Hyatt Launches Their First Promotion of 2019 (And Includes Award Stays)!

Hyatt has announced their first promotion of 2019.  It rewards members in two different ways:

• Members earn 1,000 Bonus Points per night at 750+ Hyatt hotels, 10+ participating M life Rewards destinations, and 100+ participating Small Luxury Hotels of the World.
• Plus, members can earn an additional 500 Bonus Points per night when those nights are at any of the 300+ Hyatt Place or 80+ Hyatt House hotels.

ETA: I totally missed that this counts for award stays as well.  This language appears in the T&C:

an “Eligible Night” is defined as any night where a member is paying an Eligible Rate or redeems a free night award for at least one night of their stay

Kudos to Gary for catching that.  I definitely missed it.

You don’t earn points on your first stay, which I always find annoying.  But, you do earn these points on all subsequent stays during the promotion period, which runs until May 15th, 2019.  The bonus is applicable at all Hyatt properties, as well as the extended family of M Life properties in Las Vegas and the participating Small Luxury Hotels of the World.  You can earn bonus points for a maximum of 50 nights during that time period.  If you max this one out, I think I feel a bit sorry for you (unless it’s the most epic of vacations).

You’ll need to register for the promotion.  I always recommend registering for promotions ahead of time.  Plans change, and you never know when you end up at a hotel that has a promo but you forgot to register.  It’s generally too late at that point.  Registration is free and should only take a minute.

How Does This Promo Stack Up?

Hotel promotions in general aren’t as rewarding today as they were 5 or 10 years ago.  The new reality is that hotels release promotions less frequently and they’re generally less lucrative.  I like this promotion for its simplicity.  I don’t have to think about what day of the week it is, I just need to stay at a Hyatt hotel.  1,000 bonus points is decent for a per-night bonus.  If you happen to stay at limited-service hotels like Hyatt Place and Hyatt House, all the better.  I don’t think 500 points a night is enough to stay at a less convenient hotel.  But, if you were already planning to stay in a particular are and you’re choosing from a Holiday Inn Express or a Hyatt Place, 1,500 points a night could be enough to sway your decision.  Personally, I love earning bonus points as opposed to free nights since it gives me more freedom on how I book.

Hilton has a pretty interesting promotion out for 2019.  It’s definitely worth a look, but my stay patterns will have me continuing to patronize Hyatt through this promotion period.  Marriott just wrapped up a promotion two weeks ago.  They have been sending out targeted promotions recently, though I haven’t been targeted for one.

The Final Two Pennies

Stacking up extra points for stays you were already planning is one of the best ways to get ahead in the miles and points game.  I wouldn’t book a room just to earn this bonus, but I might consider moving business from another chain.  With award stays in the mix, this strikes me as a the most worthwhile promo we’ll see during this cycle.

The major chains have just started announced award category changes for 2019.  Radisson went first.  Marriott followed shortly thereafter.  Hilton doesn’t really publish award charts anymore.  And, Hyatt dropped their list just a few days ago.  Keep an eye on which properties are going up and down in category, and make sure to register for all of the promotions so you can maximize your points for free travel.

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