Hyatt credit card & redemptions

[red259]

So I am booking my redemptions for some hyatt stays coming up. I'm going to do two nights in the park hyatt saigon. One night I will use my free night cert cat 1-4. The second night I am trying to decide if I should go straight points 15k or cash and points which would be 7.5k points and $100 cash. With the credit card I get 10% of the points back so either 1.5k points back or 750 points back.. I'm not going to make next level status on stays because I don't have enough paid stays. With cash and points it counts towards status but you also earn points on your spend, so 100 hyatt points and 300 Chase URs.  Even with the 15k redemption I'm getting slightly over .02 per point back even before the redemption. Obviously I got a lot more of value per point if I go cash and points, but I'm going out of pocket. What would you do?

[Anonymous]

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@red259 wrote:

So I am booking my redemptions for some hyatt stays coming up. I'm going to do two nights in the park hyatt saigon. One night I will use my free night cert cat 1-4. The second night I am trying to decide if I should go straight points 15k or cash and points which would be 7.5k points and $100 cash. With the credit card I get 10% of the points back so either 1.5k points back or 750 points back.. I'm not going to make next level status on stays because I don't have enough paid stays. With cash and points it counts towards status but you also earn points on your spend, so 100 hyatt points and 300 Chase URs.  Even with the 15k redemption I'm getting slightly over .02 per point back even before the redemption. Obviously I got a lot more of value per point if I go cash and points, but I'm going out of pocket. What would you do?

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From what I can tell, the Park Hyatt Saigon costs around $250/night.  With the cash + points you pay $100 and 7500 points, which means you earn a total return of 1150 points (for the moment I am assuming you would be transferring the Chase UR points to Hyatt--how you decide to redeem them will of course affect your analysis) and you save $150 on the room. In other words, you pay $100 and 6350 points.  If you use points for the entire night, then you get 1500 points back and spend a total of 13,500 points.  So the operative question is whether 7150 is worth more or less than $100 to you because that's what you save by paying the extra $100.  By my calculations, that would be like buying the points for 1.4 cents or so, which is a fairly good deal, if you ask me.

[Anonymous]

My general rule, especially with Hyatt but also with other hotel point programs, is to only use points or free nights for stays that would normally be $500-$800 plus per night. I try to optimize my point return and overall value, and also try to use points for a stay that would normally be one I wouldn't pay for.

$250 per night is not that high of a cost. I'd just go ahead and pay outright for that 2nd night. I'd also only use the category 1-4 certificate if you are sure there won't be a higher cost Hyatt you may wish to use it in within 12 months (yes, there are category 4 Hyatts where a paid stay would cost $700-$800 during peak periods). Enjoy your time in Saigon.

[wasCB14]

When did you have to app to get 10% of your spent points back? Is that a permanent feature or a temporary promotion? I don't think I get that on mine.

I'd do cash and points at those values.

[red259]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

When did you have to app to get 10% of your spent points back? Is that a permanent feature or a temporary promotion? I don't think I get that on mine.

I'd do cash and points at those values.

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Its through the hyatt account in the promo section. Its temporary. 

[red259]

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@Anonymous wrote:

My general rule, especially with Hyatt but also with other hotel point programs, is to only use points or free nights for stays that would normally be $500-$800 plus per night. I try to optimize my point return and overall value, and also try to use points for a stay that would normally be one I wouldn't pay for.

$250 per night is not that high of a cost. I'd just go ahead and pay outright for that 2nd night. I'd also only use the category 1-4 certificate if you are sure there won't be a higher cost Hyatt you may wish to use it in within 12 months (yes, there are category 4 Hyatts where a paid stay would cost $700-$800 during peak periods). Enjoy your time in Saigon.

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I don't have any current plans to stay at one of those hyatts to get that kind of return and I won't shell out $250 per night for a room in SE Asia. Paying with points is one thing. Paying full freight I'm just not going to do, especially at a place like hyatt where I don't have high enough status for upgades etc. 

[Anonymous]

$250 per night is a bargain at a Park Hyatt. Best to do whatever works for you. High status is not needed to make the most of free nights.