FD1971

You are not the first one.

Do not forget that many many former Diamond members left the Hyatt forum for good long before this round of devaluations.

For me it is also apparent that many posters did not really calculate the value of C+P..., jumping to conclusions too early.

What is really nice about Cat.7 now, is the pretty easy comparison between five years ago and today.

Park Hyatt Vendome or Milan a couple of yearsago: 15000 points (during a time when G2 bonus options were plentiful)

Park Hyatt Vendome or Milan 2014: 30000 points or 15000 points + $300

FD1971

And that is the advantage of Costco, due to the partnership between both companies, the discount is almost always available. It is low, but considering that it is available to more or less everyone, it is appreciated by quite some guests.

Higher discounts will be subject to more scrutiny in various reservation departments and there is no way that Hyatt will offer discounts of 20% systemwide on regular business days in places like Washington, Chicago or even Europe.

As pointed out yesterday, the SPG equivalent, Hot Escapes are not really hot and normally not available on regular business days.

I do not mind a steep discount on weekends, but again, one should not expect to save huge amounts of $$$

antonius66

But but but...cash and points!

These "enhancements" are a whole lot of nothing. Personally I find the way they set the whole timing up even more insulting..."hey we know we laid down the screw to you, but look at this shiny little toy we gave you right after! Look look look!"

CloudCoder

Wow, the tone of this thread has turned 180 degrees just within the last few hours.

I view the new enhancements as mostly positive. Of course we'll need to wait and see how the changes are actually implemented.

For example, if the Elite Rate is only offered when lower rates are readily available, then it's no bargain. We also don't know (yet) if the Elite Rate will be prepaid.

Clearly, the announcement was designed to please the frequent guests. Hopefully the implementation will carry that same idea forward. It would seem really dumb if they announced an enhancement for their most frequent guests but then administered that feature so as to run off the very customers they were aiming at.

The cash + points is a great benefit. I use the same kind of benefit all the time at other hotel chains.

Hopefully, instead of condemning the program before it even starts, we can at least give them a chance to make good on the promises. Again, I see the new benefits as "mostly" enhancements.

Having played the travel game for several decades, I tend to cringe whenever companies announce changes for the new year. In this case, we actually fared well. It could have been far worse.

Ancien Maestro

Good points on this thread.. The discount to elites would make sense if it was 20% better than any available rate offered on the website including AAA/CAA.

But to expect Hyatt to forgo possibly millions in revenue? We do want to avoid a unsustainable model that would result in unwanted enhancements to the program, don't we?

sensei

20% off the Daily Rate if offered with similar frequency as AAA/Costco would be a great feature. Time will tell. By the way, the Daily Rate is nowhere near "rack". In my experience, AAA rates typically are closer to a 10% discount and more generous corporate discounts are not available to the general public.

SPG Hot Escapes is a pre-paid non-changeable product that is available at select properties and can only be booked on select days and only up to 6 weeks out. It really isn't comparable to this new Hyatt benefit.

FD1971

This is how Mr. Zidell saw it the last time:

9. Jeff Zidell stated Hyatt wants to create “true loyalty, not operate a profit center.” He commented the credit card has increased loyalty. “In addition, we want to maintain a very compelling and competitive award chart, which comes under pressure if you flood the market with a lot of additional points.” -

http://boardingarea.com/loyaltytrave....n1Ai5edX.dpbs

Considering the Blablabla bubbles he is creating, he could also work for P&G

OsakaWino

Classic carrot and stick. Some may see it as a very big stick and a very small carrot, depending on individual circumstances. The 20% discount is not likely to placate those who already have favourable corp rates, and a lot of people have been doubting how widely it will be available, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Being selfish, I would have liked to see a few more Diamond-specific enhancements. I was Plat for more than 20 years and know how easy it is to maintain, but to stay Diamond I have to concentrate all of my stays (all leisure and self paid) on Hatt.

I think you will hear the most vocal complaints from those who pay the least, yet demand the most.

