint you in a more favorable light. I would take the time to tear apart your latest tome piece by piece but it would be a waste of time because it's quite clear that you are not receptive to others' comments.

You, sir, are the epitome of the saying: 'This is why we can't have nice things.'

sancann

I've been reading the thread since it started and got the same feeling that the OP somehow enjoys the attention and feedback even if it all mostly appears to be negative. For that reason, I chose not to respond at all. Yet, here I am chiming in.

m0hamed

Please let this thread die.