Kacee

1. Hyatt now has the most generous program.

2. Hilton was and remains far and away the worst major chain, with no free internet for non-elites, and a new tiered system which makes even Diamonds pay for usable internet.

Freckles68

No one is denying that internet should be free. Of course it should, in this day and age. The question was whether or not they were restructuring tiers, since basic Gold and Platinum have roughly the same benefits now with the exception of the 15% point bonus. There's no real "perks" to being Platinum vs. Gold now. I think it's a valid question.

GUWonder

Marriott has a history of guaranteeing at-hotel member benefits delivery on even "opaque bookings". Hyatt and Marriott, for example, were excellent about granting program elites' the at-hotel program benefits in a way that meant customers weren't "just your rate" even on Priceline NYOP and Hotwire "opaque" bookings. Has that changed, I don't know. I've not been a Marriott Gold or Plat in a few years.

While Hilton may have played an ugly Internet benefit game as of late (one which I criticized already) and the Hilton points have become devalued in some of the ugliest of ways in the FT era, the Hilton Gold benefits at the hotels deliver well for customers who get the status via 0-4 one-night stays. Hilton Gold is more valuable to me for at hotel benefits than Hyatt Platinum. Hyatt Diamond is great, but Hyatt Platinum is thin on benefits relative to base members and it is getting thinner with this move.

LIH Prem

I guess you missed it ... basic members and non-members only get the basic tier for free. Platinum and Diamond members get the higher tier for free.


I have a concern that some properties are not going to have enough capacity, even with the tiered approach. Hopefully that will just be a temporary situation that gets fixed.

Yet, I don't see that as a reason not to do this, this is a good thing for Hyatt and the industry IMO.

-David

returnoftheyeti

So much meh... I cant remember the last time I paid for internet at at hotel, and if they did try to charge me, my phone is a hotspot. This is almost too little, too late.

AlwaysSunnyInORD

Can I exchange free wifi for MER?

Freckles68

No, I didn't miss anything. You did. Not all properties have two internet tiers. That is what prompted my question to begin with. Where there is only one tier of internet, the only real difference remaining between basic Gold and Platinum is a 15% point bonus. Gold can easily get a 2pm checkout if it's available, so I don't really see that as a defining benefit.

So the question remains... are the tiers being restructured, now that Gold and Platinum are basically comparable in benefits? It just seems that a 15% point bonus is not enough to distinguish the two tiers, and give casual travelers an incentive to always choose Hyatt in order to maintain a status that now isn't much different from the basic level.

austin_modern

not to be rude, but a platinum member is a very casual traveler. (even more so when you can get it with a CC)

conde

Happy Holidays!

First of all, it is a great move by Hyatt to offer complimentary internet access to all guests.

Freckles68 has a valid question. In most cases, it is true that Hyatt Platinum members are casual travelers, but could also be more frequent travelers with loyalty elsewhere. Yeah, Hyatt Platinum status is easy to get, but so what? Hyatt offers benefits to Platinum status members, and if Hyatt doesn't continue to deliver value, Hyatt will lose business. Considering that Hyatt's announcement of free internet closely followed the actions of Starwood, it is legitimate to question what comparable perks will be offered instead.

Starwood's Gold tier status is roughly analogous in level to Hyatt Platinum. Starwood Gold offer members the choice of internet access as a welcome amenity. At Starwood, with internet access to be provided more universally next year, there will be other welcome amenities for SPG Gold members to choose from, such as points or a welcome drink.

An alternative perk to internet access should be of interest to Hyatt Diamond members too. Diamond members may already be getting a welcome amenity, but not much extra to replace free internet.

At Hyatt, there hasn't been an announcement of an alternative benefit to replace internet access. Hyatt seems to care about what Starwood offers. As a Platinum guest participating in Hyatt's Gold Passport program, it would be nice to see that Hyatt makes similar strides to ensure that the Gold Passport program does not lose value.

OsakaWino

But Plats have a guaranteed 2 PM checkout, which is a big difference.

No matter what the benefit, some will find it valuable, while others think it worthless. You don't think much of the premium internet, but I'm sure there are others who are thrilled with it.

In any case, the various changes they're announcing piecemeal are scheduled to take effect in Jan and Feb, so why not wait until then to complain.

nineworldseries

Surprised that there aren't more posts lamenting that this devalues Platinum and Diamond tiers.

Freckles68

Wow. Really? I will say, for the THIRD time, SOME PROPERTIES DO NOT HAVE "PREMIUM" INTERNET. Is it that hard to comprehend that my question pertained to the properties that only have one internet tier? I understand the desire to want to oversimplify things with blanket generalizations, as conclusions are always easier to jump to and a case is more easily closed when you don't take details into account. But please, at least try to parse the nuances... it's not hard when they've been spelled out several times.

Freckles68

THANK YOU. I think retaining MER would have been a smart move.

Freckles68

When did being a "casual traveler" become something to be ashamed of? Too many people seem to derive their identity from how much they travel. Frankly, many of us work hard all year with no chance for a vacation or business travel, so the few weekends away we can manage are precious to us. Looking down your snooty nose at us solves nothing.

But having said that, Hyatt has seen fit to offer a status level between those who rarely travel and those who never stop traveling. That status is Platinum, and it exists for a reason... because most people fall in the middle of those extremes. So yes, there should be distinct differences between Gold and Platinum, just like there should be distinct differences between Platinum and Diamond.

If you can recognize the devaluation of status that occurs when it's "earned" by having a credit card, surely you can recognize the devaluation of status when another benefit is extended to not only the lower level, but non-members. I happen to think internet should have been complimentary for all long before now... but as it was previously touted as a status benefit, it should be replaced by another one, or that status might as well not exist. Which wouldn't be smart, because then like I said before, you'd only have status levels for the two extremes of travel frequency, and none for those in between... where the majority of travelers fall. By devaluing the status of the majority, you're no longer giving them an incentive to choose Hyatt when they DO travel.

AKCuisine

"Free internet" is all relative if there's no high-speed access.

A selection of SpeedTest checks made during some of my Hyatt stays during the past few months:
These were all measured at hotels that offered only a single tier of internet with no ability to pay for higher speed or receive such as a Diamond.

This is absolutely abysmal, and unacceptable for hotels that market as being friendly to business travelers. Some of those speeds were so slow that it made something as simple as trying to check webmail a painful process.

What use is "Free Internet" - either as a brand-wide marketing ploy or as a perk for elite guests - if it's so slow that it's effectively useless?