777 global mile hound

Before we tar and feather the Hyatt GP corporate team (though it sounds like good holiday fun) Awesome stress reduction
How about we all see the availability of Cash and Points as well as see how the elite member’s rate works and if it performs nicely?
In my early assessment I think Hyatt has created opportunity for many of us albeit with a serious devaluation in tow especially in premium properties
One of the things I tried to convey to Hyatt management long ago was that booking options were too limited.
This opens the door with Cash and Points and the elite member rate.Which should work and be helpful in a number of circumstances

My understanding from my contact at Hyatt is the elite members rate will be fully refundable unless the hotel has a special condition
in place based on an event which would apply to all rates booked in that case
Right now when I input the 15% discount promotional code on some random Hyatt Place properties it works out to be the same as the AAA rate
My guess is the elite members rate would drop an additional 5% on average
In international locations presuming this elite member rate is available this may or may not be more significant as AAA is typically not available
In the Domestic North American properties one should reasonably be able to save substantially

Key Discount focal points to consider North America
•5% elite member discount 20 percent in writing
• 10% on Hyatt Gift card promotions (Milepoint) and seasonal offers where Up to 7 k total may be purchased)
• 2% e-bates rebate when booked through their portal

That's a 17% savings more typically staying at every North America Hyatt Hotel in my eyes
And up to 22% if the Hyatt gift cards are charged to the American Express Open Network card (sorry international members don't stone me!)
What Hotel company in the world offers that kind of opportunity for guests and reward them fair enough with points or miles and sometimes additional year round promotions?
Not to mention the overall recognition of current GP elite benefits

I realize Hyatt isn't as generous as the good old G bonus/Faster Free Nights days but to their credit they have opened the door
to other opportunities and greater flexibility in both earning and redeeming.Good or bad and I’m feeling reasonably optimistic here
I say let’s all give it the best foot forward and then if it’s all a flop and failure we can go back to tar and feathering of all those responsible

antonius66

Can you confirm that buying gift cards with an Amex counts as Hyatt spend for the 5% off?

Ashasan2005

The AAA rate right now is 15% off thru February 28 at Hyatt Place or Hyatt House. http://hyatt.com/aaa
So that's why the difference is not that much. But like you mentioned the elite offer will be huge for International destinations.

joetro

I plan to book a night at Grand Hyatt Melbourne in July. Can I book at the Category 3 Cash and Points rate, or could I not do so until it has already been upgraded to a Category 4. My guess is the later, but ...

azepine00

This is a pointless and irrelevant (and heartburn inducing) exercise. You should compare to what competition has now not to what Hyatt had 5 years ago. If you want to play time machine, 8 years ago $30 priceline rates qualified for FFN and 10 years ago hilton had 7 nights top tier for 100K points and joint spouse account.
But until 3-5 years ago didn't have any credit cards to sign up for and claim multiple 50K bonuses.

Things don't stand still for better or worse. The only relevant thing is how Hyatt now stacks up against other chains. I still take Hyatt but YMMV of course.

jpdx

For a few days, I was excited about the Hyatt C&P announcement. Now, I'm beginning to re-evaluate. Looking at various discounts, sales, and BRGs, I would argue that -barring high-demand periods with very high rates- there are not many Hyatts where C&P gives you anywhere near a 1.5cpp valuation. The ones that come to mind as potential good values are Hakone (12.5k+$150 vs Y50k rates), Maldives (12.5k+$150 vs $800+), Andaz Maui (12.5k+$150 vs $500), and a handful of others. But for the most part, C&P cost is too high compared to what you can do with discounts and BRGs.

Here's what the lowest available revenue rate would have to be if you value your points at 1.5cpp:

1 5,000 2,500 + $50 USD --> $87.50
2 8,000 4,000 + $55 USD --> $115.00
3 12,000 6,000 + $75 USD --> $165.00
4 15,000 7,500 + $100 USD --> $212.50
5 20,000 10,000 + $125 USD --> $275.00
6 25,000 12,500 + $150 USD --> $337.50
7 30,000 15,000 + $300 USD --> $525.00

Don't get me wrong; I am glad that Hyatt introduced this option. It's not nearly as bad as the complete sucker bet SPG's C&P has become (where the typical experience these days is that C&P is only available when the cash component is almost the same as, or in some cases more than, revenue rates). However, IMO in most cases of normal demand (which is likely the only time C&P is available anyways), Hyatt C&P will be appealing only because (a) it makes staying at certain high-end properties possible, for which one might not normally pay either cash or points, and (b) it lets you use a suite upgrade certificate at some desirable properties. For instance, I would not pay $500 cash for a night at Hakone, nor would I part with 22k (soon 25k) points for a standard room. But I would consider paying 12.5k+$150 for a suite. So if you do the math, C&P may rarely be stellar actual value, but I can imagine many scenarios where it is good perceived value.

OsakaWino

Unless I missed a post, there is still significant doubt that the Diamond suite upgrades will be usable on C&P. A GP Concierge posted that they would not be because they are considered award stays

Yet, if they are also considered "eligible" stays, it would make sense that the Diamond suite upgrades would be applicable.

Did I miss something definitively clarifying this one way or the other?