notquiteaff

So then do the honorable thing and don't sign up for this offer

But just like the much maligned former 25-stay Diamonds (who played by the rules!) you take advantage of what's benefits you. Shocking.

MarkOK

At 30-40 nights, WoH is better than gold passport. Even at 60 nights, WoH seems better except for those that were gaining a lot of points on welcome amenities along the way. The only losers in the conversion seems to be the 25 stay crowd/mattress runners.

25k points can convert to 5 nights at a cat 1 -- it doesn' cost near zero to house, feed breakfast, and cleanup after a guest for 5 nights at a HP (especially if they bring their family). At worst, they could lose a $1000 from a cash paying customer if the hotel is at capacity and that cash paying guest then books elsewhere.

As for the promo, I generally don't like them. On one hand, I feel that at least these things aren't limited to corporate email address holders, but on the other hand, I don't like the gamemanship it creates. Give status based on how much someone is spending/supporting Hyatt, not based on well they play the game.

MarkOK

Yep, I will take advantage of what benefits me. Though, for the record, I won't bellyache if next year such offer doesn't come to pass. I am not 'owed' anything at my 30-40 nights a year other than what explorist is. I think that is the difference between me and some of them

To edit and expand -- Much of the 25 stay crowd seems to be claiming since WoH's rollout that they should be owed more because of their travel type (quick stays) than longer-stay travelers and complained when the rules were changed to be more fair towards people like me. To that, I have been rolling my eyes. If I stay 40 nights, Joe stays 70 nights, and Harry stays 25 nights, then Joe, then Me, then Harry should be awarded in that order. Not -- lets give Harry and Joe the same status because Harry has 25 'stays' while giving Mark some lesser status, and on top of that, lets make sure Harry gets his welcome amenities! (and yes, again, for the record, I am not a fan of the promotion gimmick, though this sort of globalist status still isn't giving confirmed suit upgrades or a free cat1-7 nights, only Joe in my example gets those).

solewalker

I'm one of your 25-stay mythical diamonds. However, your imagination of some of us 25-stay diamonds bringing along a whole brood to basically feast on breakfast/lounges like locusts at a HP/HH is probably in your head. Of my 25 stays, I think I only spent 4 stays in HP. The rest were HR, GH, Centric, and PH.

iflyjetz

MarkOK, Diamond could be achieved with 20 actual stays plus $20K on the Hyatt credit card. That was the threshold that I aimed for, and it allowed me to spend some nights at other hotel chains.

As far as any loss/gain from someone like me, I almost always booked FS Hyatts. I don't like Hyatt Place and Hyatt House. In years that I was short on Hyatt stays, I'd do a midweek MLife Vegas mattress run to get a few more stays. And those MLife nights were mostly at Delano, Mandalay Bay, the Mirage, and Bellagio.

Every single time I booked a room, I booked it on Hyatt's or MLife's website. I paid exactly what the hotel demanded; I didn't hold a gun to their head to get a dirt cheap rate. And many times, the rate was anything but dirt cheap, especially when compared to other hotel chains.

As far as Hyatt points, I never thought about them much in the past. Since one couldn't get credit for award nights, I didn't burn my points and they accumulated for years except when I gave my kids free hotel nights (I love Guest of Honor; it allowed me to get rid of 200K+ pts). With P+C nights, I've burned some points but until this year, I paid cash when the cash rate was low enough to be a better deal.
As far as the welcome gift, I took the amenity more often than the points.

MarkOK

The 20 stays/20K on credit card is still about 14 stays more than I would normally make, even while accumulating 30-40 nights ! And again, my perspective on WoH is as someone that puts in a decent (though admittedly not huge) number of nights but not all that many 'stays'. The goldpassport system, like other programs, was/are basically telling me that my 30-40 nights doesn't mean anything near as much as a 25 stay overnight business traveler.
As for the welcome amenity -- I would have taken the points every time, but that is just me, as the points IS the primary reason to even play around with loyalty programs as it expands my leisure travel abilities.

dsquared37

If you don't know the numbers, pray tell how you know, 'there are loads of them'??



