Contrary to the unfortunate trend of an increasing number of lodging companies slowly and quietly reverting to the expiration policies and decreased flexibility which was more common prior to the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic, official announcements from World of Hyatt — most of them positive — were released.
World of Hyatt Extends Expiration Policies and Increases Flexibility Yet Again
With the new policies, members of World of Hyatt will have even more time to enjoy the valuable benefits which the frequent guest loyalty program offers — and peace of mind as a result — due to the extension of expiration policies and continued flexibility which were recently announced.
Hyatt led the way by providing a flexible cancellation policy for guests on Saturday, April 4, 2020 — as well as extended elite tier status and other benefits of the World of Hyatt frequent guest loyalty program for all members around the world. To give members one less thing about which to be concerned during the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic, the following benefits will be further extended for all World of Hyatt members globally, with more time to use:
- Points: The forfeiture of World of Hyatt points is now suspended through Wednesday, June 30, 2021. As a reminder, the general policy is that points do not expire; but they will be forfeited if a member’s account is inactive for 24 months.
- Earned awards, as with awards with an expiration date in:
- 2020: All unused Free Night, Suite Upgrade and Club Lounge Access awards with expiration dates between Sunday, March 1, 2020 and Thursday, December 31, 2020 will be extended to Friday, December 31, 2021.
- 2021: All unused Suite Upgrade and Club Lounge Access awards with Sunday, February 28, 2021 expiration dates will be extended to Friday, December 31, 2021. In addition, all unused Free Night awards that were earned in 2020 with 2021 expiration dates will be extended to Friday, December 31, 2021.
Increased Flexibility With Updates to Award Chart
To provide members advance notice to plan ahead and get the most out of their points for free nights, World of Hyatt is implementing the following updates to its award chart:
- Off-Peak and Peak point redemption further postponed: World of Hyatt is further postponing the introduction of Off-peak and Peak point redemption — which was originally planned for Sunday, March 22, 2020 — until sometime in July of 2021. This means that the redemption of free nights will continue to be at standard rates through June of 2021.
- Annual hotel award chart changes announced: A list of hotel and resort properties which are increasing or decreasing in category was recently released for the World of Hyatt frequent guest loyalty program, with no hotel and resort property changing by more than one category. Of the total of 16 hotel and resort properties which are affected by the category changes, only four hotel and resort properties — or 25 percent — will require the redemption of an increased amount of World of Hyatt points per night effective as of sometime during March of 2021. The remaining twelve hotel and resort properties will require the redemption of fewer World of Hyatt points per night effective as of Thursday, October 29, 2020.
Six Current Offers and Promotions For When You Are Ready to Travel
In addition to the information in this article, be advised that no fewer than six promotions are currently in effect through which you can earn bonus World of Hyatt points or save money:
- Bonus Journeys Promotion: Receive triple World of Hyatt points for all eligible paid stays with the Bonus Journeys global promotion through Monday, January 4, 2021 — but you must register for this promotion by Monday, November 30, 2020 prior to checking in for your first stay; and the maximum number of points you can earn through this promotion is 150,000 bonus World of Hyatt points in addition to any bonus points you may earn as a member who has earned elite level status in the World of Hyatt frequent guest loyalty program. You can earn those bonus points at all hotel and resort properties within the brand portfolio of Hyatt Corporation, participating MGM Resorts destinations in Las Vegas, Small Luxury Hotels of the World hotel properties, and even Lindblad Expeditions — all of which are included in this promotion — and you can choose to earn either World of Hyatt base points, travel partner miles, or M life credits for each qualifying stay in order to earn bonus World of Hyatt points in conjunction with this promotion.
- Work from Hyatt Promotion: Transform your routine of working from home into a memorable working vacation in North America and the Caribbean at your choice of 51 participating hotel and resort properties and another eight Hyatt Ziva and Hyatt Zilara resort properties instead of being cooped up at home day after day and night after night — but you must book your reservation by Thursday, December 31, 2020 and stay a minimum of seven nights when purchasing Work from Hyatt packages, which are available for stays through Wednesday, March 31, 2021.
- 500 Bonus Points at New Hotel and Resort Properties: You can earn 500 bonus World of Hyatt points per qualifying night for staying at 98 new hotel and resort properties around the world for a limited time.
- Dine Local and Earn Triple Points: Earn triple World of Hyatt points on eligible charges for purchases of food and beverages at participating restaurants at 401 Hyatt hotel and resort properties worldwide through Monday, January 4, 2021 — even though you are not staying as a guest at the hotel or resort property for the night — when you choose the options of dining in, delivery, or takeout. You must provide your World of Hyatt membership number at the time of purchase; and you are limited to earn the maximum amount of 100,000 bonus World of Hyatt points per transaction through this promotion — in addition to any bonus World of Hyatt points you may earn as a member who has earned elite level status.
- Free Nights On Sale: Redeem your World of Hyatt points on award stays, Points + Cash stays, dining and spa services, Exhale classes, spa therapies, FIND experiences, Lindblad excursions, and towards room upgrades through Monday, January 4, 2021 and have 15 percent of them automatically returned to your membership account as bonus points; plus enjoy complimentary parking when it can be charged to the hotel or resort property during those award stays — but you must register for this promotion by Tuesday, December 1, 2020; and you must be a member of the World of Hyatt frequent guest loyalty program. If you are a Hyatt Credit Cardmember or World of Hyatt Credit Cardmember, you will earn an extra ten percent — meaning that you will have 25 percent World of Hyatt points automatically returned to your membership account as bonus points. To qualify, your credit card account must be open at the time of fulfillment. Bonus World of Hyatt points will post directly to your World of Hyatt membership account and will not appear on your credit card statement.
- Earn Three Points Per Dollar With American Airlines Partnership: For every United States dollar you spend when you stay at your choice of greater than 1,000 hotel or resort properties worldwide which participate in the World of Hyatt frequent guest loyalty program between Tuesday, September 22, 2020 and Thursday, December 31, 2020, you will earn three American Airlines AAdvantage miles — but you must register for this promotion by Saturday, October 31, 2020; and no maximum limit as to how many bonus miles you may earn exists.
Summary
In addition to the information in this article, Hyatt announced a multi-layered Global Care and Cleanliness Commitment to further enhance its operational guidance and resources around colleague and guest safety and peace of mind.
If you are not already a member of World of Hyatt, you can join free of charge.
With few exceptions, Hyatt has arguably been the most progressive among lodging companies — and possibly the travel industry as a whole in general — in terms of the way its customers and members of its World of Hyatt frequent guest loyalty program during the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic.
All photographs ©2014, ©2015, and ©2018 by Brian Cohen.
