Is Hyatt Diamond the best program?
 

Hi all. I'm travelling around the world and only wants to stay in good hotels. - I want the best hotel program, i'm thinking about Hyatt, but how good is it. I have the following questions and I will be happy if you can help me:

1) How often are you giving lounge access?
2) How often are you giving upgrades to club room?
3) How often are you giving upgrades to suites?
4) Is Hyatt Diamond better than SPG Platinum and Hilton Diamond?
5) How good is this program if you are staying on travel agency rates (expedia, priceline) - Still giving lounge/upgrade and/or points?

I'm looking forward to get my questions answered.

I've of course searched a lot on this site, but i'm not 100% sure...

1) Most of the hotels I stay at don't have a lounge, but I can't remember the last time where they failed to give me the stated benefits
2) Same
3) When I request it using the confirmed suite upgrade, very rarely otherwise. On business travel getting a suite doesn't matter, but the confirmed upgrades are nice for vacation.
4) Yes
5) You get the full benefits on PL rates, but no stay credit.

as bmw303 points out, make sure there are Hyatt properties where you are traveling to, this is the lone achillies heel of the Hyatt program IMO.

No brainer about Hilton, the dud of the hotel program world, steer clear of them.

I certainly believe Hyatt has been better for me than SPG but if there is a competitor to Hyatt, this is it IMO.

of course need to have some status in order to get bene's.

and we look forward to your feedback back to the forum if you choose Hyatt.

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Be aware though that your question 5 - booking on travel agency rates (expedia, priceline) will not earn you points / miles or stay credit for qualification / requalification purposes. But you are entitled to status perks for every stay no matter how booked / at what rate.

My short answer would be "yes, absolutely". Hyatt is the best program.

But...

I looked at your questions and realized that our interests are different.

I'm more interested in the hotels than the treatment I receive as a Diamond. And, for my dollar and desires, Hyatt dominates in every category: Hyatt Place, Summerfield Suites, Hyatt Regency and up. For me, all the perks in the world don't matter much if the hotel facilities or service are shoddy.

1) How often are you giving lounge access?
Reliably in the full-service hotels that have them; otherwise a breakfast voucher for coffee/pastry/juice. But I never go. I'm health conscious and prefer to make my own food/avoid typical lounge fare. My work weeks are often 100+ hours, so I don't hang around the lounge.

2) How often are you giving upgrades to club room?
Again, reliably. I'm not always certain that I can identify the difference.

3) How often are you giving upgrades to suites?
So far, ten years as a Diamond, never. That said, I spend a fair amount of times in Hyatt Places. And in the full-service lines, I really don't care, so I don't ask.

4) Is Hyatt Diamond better than SPG Platinum and Hilton Diamond?
It depends. I think SPG is nearly as good on the promos, but when faster free nights comes around (or whatever they call it), my preference has to be Gold Passport.

5) How good is this program if you are staying on travel agency rates (expedia, priceline) - Still giving lounge/upgrade and/or points?
No experience here.

Also a newbie with Goldpassport; thank you to everyone for all these answers.

May I ask three more questions in this thread that I could not find a quick answer to when searching this forum.

a) Is a suite upgrade really as scarce as my first impression is? (I was status matched to Diamond). I'm a fairly spoilt as InterConti Royal Ambassador (almost 100 % suite upgrades) ;)

b) Apparently, you can upgrade using points. The website reads: "When redeeming Regency/Grand Club® Upgrades or Suite Upgrades at a resort property, you must pay a minimum of the prevailing deluxe rack rate (such as partial ocean view, ocean view, slope view, etc.). At non-resort properties you must pay a minimum of the prevailing rack rate."
I'm puzzled by the word rack rate. That would make a suite upgrade at expensive resort locations unaffordable. This means, advance purchase and "best flexible rates" are not bookable for such upgrades? How would it work, for instance, in Bali GH?

c) I understood that the Gx Promos can be added after the reservation and also during check-in. So I can make a reservation now and add a promo code later, whenever one is available (i.e. the current ones g2 are expiring before my reservations). Correct?

