Hyatt Category Changes 2019
Feb 12, 2019, 10:28 am
#46
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: SFO
Programs: AA EXP 3 MM
Posts: 4,576
Feb 12, 2019, 10:34 am
#47
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Barcelona, London, on a plane
Programs: BA Silver, TK E+, AA PP, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 13,041
This is by a very wide margin the least painful award category update I have seen of all the big hotel chains in a great long while. IHG has uniformly raised all of the big city and city center hotels every year (the only ones ever reduced are small towns and suburbs), and Hilton has just become a pathetic joke. California and most of Asia were lowered and now I have more than one option for my Cat 4's on weekend trips from LA. Sad about Tokyo (Andaz and Ginza are two of my fav), but not surprised considering that the Andaz is usually $500+ a night.
Marriott, IHG and Hilton are happy to charge you 5,000 more points per year, every year, for any half-decent hotel, even when average hotel rates have hardly changed.
Feb 12, 2019, 10:52 am
#48
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
RE: the location, I get that it's a personal thing and not everyone wants to be in the heart of a city surrounded by nightlife... but a minimal amount of research (eg, glancing at a map) would tell you that that's the type of area that it was. The location is exactly what it's advertised to be, so there shouldn't be any surprises.
That's why I'm so happy with the change. Finding a cat 4 in the downtown of a "real" (for lack of a better term) city is challenging.
Feb 12, 2019, 12:22 pm
#50
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 981
I know that there are probably some favorites that went up, but at least there are still options in Tokyo and other cities that you can use the certificate.
Feb 12, 2019, 12:27 pm
#51
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 981
I was really happy to see that too. If we go back to SAN for a vacation, it will definitely be an option to stay in one of those places when we are in downtown and then stay at the HH in carlsbad for legoland (which also dropped, one year too late for me though).
Feb 12, 2019, 12:38 pm
#52
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: NYC
Programs: Marriott Plat, Hilton Gold, UA Silver
Posts: 2,272
I stayed at the PH and found it to be a massive disappointment. No way is it remotely worth a cat 6.
Feb 12, 2019, 1:11 pm
#53
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
I had a 9-night stay at the PH Seoul and I checked out early to go to the GH Seoul after 2 nights. I liked the GH a lot more than the PH.
The PH is certainly nice enough (definitely fancier than the GH) but everything about the hotel is just a massive hassle. Not something that I want to deal with when I'm on vacation. I hate it when staff at "fancy" hotels feel that they are doing you a favor by letting you stay there. I was very happy to get out of that place.
The PH is certainly nice enough (definitely fancier than the GH) but everything about the hotel is just a massive hassle. Not something that I want to deal with when I'm on vacation. I hate it when staff at "fancy" hotels feel that they are doing you a favor by letting you stay there. I was very happy to get out of that place.
Feb 13, 2019, 9:09 am
#54
Join Date: Aug 2018
Programs: Hyatt
Posts: 100
Glad I already booked the family vacay to Andaz Costa Rica for May. Used 2 cat 1-4 certs and points to book nights in a suites.
Under the new valuations, would have cost me nearly 50k more in points.
Too bad. I'm sure many people will be disappointed by change.
Thinking of booking for Mayakoba before it goes up in points.
Under the new valuations, would have cost me nearly 50k more in points.
Too bad. I'm sure many people will be disappointed by change.
Thinking of booking for Mayakoba before it goes up in points.
Feb 13, 2019, 9:16 am
#55
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,052
I had a 9-night stay at the PH Seoul and I checked out early to go to the GH Seoul after 2 nights. I liked the GH a lot more than the PH.
The PH is certainly nice enough (definitely fancier than the GH) but everything about the hotel is just a massive hassle. Not something that I want to deal with when I'm on vacation. I hate it when staff at "fancy" hotels feel that they are doing you a favor by letting you stay there. I was very happy to get out of that place.
The PH is certainly nice enough (definitely fancier than the GH) but everything about the hotel is just a massive hassle. Not something that I want to deal with when I'm on vacation. I hate it when staff at "fancy" hotels feel that they are doing you a favor by letting you stay there. I was very happy to get out of that place.
The Grand Club at GH is brand new and pretty spacious with decent booze and spreads. A major step up from the restrictive happy hour at PH's Timber House. PH is not worth 25,000 hard earned points.
Last edited by Aventine; Feb 13, 2019 at 10:15 am
Feb 13, 2019, 12:09 pm
#56
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
My suite was practically falling apart and the new GM thought it didn't warrant changing the room or any sort of service recovery. Seems to be lapsing back to the snooty Gangnam image it had in the early 2010s.
The Grand Club at GH is brand new and pretty spacious with decent booze and spreads. A major step up from the restrictive happy hour at PH's Timber House. PH is not worth 25,000 hard earned points.
The Grand Club at GH is brand new and pretty spacious with decent booze and spreads. A major step up from the restrictive happy hour at PH's Timber House. PH is not worth 25,000 hard earned points.
I could go on for a long time about the problems with the PH Seoul and their compete lack of understanding of what "service" means but that probably belongs in the hotel-specific thread.
Feb 14, 2019, 12:09 am
#57
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: JAX
Programs: UA Plat MM, AA Gold MM, Marriott LTT, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 3,770
The changes are not really affecting me. Hotel du Louvre going from Cat 5 to Cat 6 was anticipated since they just underwent a massive renovation that took about 2 years, and room rates are now similar to Hotel Madeleine, the other Cat 6 in Paris. HR Etoile cash rate still makes it the most reasonable hotel in Paris, if not as nice as Hotel du Louvre, Madeleine and PHV.
Last edited by CIT85; Feb 14, 2019 at 12:33 am
Feb 14, 2019, 3:54 am
#58
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 88
So disappointed with the category change for the Hyatt Regency Boston, our goto hotel during the summer. Question for the experts, my annual certificate does not renew until April 😶... Could I technically book the Boston property with points right now for 15k and then switch it to the certificate in April?
I value the points much more since they are more flexible to work with, thanks!
I value the points much more since they are more flexible to work with, thanks!
Feb 16, 2019, 12:16 pm
#59
Join Date: Dec 2010
Programs: Hilton Diamond, Marriott Titanium, Radisson Gold, Hyatt Globalist, M life Gold, IHG Spire
Posts: 918
So disappointed with the category change for the Hyatt Regency Boston, our goto hotel during the summer. Question for the experts, my annual certificate does not renew until April 😶... Could I technically book the Boston property with points right now for 15k and then switch it to the certificate in April?
From personal experience, any change to the reservation after the change in categories will force the new categories.
Mar 11, 2019, 7:11 pm
#60
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Madison, WI
Programs: Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 973
Glad I already booked the family vacay to Andaz Costa Rica for May. Used 2 cat 1-4 certs and points to book nights in a suites.
Under the new valuations, would have cost me nearly 50k more in points.
Too bad. I'm sure many people will be disappointed by change.
Thinking of booking for Mayakoba before it goes up in points.
Under the new valuations, would have cost me nearly 50k more in points.
Too bad. I'm sure many people will be disappointed by change.
Thinking of booking for Mayakoba before it goes up in points.