Originally Posted by pinniped
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My question is: what type of awards are popular in this program? I would probably value a true 1-bedroom suite in a full-service hotel at maybe $75/nt. over a typical room. So those awards seem pretty good, although I doubt I'd use 'em at GH Seattle since I go there by myself. Are there any particular "sweet spots" in the program? For example, with Marriott it's the Travel Packages, with Hilton it's the GLON-type awards, and with Starwood it's the 5-nighters or "Nights & Flights" depending on your valuation of FF miles.
Finally: sometimes we do short family trips, so the Summerfield/Hawthorne/Amerisuites type properties actually hold some value to us. Are these chains comparable to a Residence Inn? I have seen them from a distance but never actually been in one. Do they offer true suites (as opposed to "large hotel rooms", minisuites, junior suites, etc.)? 3000 pts/nt seems like a potential "sweet spot" for us, considering we'd otherwise pay $100-150 for a Residence Inn.
The "Sweet Spot" is that you can reserve rooms using points well in advance then switch them to Faster Free Nights and not use any points at all.
In addition to the regular points earnings, Hyatt has a lot of bonus oppertunites that are available to everyone (not targetted like SPG). Most are 1k, 1.5k, or 2k bonus points / stay. Right now they also have a 3k bonus for a stay at a Summerfield Suites.
Check out these links:
http://goldpassport.hyatt.com/gp/en/offers/index.jsp
http://goldpassport.hyatt.com/gp/en/...equestid=27023
I would say that the 3k award properties are not as consistant as Residence Inn. They do have true suites, but the quality varies. There are also fewer of them around.
I actually value suite upgrades at most Hyatts (especially resorts) much more than $75/nt. Here are some photos of the hotel and suite we got at the Grand Hyatt Kauai. We used points to reserve it in advance then switched to FFNs. Cat 4, 15k points per night:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tum/set...7594087887532/