Um, no.

For you perhaps but that doesn't mean it is for all, most or even many. From everything you've posted thus far it is clear that you are firm in belief that only your stay pattern is appropriate while others are simply gaming the system.

The only losers seem to be those who fancy themselves holier than thou.

dsquared37

Sorry to pick on you but you're making it fairly easy.

I'm confused. Earlier you said the 25 stay members were gaming the system, now they are business travelers. Were they gaming the system or not?


So it's OK for you to take those 25K pts (should you get 25 stays) but not someone with 25 stays? How do you draw these 'holier than thou' lines with a straight face?

iflyjetz

Mark, if the points mean that much to you, I have to assume that all of your nights are paid by your employer. Mostly at HH and HP.

I started Hyatt in late 2011 and accumulated more than 500K points by the end of 2016. All of my stays/nights - every single one of them was paid for out of my pocket. Points only started meaning a bit to me when they started giving credit for P+C nights and introduced Guest of Honor.

MarkOK

No frets about picking on me. ^

The 25 stay members were either business travelers and/or gamers of the system. Mattress running is a real thing, as are business travelers.

And no, I don't think getting extra points based on stays is 'fair' whether it is me or someone else. That is why, I am not a fan of the welcome amenity. I think, on principal, that awards programs should benefit most those that benefit the company in return. 25 stay business travelers or matress runners don't benefit Hyatt as much as someone staying 30-40 nights a year, but WERE getting quite a load more in benefits under gold passport. I like that WoH changed the rules, it does benefit me, but outside of that, I think it is fair. This promo also benefits me just because it so happens that my travel this year is outsized during (espeically) November and December, but I am fully admitting, cross my heart, that I don't think it is fair and I won't expect, nor even care to see, Hyatt do these promos. I Would rather see real-hard changes to the program to be more fair and equittable (for example, allowing full points night to count, because people like me will pt+cash to get the qualified nights even though doing so isn't benefit Hyatt any more likely than if I did pt only stays instead).

MarkOK

Half my stays are employer paid, half are pleasure. I've been a member of Hyatt's program since 2005 (when I was in college) and though my travel was light for most of the 10 years after, the Hyatt points accumulated here and there meant a lot to a grad student on a budget. And full awareness, I use my points occasionally for work-trips too (according to state employee rules, I am supposed to use 'travel rewards accrued from state travel on future state travel' -- over a long enough time period, it does average out that way, and most of my work stays end up at HRs because that is where the academic/industry conference is or is near, though a few times, HH's work only because of complicated government per diem rules, which sucks, because the state actually doesn't pay anything for my travel in any direct or indirect way, but those are the joys of being a professor having to get money from mostly corporations to do research, only to have the state regulate every aspect of it as though they were the ones paying for it).

Anyways I digress, What pts mean to me is a last minute - hey, I can book a cheap hotel this weekend somewhere -- type of trip. Trips I wouldn't necessarily take if I paid in cash! (and with work, it is a, I don't have the funds to go that awesome conference, but hey, I guess I could burn some points and make it work). That enriches my life in a real way -- The perks of a status are just that - perks. Nice to have, but not really the end all be all.

48pager

Why does this move not surprise me? WoH has been a train wreck since day one. Better to apologize, admit you've heard customer feedback loud and clear and revamp the program. The goodwill Hyatt would generate from such a bold endeavor would win back disenchanted frequent hotel guests faster than you can say Gold Passport.

JackE

When program participants "mattress run", they are not gaming the system. The system is gaming them.

The brand is getting them to stay a few more nights than they otherwise would.

iflyjetz

I can almost guarantee you that Hyatt will have more 'glob the easy way' promotions next year. If you look at Q2's results, the only reason why Hyatt's profits were higher in 2Q2017 over 2Q2016 was due to a $55M delta on sales of real estate. If not for that line item, net income would have been about half of 2Q2016. So yes, Hyatt's sucking wind with the new WoH program.

59Impala

I have written to WOH Concierge. will report back if there is anything to be shared.