Randy Petersen

Welcome to FlyerTalk.

The Newbie Lounge is a place where you can get answers to your questions about Hyatt Hotels and the Gold Passport program. No question is too stupid, nothing is taken for granted, and anything about Hyatt you were afraid to ask elsewhere, or weren't sure where to ask, you can ask here.

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We're all glad you are here.

todorovic

I would like to thank Randy and the rest of the FT for creating an avenue for our new members (or new to the Hyatt board) to ask questions without feeling pressured to think twice before posting for the fear of offending more experienced members who may have seen their particular question asked numerous times before. I will be glad to help answer the questions whenever I can and I am sure other Hyatt board regulars will do the same.

travelmbs

What a nice gesture, thank you! And thank you all....For the knowledge, amusement, and travel power. I am a hyatt diamond newbie (disgruntled Marriott member) and have yet to figure out the Hyatt points vs miles. I have read through many postings, however, there is so much info I get overwhelmed and move on to another topic. Is there some sort of magic formula, x$ request points vs x$ request miles...bonus aside? Or am I just too confused?
Second, I scan this thread routinely to pick up some of your expert advise, but again, I get lost. Can you offer your tricks for getting up to speed, then keeping up? I am in the process of formulating my own cheat sheet to read your abbreviations!
I attained my diamond membership late summer and have stayed one stay for 14 nights and was thrilled with the experience. Looking forward to more, and frankly, want to make the most of it. If I could only figure the airfare roulette to asia! My goal is to maintain the diamond.
Thanks in advance for your advise, and I truly value this site - thank you!

cmjaffe

It's nice to have a "safe haven" for newbies to have their questions answered "flame free".
travelmbs...
Regarding your question about how to make the decision between selecting points vs. miles, here's my take. Right now we're "swimming" in miles though we're always looking for ways to save $$ on lodging when our family travels. Being Diamond the bonus points quickly add up. We look to see if there are any promotions to "earn" bonuses wherever possible. We find that Hyatt points have a greater $$ value to us and look to stretch those points as far as possible. Up until this year Hyatt had offered some sort of FFN promotion (two stays earn a free night anywhere... quite generous) in the fall. When this occured we chose Hyatt points. At another time I believe there were bonus air miles offered so if those miles were worth more to "you" then you could change your earning preference. Another way that we've been able to get a bit more points has been in the bed preference. If you don't get it at a Hyatt it's 5K pts and 2500 at Summerfield Suites. Well DH checked in early in SD and all they had were king beds so he "took that" since he had things to take care of in town (having walked over from the Marriott -- preferred the Hyatt btw). So after he checked out he made sure that he got that bonus. When we stay at Summerfield Suites we usually get upgraded to a 2 bed suite, each w/king bed (comp upgrade) but the profile says double bedded room. Leave it to GP, DH gets the 2500 points for not gettting bed type though we never asked for the bonus (but will never turn it down) since we DID get 2 beds, though in 3 rooms.
Just keep your eyes open to the threads in this GP Forum. You'll learn alot and will reap the benefits of having your $$ stretch staying at some really great hotels. DH has only been somewhat "active" since August of last year and we've already have a week's stay booked/earned w/points over Xmas where the going rate is over $600 a night.

mmgm

To me the choice of points over miles is easy. I use my points for free suites or expensive nights.
I consider using points when the value of the room is more than 2 cents a point.
Eg. If a room is over $300 I will use a 15,000 point award.
Because of all the point bonuses- G and Diamond amenity I can obtain significant points with any stay over 1 night.
For a 1 night stay miles might be worthwhile.

RichardInSF

Incidentally, while I'm not an expert on Hyatt Gold Passport, my general observation is that it is usually a lot better to take the points rather than the miles, especially if it's only 500 miles at the time (like it usually is) and if there are bonuses, which are common. While Hyatt does devalue points from time to time, these devaluations tend to be less frequent than airline devaluation.