Thank you very much, and apologies should similar questions been asked a million times before in this forum ;)

I want to give a big THANK YOU to each and everyone who have replied in this topic! It have been very helpful to me and I have decided to stick to Hilton and Hyatt. Since i'm travelling unlimited from july.

One last questions would be: How luxurious would you say Hyatt is? I think they are like Hilton. There always is some standard, but only a few is like FS/Ritz. Correct?

Regarding Q #1: pretty much always if the hotel has a lounge.

In general, Hyatts are significantly better than Hiltons. Further, the Park Hyatt chain is quite luxurious, a step up from the Conrad brand (which I also like very much).

Here is an interesting thread in the Starwood forum, comparing the two programs.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...ood-stays.html

bmw303, I couldn't quote your post for some reason, but here is my question: are you sure about the 7-day stay on the suite upgrades? As a Diamond, I have been under the impression that the upgrades are for 4-days each. :confused:

T&Cs say Seven.

Diamond members will be issued four (4) suite upgrade awards, in their account, annually, defined as March 1st of the current year through the last day of February of the following year, Awards can be tracked through "My Promotional Awards" on goldpassport.com. A complimentary suite upgrade is valid on paid nights, for a maximum of 7 consecutive nights, at participating Hyatt hotels where suite accommodations are available.

Chinatrvl, you have been very kind to me in answering questions about IC properties, and I will attempt to return the favor. I am top tier in both Hyatt and IC, though with greater depth in the Hyatt program.

Hyatt does not offer suite upgrades as a program perk, other than the four confirmable upgrades. There are certain properties that routinely offer suites, such as the Hyatt Singapore where I've now had them on 5 sequential stays. Regardless, I do not expect a suite at a Hyatt property and am delighted when I receive one.

The above language is indeed true for upgrades done using points. However, upgrades done with our new suite certs can be done on the cheapest bookable rate you can find. I just used a suite upgrade at the Andaz WeHo on a very attractive corporate rate.

Yes, that is correct.

I wanted to compare and contrast the IC benefits versus Hyatt. They are quite different, and only you can decide which better suits.

Intercontinental RA:

• Roughly 200 hotels, so quite limited
• Suite upgrade on paid stays
• Unlimited mini bar on paid stays
• Early check in and late check out guaranteed
• Benefits for free stays at discretion of property
• Annual requalification criteria unclear

Hyatt Diamond

• Several hundred properties, still a limited brand, but more than double the size of Intercontintal
• 4 guaranteed suite upgrades on paid stays
• Free breakfast
• Free internet worldwide
• Award stays receive all benefits
• 25 stays required for annual requalification; these can be done at any rate, some of which are amazingly affordable

I don't drink alcohol, so for me, the free breakfast is a more attractive benefit than the free minibar.

I really appreciate free internet worldwide. I know that IC offered free internet last summer, but I've had recent stays where the promo had expired and there was a significant cost.

I like receiving all my benefits on award stays. With IC, I feel I need to write in advance when I book an award. I find some only give the late check out and a free movie, while some will give the suite upgrade but no minibar, etc.

IC has some beautiful properties, and I have made sure that I will retain my RA status. Hyatt also has some beautiful properties, particularly the Park Hyatt brand. It's much easier to retain Hyatt status, of course depending on your travel pattern. You might find them nice complimentary chains.

I'm in agreement with the others responding. As a Diamond, the lounge access and upgrades are almost automatic, and the suite upgrades work - but don't expect them randomly (although they occassionally occur,) I think it's the best, most reliable program - but Starwood is a VERY close runner-up. No experience on #5. Hyatt GP is a great program if you really use their hotels and maintain Diamond status. Unlike some of the others (Hilton,) they really make their program both good for the Hyatt Corp and for the very frequent guest! Highly recommended.