Originally Posted by
Mauibaby2008
I just checked in here for 6 nights on points, as a Globalist, they gave me a standard room and told me they do not give upgrades on points. This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of, considering the heaps of praise I read on this forum and on TA.
I’m calling BS. And all room categories are available for sale.
If you read "heaps of praise" then perhaps you have selective reading. I think my review was fairly balanced (some pluses and some minuses), rather than "heaps of praise". Especially as regards with room upgrades:
suites were ready and I confirmed they were available on hyatt.com. Unfortunately I did not receive a suite upgrade as a Globalist. I rarely stay at Hyatt Place anywhere in the world so correct me if I am wrong but I think suite upgrades are not a published Globalist benefit at HP, unlike Hyatt Regency, Grand Hyatt, etc. so I did not think I was entitled to a suite therefore I did not say anything at check-in regarding the lack of suite upgrade.
Overall I recommend this hotel for travelers on a budget who do not require a 5-star hotel. However as a general rule, Bangkok is a city where the extra cost of a 5-star hotel over a 4-star hotel is not that much, which is why more often than not I do not want to stay in a hotel like HP in the city, even though HP is priced quite well relative to competitors such as Aloft, 4P, and DT. In addition, if you have elite status in a hotel chain (Hyatt or other), it makes even more sense to stay at a full service hotel where you have good odds of a suite upgrade and where you will have lounge access.
I tried Hyatt Regency Sukhumvit earlier this month and as Globalist I received a very nice suite upgrade. So you can pay 4-5k THB at HR and have good odds of a suite upgrade for a room that costs 10-12 THB. Or save money and stay at HP for 2-3k HP and what you get is what you pay for. So it all depends if you want to minimize your out of pocket costs (cash or points) or if you want to maximize bang for your buck. After seeing HR myself, I continue to think that as Globalist you will get value at HR and GH, but value is more modest at HP. It's a better deal for non-Globalists to HP.
That said, I do agree with you that it is questionable to make a distinction between cash stays and points stays when considering to upgrade a guest to a specialty room or not, but it is what it is.