777 global mile hound

Question for RichardInSF:
Would you be so kind to share what you find so objectionable about Hyatt Place?
I am in the middle frankly and recently had one of the most dissapointing stays in years at one.
But it was isolated to bad management to be fair.The property is a winner otherwise
I am a fairly big fan of Hyatt Place when its new construction or a reasonably good conversion from the former Amerisuites

RichardInSF

Sure. First of all, I found the room no larger than a standard hotel room; putting a shlocky partial divider into a room doesn't make it a suite. Second, on the three different stays I tried (in two completely different locations) the person behind the desk was unhelpful despite knowing I was an elite member, although it's unclear they knew what an elite member was. Third, the HVAC unit is incredibly noisy and positioned so it blows right over the bed. Fourth, that couch with the ottomans is really difficult for me to get comfortable in.

Guess that'll do for starters.

777 global mile hound

Good starters^
I am still somewhat positive on the brand though I agree with the poor through the wall units for heating and AC as a major negative
Recognition is indeed the biggest challenge these properties face with no brand or guest assurance and below average breakfast quality based on full service Hyatt standards IMO
That said they have a great bed compared to Hilton Garden Inn and the like
During Hyatt promotions they do give opportunites in markets where previously one had no Hyatt to earn in.
When in doubt stay in them when you dont need any ac or heat for the day/night
That way you can just leave the AC/heating unit off

pshuang

In regards to selecting earning miles vs. points, the Hyatt Gold Passport program doesn't make a heavy advertising point about being able to earn both miles and points on the same hotel stay, the way that the Hilton HHonors program makes that one of the anchor premises of its program. However, many of the points bonuses that are key to really racking up lots of value from the Gold Passport program are applicable even when you choose to earn base miles instead of base points for your hotel stay. For example, all of these points earnings program features are still applicable even to a stay for which you selected earning base miles:

• Diamond choice-of-amenity points (if you choose points over food & beverage).
• Diamond points for failure to deliver on the guarantee of room bed type specified in the reservation.
• Diamond points for the closure or temporary inaccessibility of a Regency Club lounge at a property that has such a lounge.
• The stay still counts toward earning status for the next program year; conceptually this is the equivalent of airline frequent flier programs' EQM.

Such stays earning base miles may or may still be counted for various short-term points earning promotions. For example, for the current "Great 10K" promotion, even the nights of the stays earning base miles still count toward the number of nights for which you will receive 10,000 bonus points after every 5 nights. And your stays earning base miles still counted toward earning free nights in the extremely popular Faster Free Nights (FFN) promotions (advertised by various promotion names over the years) where every two stays earned you a free night that could potentially be redeemed at a Category 6 (highest Hyatt award level) property that would otherwise require the redemption of 22,000 points per night, but that free night came with an expiration date whereas your Gold Passport points don't expire.

So, lots of the "goodies" that you can earn will get earned whether you choose to earn points or miles. What does actually change?

• If you choose to earn miles, you don't earn 5 points per qualifying dollar of spend plus any status-specific percentage bonuses (30% for Diamond, so you would then be earning 6.5 points per qualifying dollar). You also don't earn the G1, G2, and G3 bonuses that are time specific and property specific. These are points bonuses: 1,000, 2,000, and 1,500 points respectively.
• There are less common A# bonuses analogous to the G# bonuses that earn a fixed amount of bonus miles per stay. If you choose to earn miles and the property is offering an A# bonus for the dates of your stay, you could earn more miles.
• In general, since the number of base and status-specific percentage bonus points you earn are proportional to the amount of money you are spending on that stay, the arithmetic should work out that for more expensive, longer stays, you should increasingly learn toward choosing to earn points instead of miles for that stay.

There can also be short-term miles-earning bonuses that are significant, as in multiple thousands of bonus miles per stay. When they are in effect and you have not yet hit any maximum that might be defined by that bonus program's terms and conditions, such bonus programs may sway your decision to earning miles for the duration.

Depending on the promotions in effect at the time and how much money I am spending on each individual stay, I have flip-flopped back and forth a number of times over the last year or so of having become a Hyatt Gold Passport fan between primarily choosing to earn points for my stays versus primarily choosing to earn miles. According to my tracking spreadsheet (which I keep updated sadly because so many Hyatt hotel stays fail to post properly), my earnings for 2010 with 40+ stays and 100+ nights are: 104,460 Gold Passport points; 100,000 United Airlines Mileage Plus miles; and 48,500 American Airlines AAdvantage miles. Not a bad haul....

travelmbs

Thank you all for answering my question of earning points vs miles. It seems like a full time job just to keep track of the promotions, but apparently worth the effort.

pshuang, According to my tracking spreadsheet (which I keep updated sadly because so many Hyatt hotel stays fail to post properly), my earnings for 2010 with 40+ stays and 100+ nights are: 104,460 Gold Passport points; 100,000 United Airlines Mileage Plus miles; and 48,500 American Airlines AAdvantage miles. Not a bad haul....

No kidding! Good for you. Next question, if I pay attention to the Hyatt forum and my hyatt account, will I be able to manage to to make the most of this program - of which I am already a huge fan? Or is there more work involved (besides the self tracking as mentioned)? I have noticed that I don't use the promo codes when booking, and that has to change.
So I guess I am asking for tips you use to stay up to date. And keeping track of all of the codes. Obviously, you are not just travelers (or most of you) so this has to fit into your incredibly busy schedules.
Now I am going to look to the other forums for more of these topics! This is so helpful, thank you.

etsmyers

throwing my .02 in here.

Given a choice, I will always choose Summerfield over HP. Elite recognition is almost nil at a HP and you at least have the social hour at SS.

thegrailer

Not a newbie but I do have a newb-ish Hyatt question. (If this should go in with the regular threads, please move it)

When should one complain about a stay and I'll put this on context. I have burned through a lot of FFN and BWB stays. All except for one stay were Park Hyatts. But not everything went smoothly. The PH Milan gave up what appeared to be the smallest room in the hotel, i.e., it looked like a suite connecting room. Park Hyatt Vendome over the summer was unbelievably hot in the room. We thought it might have been user error with the thermostat but the next night was the same. The problem then was that we only had 1 night left. PH Melbourne was a front desk was at best indifferent, at worst, down right rude (is it because we arrived via the airport shuttle rather than a Mercedes limo?). We were begrudgingly given lounge access- even as a diamond- and half a welcoming gift (according to the PH Melbourne thread and other PH experiences). Recently stayed at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale, used a suite upgrade and got a fantastic room. Here the room was right behind the elevator bank. Dings all night but it was only a 2 night stay.

Is it proper to make a fuss for 1 night? Is it worth it to complain and ask for a different room on a 2 night stay after half the stay is already over (a "free" 2 night stay). Or to ask for a different room after being given a massive suite or on a "free" night? Especially when the service has been fantastic leading up to and during the stay? (e.g., the concierge at the Vendome going across town for us to retrieve something left in a cafe; Last Supper ticket assistance PH Milan).

Cheers

Thanks

etsmyers

My stays are all domestic. I have never had a problem with staff and using BWB and FFN nights.

I have used them in blocks at the DC Park Hyatt and the Chesapeake resort, both times with generous upgrades including a suite at the Park Hyatt in DC.
I can imagine that foreign properties, that are tourist areas, may not be as generous.

What did you book?
To answer one of your big questions, yes, even if it is a 2 night stay, if I feel I am not getting the benefits of my dollars/points/free night certs/upgrade, I will speak to someone.

RichardInSF

I guess this one sort of falls in my bailiwick since I've stayed at all three of the PH's you mention -- including multiple stays at Vendome and Melbourne.

First of all, I think it is appropriate at a PH to make a fuss over just about anything that bothers you. This is Hyatt's top rank, intended to compete with luxury hotels, and your entire stay should be good, not just most of it.

Should you be comped for most any problem? No, but the hotel should make a good faith effort to fix it, and profuse yet mechanical apologies aren't sufficient.

BTW, if you want to see mechanical, uncaring apologies at their best, try a Four Seasons hotel sometimes.

Of the three PH's you mention, I have had the most problems by far in Melbourne. It's ironic that many of Hyatt's best GM's outside of Australia are Australian. However, the Australian hotels never seem to benefit and service in Melb for me has varied from good to really terrible.

Regarding room temperature at Vendome, this was a general problem when the hotel opened. Apparently they have heated bathroom floors and there was initially no way to turn that off, which meant that the a/c struggled in summer. I have not experienced an a/c problem since that was fixed, but maybe a few rooms still have the problem.

My one experience in Milan was quite good and the current GM is highly regarded, but I have to say that they are entitled to give you a smaller room on a free stay if the hotel is busy.